Celebrating Lunar New Year @ AAV

Special New Year Readings and Activities Section

Readings		Activities
Products & Resources		New Year Dates

Image from the article, Chinese Lunar Calendar and Zodiac, by the SF Chinese Culture Center

Readings

Statement by the President on the Lunar New Year
By President Barack Obama
New Year’s greetings from the President

China, Asia Welcome the Year of the Rabbit
By Heda Bayron, VoA News
Year of the rabbit is expected to bring some uncertainty…

Discovering Chinese New Year’s
By Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, AAV Contributing Editor
After discovering Chinese New Year’s at 12, Wang now celebrates a more traditional New Year than her parents ever did. Is it still tradition when you make it all up out of a book?

Chinese Lunar Calendar and Zodiac
By the Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco
An informative primer on the background to the calendar, the legends of the 12 animals, and how the Chinese version of the Lunar calendar corresponds to the Gregorian calendar through the year 2019

Chinese New Year: The Kid-Friendly Version
By Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, AAV Contributing Editor
Every year Frances gives a presentation to her daughters’ school class — so she’s getting pretty good at it

Tet: A Celebration of Rebirth
By C.N. Le, Asian-Nation
Different flavors and new traditions in the Vietnamese holiday that’s “like New Year’s, Christmas, and Thanksgiving all rolled into one”

Tet Nguyen Dan
By Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, AAV Contributing Editor
An introduction to Vietnamese Lunar New Year

Sol – Korean Lunar New Year
By Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, AAV Contributing Editor
An introduction to Korean Lunar New Year

Chinese New Year Dates
Chinese Year	Zodiac Animal	Gregorian Date
4698	Dragon	Feb. 5, 2000
4699	Snake	Jan. 24, 2001
4700	Horse	Feb. 12, 2002
4701	Ram/Sheep	Feb. 1, 2003
4702	Monkey	Jan. 22, 2004
4703	Rooster	Feb. 9, 2005
4704	Dog	Jan. 29, 2006
4705	Boar	Feb. 18, 2007
4706	Rat	Feb. 7, 2008
4707	Ox	Jan. 26, 2009
4708	Tiger	Feb. 10, 2010
4709	Hare/Rabbit	Feb. 3, 2011
4710	Dragon	Jan. 23, 2012
4711	Snake	Feb. 10, 2013
4712	Horse	Jan. 31, 2014
4713	Ram/Sheep	Feb. 19, 2015
4714	Monkey	Feb. 9, 2016
4715	Rooster	Jan. 28, 2017
4716	Dog	Feb. 16, 2018
4717	Boar	Feb. 5, 2019
4718	Rat	Jan. 25, 2020
Chinese Lunar Calendar and Zodiac Detailed, nicely illustrated charts and background by the SF Chinese Culture Center

Losar: The Tibetan New Year
By Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, AAV Contributing Editor
An introduction to Tibetan Lunar New Year

History of the San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade
By the Chinese New Year Festival and Parade
As early as the 1860’s, Gold Rush Chinese were eager to share their culture

Celebrating the Chinese New Year
By the Chinese Cultural Center of San Francisco
A primer on traditional and modern celebrations

Celebrating the Lantern Festival
By the Chinese Cultural Center of San Francisco
Taking place under a full moon, the festival marks the end of New Year festivities.

Activities

S.F. Chinatown a feast for all 5 senses
By the AP
Travel and activity tips if you go

New Year Recipe: Long noodles for a long life
By the AP
With its beef and tomato combination married to crispy Chinese noodles, recipe is a blend of cuisines

Three Generations of Chinese New Year’s Cake (Nian Gao)
By Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, AAV Contributing Editor
From an elaborate two-day production to the lightning-fast microwave approach, preparation methods may have changed across generations, but the sticky-sweet New Year’s cake is still a savory culinary project for “a family that sticks together.”

For Love of Dumplings: Traditional and Not-So-Traditional Chinese Dumplings
By Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, AAV Contributing Editor
At family gatherings, sometimes a dumpling is more than just a dumpling. Recalling a family tradition with Grandmother Wang’s recipes.

It's S.A.M.!
Secret Asian Man sez: “Gung Hai Fat Choi!”

Lunar New Year Activities for Kids
Fun from the S.F. Chinese New Year Parade and Festival

Lunar New Year Activities
Send a greeting, gussy up your site with free clip art, and more!

Products & Resources

AFK Lunar Kit Ten Easy Lunar Celebration Ideas
Suggestions and a variety of products for Korean, Chinese, and other Lunar New Year celebrations available from the online catalogue of AsiaforKids.com.

Lunar New Year Books for Kids
By Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, AAV Contributing Editor
A review of children’s picture books by APA writers about celebrating Lunar New Year.

Videos for APA Kids: A Review
By Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, AAV Contributing Editor
A review of videos of multicultural stories and about Asian-American history and culture, including educational videos about the New Year.

Frances Kai-Hwa Wang is a second-generation Chinese American from California who now divides her time between Michigan and the Big Island of Hawaii. She is currently an acting editor for IMDiversity.com’s Asian-American Village, where she writes most frequently on culture, family, arts, and lifestyles topics. Her articles have appeared in Pacific Citizen, Asian Reader, Nikkei West, Sampan, Mavin, Eurasian Nation, and various Families with Children from China publications. She has also worked in anthropology and international development in Nepal, and in nonprofits and small business start-ups in the US. She is also the Outreach Coordinator of the Ann Arbor Chinese Center of Michigan and a much sought public speaker. She has four children. She can be reached at fkwang@aol.com.

IMDiversity.com is committed to presenting diverse points of view. However, the viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at IMD.