Chinese Lunar New Year 2019: Year Of The Pig Explained

China will hold massive celebrations starting February, acknowledging its New Year while paying homage to the Year of the Pig, according to the Chinese 12-year animal zodiac calendar. The Chinese zodiac year starts on the New Year’s Day which falls on Feb. 5.

Lunar New Year is a lengthy holiday marathon filled with traditions and rituals. People in China get a week off, starting from Lunar New Year eve on Monday (Feb. 4). Celebrations last for two weeks into the first lunar month and ends with the Lantern Festival on a full moon night. The Lantern Festival this year falls on Feb. 19. The festival is celebrated in places with large Chinese populations including Mainland China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Mauritius, Australia, the Philippines, Singapore and Taiwan.

Each year in the Chinese tradition is represented by one of 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac —rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig. The characteristics of these animals are believed to shape the year and the people born in it.

According to the Chinese zodiac, this is the year of the pig. However, those born in 2019 before Feb. 5 belong to the year of the dog. Previous pig years include 1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007.

The lucky colours for people born in the year of the pig are yellow, grey and brown. The lucky numbers are two, five and eight. Those born under pigs are thought to be most compatible with tigers, followed by rabbits and goats.

In general, the pig is associated with mildness, fortune, and wealth because of which people born in the year of the pig are supposed to be cheerful, sincere, compassionate, generous and brave.

In Chinese element theory, each zodiac sign is associated with one of the five elements: Gold (Metal), Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. Each year is also associated with one of five elements, and 2019 is an Earth Pig year.