Spring Festival customs in various places

Our country is a multi-ethnic country. While the Han people celebrate the Spring Festival, many ethnic minorities also bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new year like the Han people and are immersed in the festive atmosphere. Because the history, culture, religious beliefs and living habits of each ethnic minority are different, they have formed their own colorful New Year customs with their own ethnic characteristics. On the first day of the first lunar month, there are Manchu, Mongolian, Korean, Daur, Ewenki, Huidongxiang Shehe Zhebai and other ethnic minorities who celebrate the Spring Festival with the Han people.

Mongolian people

The Mongolian people have always respected the color white, so they call the first month of the lunar calendar "White Moon" and the New Year's Day "White Festival". Preparations for the Mongolian New Year begin on the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month. In addition to cleaning and decorating the yurt for bathing, people also need to wear new clothes, horses wear red tassels and new saddles. The whole cow and sheep with hada should be dedicated to the close relatives and friends. On New Year's Eve, "hand-meat" is eaten to show family members. In the early morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year, people first toast to the elders and then toast to their peers. Relatives and friends present khatas to each other to wish them good luck in the new year. On the first day of the Lunar New Year, New Year greetings to elders must be in the morning.

Manchu people

When celebrating the Spring Festival, Manchu people wear couplets and the word "福" on their faces. The whole family makes dumplings on New Year's Eve, and the dumplings should be pleated. Don't make "monk's head" dumplings with bare edges, for fear that you will be "bald" after a long time. Dumplings should be arranged in rows horizontally and vertically, symbolizing that the new year's wealth will be in all directions. Dumplings cannot be placed in a circle, for fear that life will be difficult.

Korean people

On New Year’s Eve, the whole family of the Korean people stays up all night long, and the ancient gaya harp and flute music brings people into the new year. During the festival, men, women and children of all ages sing and dance to their heart's content, and hold springboard tug-of-war and other competitions. On the night of the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, a traditional celebration gathering is held. A few selected elderly people go up to the "moon-watching frame" and see the bright moon first, which is a blessing, which means that their children and grandchildren will be healthy and progress and everything will go well. Afterwards, everyone gathered around the lit "Moon Watching Frame" and danced to the music of long drums, flutes, flutes and suona.

She people

During the Spring Festival, the She people pound glutinous rice cakes, which is a homophonic pronunciation of glutinous rice cakes, and wish them good fortune in the new year and sweet glutinous rice cakes every day. . The She people worship their ancestor "Panhu". On the first day of the new year, the whole family worships the "Pangu Ancestral Picture" (a portrait based on the legend of Panhu) and tells the hardships of their ancestors' entrepreneurship.

Zhuang people

The Zhuang people’s Spring Festival lasts from the 30th day of the lunar year to the first and second day of the first lunar month, lasting three days. On New Year's Eve, every family kills chickens and ducks, steams minced pork powder, barbecued pork, etc. A lot of steamed rice is served on New Year's Eve, symbolizing wealth. There must be boiled chicken on the dinner table, and for families with elderly people, stewed pig's feet and whole chicken are also required. Zongzi is an indispensable food for the Zhuang people during the Spring Festival, but they often don’t eat it at night. The Zhuang people's rice dumplings are a noble food. The big ones weigh one or two kilograms, while the small ones only weigh two or three taels. In addition, there is also a kind of "Feng Mo", which means extra large rice dumplings, weighing one to twenty kilograms. The main raw material of Zongzi is glutinous rice, and the fillings include mung bean, pig skin and noodle sauce. Zongzi has a unique taste. When guests arrive on the first and second day of the first lunar month, they must eat rice dumplings. During the Spring Festival, cultural and sports activities such as antiphonal singing, top playing, dancing and ball games are held.

Hezhe people

The Spring Festival of the Hezhe people is the happiest festival of the year. On New Year's Eve, every family makes New Year's dinner, cuts window grilles and pastes lanterns. On the first day of the new year, girls and children all wear new clothes embroidered with clouds and go to the homes of relatives and friends to pay New Year greetings. The fish feast is a delicacy that the Hezhe people entertain their guests, including hot and sour "Tala Chang" (raw fish), crispy "fried fish feathers" and transparent and bright red salmon roe. Skiing, shooting grass, and playing grass ball are the most popular entertainment activities for Hezhen teenagers.

Bai people

The Bai people start worshiping each other and giving gifts to each other on New Year’s Eve. After midnight, young men and women rush to carry water first to show their hard work. In the early morning, the whole family drinks sugar water soaked with rice crackers, wishing that the days will be sweeter than honey. After breakfast, the children were led by adults to the homes of relatives and friends to pay New Year greetings to their elders. Dragon lantern dance, lion dance and target shooting are indispensable activities of the festival.

Daur people

The Daur language calls the Spring Festival "Anie". On the morning of New Year's Eve, every family sweeps the courtyard and piles debris and household dung into a high pile directly in front of the gate. After the pile is lit in the evening, light smoke fills the air, and a festive atmosphere is everywhere. The old people throw huge meat buns, dumplings and other food into the living pile to wish people and animals good health and a good harvest. In the evening, the whole family eats meat on hand and performs various activities to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new. People put incense sticks on the snow on the west side of their houses and bow to the west to commemorate their ancestors. On New Year's Eve, every family eats dumplings. The dumplings are wrapped with white threads, which means longevity. During the Spring Festival, there are hockey games, masquerades, listening to books, singing and other games.

Lahu people

The Lahu people celebrate the New Year from the first to the fourth day of the first lunar month, and the Small New Year from the ninth to the eleventh day of the first lunar month. On the 30th night of the twelfth lunar month, pigs are killed and glutinous rice cakes are pounded. Each family makes a pair of large rice cakes, symbolizing the sun and the moon. In addition, many small cakes are made to symbolize the stars, which means good weather and good harvests in the new year. The Lahu people also have the custom of gathering together to watch the New Year's Eve.

The Buyi people

The Buyi people prepare festive foods such as cakes, rice wine and so on before New Year’s Eve, and stay up until dawn on New Year’s Eve. When the rooster crows, the girls rush to the river to carry water. Whoever carries the first load of water first means that she is the most diligent and the happiest.

Wa people

The Wa people congratulate each other on the first day of the Lunar New Year, especially the elders in the village. During the New Year greetings, the two sides gave each other banana, glutinous rice cakes and sugar cane, symbolizing unity and harmony. Men and women of the Wa ethnic group in Cangyuan and other places gather in round dance circles in squares on festival evenings. Elderly women wear long skirts, and dozens of people form a team. They put their hands on the shoulders of those in front of them and dance lightly while singing ancient songs.

Tujia people

Tujia people dance the “hand-waving dance” during the Spring Festival. In the past, when performing the hand-waving dance, three tents were first hung in the "waving-hand hall", in which pig heads, pork incense candles, wild boar heads and hooves, etc. were hung. Then there was an old chieftain wearing a red robe and a crown, holding a magical instrument and taking the lead in swaying. Shouting, men, women, old and young all participated, worshiping the gods and dancing. Nowadays, in addition to hand-waving dances, the Tujia people also perform dragon lanterns and lions to perform dramas and martial arts.

Gaoshan Nationality

People of Gaoshan Nationality dress up in colorful national costumes during the Spring Festival, gather in groups at the edge of the village, drink wine, and sing and dance to the accompaniment of musical instruments. Some villages also hold spearfishing competitions and carry out sports activities such as basket ball and poleball.