Peng He remembers celebrating the Chinese New Year with fireworks in his home country. Until five years ago, the graduate student spent the holiday in China, eating special meals and discussing the happenings of the year with his whole family.

Now, as today marks the Chinese New Year, He will celebrate with other Chinese students through programs sponsored by the Confucius Institute and the Chinese Student Association, of which He is president.

The holiday, according to Sarah Cao, deputy director of the Confucius Institute, is as revered in China as Christmas is in America, and lasts for 15 days.

The date is different every year because it is based on the lunar calendar, said Guanglin Dai, program coordinator for the Institute. However, she said it almost always takes place in January or February.

“In Chinese it is also called the ‘Spring Festival,'” Dai said. “[It means] spring is coming.”

And much like the New Year is celebrated in America, Chinese New Year’s Eve is when much of the celebrating occurs.

The menu on Chinese New Year’s Eve often consists of foods such as fish, chicken and dumplings — some of which are meant to bring good luck.

Setting off firecrackers is also a large part of the tradition, but it’s a tradition that’s beginning to change, according to Cao.

“Now, in urban areas, there have been too many injuries, so there are serious restrictions on that,” Cao said. “[There has been] anger because of that — it’s a huge tradition.”

Once the Chinese New Year’s Eve celebrations are over, however, the holiday is far from ending. Cao said many Chinese people take the two-week span off of work.

“As the economy is getting stronger in China, the government is really encouraging people to take those weeks off and travel,” she said.

But for Chinese people living in America, it may be more difficult to take those two weeks off of school or work.

“It’s really difficult for students here in the U.S. and abroad not to be with their families,” Cao said. “They do their best to be with other students who are in the same situation.”

One way to celebrate while away from China is by watching the Chinese Spring Festival — a six hour program that airs on China Central Television.

Chinese New Year celebrations on campus

Thursday, Feb. 711 a.m. – 2 p.m.Activities in the Brickyard

“The aim of this show is to show some traditional Chinese culture…and some introduction of the Beijing olympic games.”–Peng He, president of the Chinese Student Association and doctoral student in Chemistry

Friday, Feb. 87 p.m. Talley Student Center

Traditional Chinese food will be served, followed by a two-hour Chinese show including live bands, Chinese Kung Fu and singing, according to He.

The Year of the Rat

Today marks the first day of the Year of the Rat. There are different meanings for the animals chosen each year, and people born under those symbols exhibit different traits. The rat is a symbol of aggression, charm, wealth and order, as well as of death, war, the occult, pestilence and atrocities.

Other years:

Rat Feb. 19, 1996 and Feb. 7, 2008Ox Feb. 7, 1997 and Feb. 26, 2009Tiger Jan. 28, 1998 and Feb. 14, 2010Rabbit Feb. 16, 1999 and Feb. 3, 2011Dragon Feb. 5, 2000 and Jan. 23, 2012Snake Jan. 24, 2001 and Feb. 10, 2013Horse Feb. 12, 2002 and Jan. 31, 2014Sheep Feb. 1, 2003 and Feb. 19, 2015Monkey Jan. 22, 2004 and Feb. 8, 2016Rooster Feb. 9, 2005 and Jan. 28, 2017Dog Jan. 29, 2006 and Feb. 16, 2018Pig Feb. 18, 2007 and Feb. 5, 2019

Sources: Guanglin Dai, program coordinator for the Confucius Institute and www.wikipedia.org