One of the more popular news today is the Chinese New Year, for which 2016 was named after the monkey, while 2015 like it, was named after the sheep. But you may wonder, what is with the naming of years for animals, what do they mean exactly?
The Chinese New Year is the point in the year when the Chinese zodiac transitions from one animal year to the next, and falls on the first day of the first month of the ancient Chinese lunar calendar – sometime between 21 January and 20 February. It is celebrated by Chinese communities across the world with colourful ceremonies and spectacular fireworks.
Today, hundreds of millions of people take to the country’s transport networks to reunite with their families, in a journey home that has come to be known as the Spring Festival Travel Rush. It is believed to be one of the largest single movements of human for one event in the world!
The ancient Chinese observed that time was divided into twelves: each day had two 12-hour time periods, each year had 12 full moons. They also ordered the years into cycles of 12, with five of these 12-year cycles making up a complete lunar cycle of 60 years.
The Animal Race – On Your Marks
Each year of a 12-year cycle was allocated to an animal. One of the most popular stories that explains the order of the animals of the zodiac is that the Jade Emperor (first god) summoned all the animals of the Universe to a race.
At first the kindly ox was in the lead, but he stopped in order to help the smaller rat cross a river. When they were almost at the other side, the cunny rat jumped ashore, winning the race by a whisker, and became the first animal of the zodiac.
Read on to see how each animal correspond to each of the years in the second part of the series on the Chinese New Year.
See Also: 2016 is the Chinese Year Of the MONKEY. But Why Are They Named For Animals? (2)
