Ever wonder why the Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival, is always ushered in with exploding firecrackers?

If you have no idea but are keen to know more, there is aneasy way to find out-calling in on your Chinese friends and celebrating Chinese New Year together with them.

In Chinese, the Chinese character nian means “a year” and phrase guonian means “celebrating or spending Chinese New Year.”

However, the character nian referred to a ferocious animal that liked to eat people and spending new year meant “avoiding a ferocious animal” or “dodging a disaster” in remote antiquity.

The vicious animal always left his den at the turn of the year and ate humans to satisfy his hunger.

The common folk wracked their brains to conceive of any feasible means to rid themselves of the creature. However, all their efforts ended in failure, all their efforts ended in failure until a sage advised burning bamboo, which would then crackle loudly.

This last resort succeeded in driving the vicious animal away because it was frightened out of its wits by the deafening sounds.

After that, a year with its four seasons was called nian and the beginning of a new year was celebrated instead of feared. In the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Firecrackers replaced the burning bamboo.

In addition to setting off firecrackers, many people still follow age-old social customs, many of them derived from ancient superstitions.

For many people, the ceremony of shousui-staying up all night to see the Old Year out and the New Year out and the New Year in-is a must.

On Chinese New Year’s Eve, all family members of a household get together and eat their fill at a sumptuous dinner. In most cases, the feast lasts late into the night.

However, family members often choose to stay up all night long after the eating is over to welcome the arrival of the Chinese New Year.

People believe that only in this way can the whole household be blessed by the gods. Otherwise, they will be considered to be indolent by deities and suffer troubles.

Some believe it is better for family members to go to bed early on Chinese New Year’s Day. The tale behind this tradition is a popular legend that all the mice’s daughters get married on the night of Chinese New Year’s Day.

Chinese people believe that the wedding ceremonies of the mice’s daughters would be bothered by people’s deafening noises if they carried on their New Year’s Day celebrations into the night.

In addition, family members are not allowed to make vulgar remarks during the Spring Festival. Otherwise, they will be reproved by senior members of the family. They believe gods would stop granting blessing to their household after nearing vulgarity.

Moreover, people must use euphemisms to replace such derogatory words as “death,” “illness” and “poverty” if they have to describe a misfortune.

Be warned: Be careful to choose suitable words if you want to avoid embarrassment.

(Beijing Weekend February 10, 2002)