Celebrating the Chinese New Year in 2019 (in Photos)

Kelley Czajka
February 9, 2019
Here’s how the Year of the Pig began in different parts of Asia.
Performers walk with a lit model of a pig during the annual Lunar New Year parade in the Kowloon district of Hong Kong on February 5th, 2019, to mark the Year of the Pig.

Chinese New Year, also called the Spring Festival, began on February 5th, 2019, the first day of the Lunar Calendar. It is seen as the most important holiday of the year, and celebrations last until the 15th day of the lunar month with unique traditions for each day.

This year marks the Year of the Pig. According to legend, people born this year are expected to have personality traits reflecting the pig of the Chinese zodiac, including being energetic and enthusiastic.

This period, according to agrarian tradition, marks the time of year when farmers were best able to take a break and spend time with their families. The Communist leadership of Mao Zedong suppressed celebration of the holiday, as it was considered religious, feudalistic, or superstitious. It was reinstated in the period of economic boom following Mao’s death, and since 1996, it has been designated as a week-long vacation for people in China.

Here’s how the Lunar New Year of 2019 was celebrated in different parts of Asia.

Crowds pray for good fortune at Longhua temple in Shanghai to mark the start of the Lunar New Year early on February 5th, 2019. Chinese communities began welcoming the Year of the Pig on February 5th, ushering in the Lunar New Year with prayers, family feasts, and shopping sprees after embarking on the world's largest annual migration.
Crowds pray for good fortune at Longhua temple in Shanghai to mark the start of the Lunar New Year early on February 5th, 2019. Chinese communities began welcoming the Year of the Pig on February 5th, ushering in the Lunar New Year with prayers, family feasts, and shopping sprees after embarking on the world’s largest annual migration. 

(Photo: Matthew Knight/AFP/Getty Images)

Performers walk with a lit model of a pig during the annual Lunar New Year parade in the Kowloon district of Hong Kong on February 5th, 2019, to mark the Year of the Pig.
Performers walk with a lit model of a pig during the annual Lunar New Year parade in the Kowloon district of Hong Kong on February 5th, 2019, to mark the Year of the Pig.

(Photo: Anthony Wallace/AFP/Getty Images)

Balinese people wearing traditional outfits arrive at a Chinese temple to pray on the first day of the Lunar New Year in Denpasar on Indonesia's Bali island, on February 5th, 2019.
Balinese people wearing traditional outfits arrive at a Chinese temple to pray on the first day of the Lunar New Year in Denpasar on Indonesia’s Bali island, on February 5th, 2019.

(Photo: Sonny Tumbelaka/AFP/Getty Images)

North Korean refugees set a table as they prepare to pay respects to relatives and ancestors from North Korea on the occasion of the Lunar New Year, at the Imjingak
North Korean refugees set a table as they prepare to pay respects to relatives and ancestors from North Korea on the occasion of the Lunar New Year, at the Imjingak “peace park” near the Demilitarized Zone separating North and South Korea, in Paju, on February 5th, 2019.

(Photo: Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)

Indonesian firefighters work during a blaze at the Samudera Bhakti and Satya Budhi temple complex on the first day of Lunar New Year in Bandung on February 5th, 2019. No casualties were reported after the temple complex caught fire on the first day of the Lunar New Year.
Indonesian firefighters work during a blaze at the Samudera Bhakti and Satya Budhi temple complex on the first day of Lunar New Year in Bandung on February 5th, 2019. No casualties were reported after the temple complex caught fire on the first day of the Lunar New Year.

(Photo: Timur Matahari/AFP/Getty Images)

A woman prays at a Chinese temple to mark the Lunar New Year of the Pig in Banda Aceh, Indonesia's Aceh province, on February 5th, 2019.
A woman prays at a Chinese temple to mark the Lunar New Year of the Pig in Banda Aceh, Indonesia’s Aceh province, on February 5th, 2019.

(Photo: Chaideer Mahyuddin/AFP/Getty Images)

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Kelley Czajka Author

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