Lunar New Year
Encyclopedia
Lunar New Year refers to the beginning of the year in several calendars. It is commonly assumed that they are all based on a lunar calendar
, although some are actually based on a lunisolar calendar
.
These new year celebrations sometimes fall on or near the same day of the Gregorian
year:
These celebrations fall on other days:
Lunar calendar
A lunar calendar is a calendar that is based on cycles of the lunar phase. A common purely lunar calendar is the Islamic calendar or Hijri calendar. A feature of the Islamic calendar is that a year is always 12 months, so the months are not linked with the seasons and drift each solar year by 11 to...
, although some are actually based on a lunisolar calendar
Lunisolar calendar
A lunisolar calendar is a calendar in many cultures whose date indicates both the moon phase and the time of the solar year. If the solar year is defined as a tropical year then a lunisolar calendar will give an indication of the season; if it is taken as a sidereal year then the calendar will...
.
These new year celebrations sometimes fall on or near the same day of the Gregorian
Gregorian calendar
The Gregorian calendar, also known as the Western calendar, or Christian calendar, is the internationally accepted civil calendar. It was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII, after whom the calendar was named, by a decree signed on 24 February 1582, a papal bull known by its opening words Inter...
year:
- Chinese New YearChinese New YearChinese New Year – often called Chinese Lunar New Year although it actually is lunisolar – is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. It is an all East and South-East-Asia celebration...
- Korean New YearKorean New YearKorean New Year, commonly known as Seollal , is the first day of the lunar calendar. It is the most important of the traditional Korean holidays. It consists of a period of celebrations, starting on New Year's Day. Koreans also celebrate solar New Year's Day on January 1 each year, following the...
(Seolnal) - TếtTetTet can mean:*Tết or Tết Nguyên Đán, the Vietnamese new year**Tet Offensive, a military campaign that began in 1968*Têt in Roussillon, France*Equal temperament, abbreviated as 12-TET, 19-TET and so on...
, Vietnamese New Year - Japanese New YearJapanese New YearThe is one of the most important annual festivals, with its own unique customs, and has been celebrated for centuries. Due to the importance of the holiday and the preparations required, the preceding days are quite busy, particularly the day before, known as Ōmisoka.The Japanese New Year has been...
(before 1873) - LosarLosarLosar is the Tibetan word for "new year." lo holds the semantic field "year, age"; sar holds the semantic field "new, fresh". Losar is the most important holiday in Tibet....
, Tibetan New Year - Tsagaan SarTsagaan SarTsagaan Sar , white moon or white month) is the lunisolar New Year festival of the Mongols. Today, Mongols are found in Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, Buryatia and Kalmykia. It is often celebrated around the same time as the Chinese New Year...
, Mongolian lunisolar new year
These celebrations fall on other days:
- Islamic New Year
- Rosh HashanahRosh HashanahRosh Hashanah , , is the Jewish New Year. It is the first of the High Holy Days or Yamim Nora'im which occur in the autumn...
, in the Jewish tradition, begins at sundown at the end of the 29th day of the month of Elul - Thai New YearThai New YearThe Songkran festival is celebrated in Thailand as the traditional New Year's Day from 13 to 15 April. It coincides with the New Year of many calendars of South and Southeast Asia....
(Songkran), falls in April in the Gregorian year - Cambodian New YearCambodian New YearCambodian New Year or Chaul Chnam Thmey in the Khmer language, literally "Enter Year New", is the name of the Cambodian holiday that celebrates the New Year. The holiday lasts for three days beginning on New Year's day, which usually falls on April 13 or 14th, which is the end of the harvesting...
, similar to the Thai New Year - Lao New YearLao New YearLao New Year, called Bpee Mai or Songkan , is celebrated every year from April 13th to April 15th.- History :Lao New Year is the most widely celebrated festival in Laos. The festival is also celebrated by Laotians in the United States of America, Canada, France, and Australia...
, similar to Thai and Cambodian - Sinhala and Tamil new yearSinhala and Tamil new yearThe timing of the Sinhala New Year coincides with the new year celebrations of many traditional calendars of South and Southeast Asia. The festival has close semblance to the Thai New year, Bengali New Year, and Oriya New Year festival in India....
, celebrated in Sri Lanka and coincides with Thai New Year - UgadiUgadiYugadi or Ugadi or "Samvatsradi" , Konkani/Marathi: युगादी yugādi, , formed by sandhi of yuga "age" and ādi "beginning": the beginning of an age) is the New Year's Day for the people of the Deccan region of India. It falls on the different day every year because the Hindu calendar is a lunisolar...
& Gudi PadwaGudi PadwaGudi Padwa or Gudhi Padwa , is the Marathi name for the Hindu holiday of Chaitra Shukla Pratipada. It is celebrated on the first day of the Chaitra month to mark the beginning of the New year according to the lunisolar Hindu calendar...
, this is the New Year's Day for the Deccan people of India, who also use a lunisolar calendar