We would like to wish all staff and students at DMU a happy Chinese New Year: the Year of the Tiger.
Chinese New Year, also known as the Lunar New Year or Chinese Spring Festival, is a vibrant celebration to welcome luck and prosperity for the new year. Taking place on Tuesday 1 February 2022, celebrations will last for 16 days and culminate with a Lantern Festival on Tuesday 15 February 2022, where glowing paper lanterns will be released into the sky.
Each year is linked to one of the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. The order of the years of zodiac signs are said to be based on a folk tale known as the Great Race, where Jade Emperor invited a series of animals to participate and they were placed in order of where they finished in the race.
2022 is the year of the Tiger, the third animal in the Chinese zodiac. Characteristics of people born in the year of the Tiger are said to include ambitious, courageous, and generous. The year of the Tiger also fell in 2010, 1998, 1986 and 1974.
On New Year's Eve, Monday 31 January, a reunion dinner will take place, where families will sit around a table and enjoy delicious food and time together. Dumplings are a traditional dish often served at the reunion dinner as they are a symbol of luck.
To celebrate, Chinese people put up decorations including red couplets, spend time with loved ones, watch lion and dragon dances, set off fireworks, visit a Chinese temple to pray for good luck and gift red envelopes containing money.
Chinese people put on new clothes and say "gong xi fa cai", which translates to may you attain greater wealth, wishing each other good luck and happiness in the New Year.
The DMU Confucius Institute
The Confucius Institute at DMU (DMU CI) is a vibrant celebration of Chinese language and culture, providing an insight for students, staff and the wider community. It was co-founded by the University of Science and Technology in Beijing, the Chinese partner university of DMU CI.
DMI CI is hosting a number of upcoming events to celebrate Chinese New Year.
Chinese New Year mural at Leicester Highcross – live artwork creation
From Friday 28 January to Sunday 6 February, Leicestershire-based artist and Leicester Society of Artists member Siyuan Ren (AKA "the Peony Girl") will produce a huge mural featuring a tiger surrounded by peonies at the first floor entrance to John Lewis. Siyuan Ren has been commissioned by the store to paint the mural, and shoppers will be able to watch the work in progress and interact with the artist. See this Leicestershire Live article to find out more.
Gong xi fa cai to all who are celebrating!
Posted on Tuesday 1 February 2022