Vibrant red and gold decorations lined the walls and tables of every corner as the rich smell of food wafted amongst a chatter-filled room: The Chinese Lunar New Year celebration was celebrated at Kennesaw State on Jan. 25, 2022, saying farewell to the year of the Tiger and welcoming the year of the Rabbit.
The on-campus celebration of the Chinese Lunar New Year celebration was put together and hosted by KSU’s Chinese Language and Culture Club. Admission to the event was free to the public, and attendees were able to partake in food, watch performances, learn festival customs and play trivia games.
Lunar New Year is celebrated in many parts of East Asia, where it marks the new year in the Chinese lunar calendar.
This year’s event marks the club’s first in-person celebration of the Chinese Lunar New Year since 2019. Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, the event was held virtually for the last few years.
“It’s important in all East Asian cultures and it’s why we wanted to go big for it because it’s their number one holiday,” President of the CLCC Brittany D. Skeen said.
In China, the celebration is also called Xīnnián kuàilè (新年快乐), translating to “New Year happiness.”
“It is also called Spring Festival,” the CLCC’s Faculty Advisor Sha Huang said. “It is the most important festival for Chinese people and people from other countries like Korea and Vietnam. It is the festival for family reunion and celebration.”
Amy Zheng and Sophia Hinson, two of the CLCC’s officers, gave lessons on Lunar New Year customs, explaining the zodiac animals and the legend of the nian, a fierce beast in Chinese mythology. They gave the lesson verbally in Chinese while the English translation was projected onto the wall, allowing those who did not speak Chinese the ability to enjoy the lesson.
The event wrapped up with a game of trivia, where the guests were divided into teams based on their Chinese zodiac signs and quizzed about Lunar New Year trivia. A tiebreaker was done through a lightning round of Chinese idioms.
“I really liked the questionnaire, I thought that was really cool,” said Elle Douglas, one of the event’s attendees. “They taught me a lot about Chinese culture. I thought I knew quite a bit but it showed me that I didn’t.”
A lot of preparation went into making the event come together, Huang said. Buying decorations, putting together the presentations, creating and distributing flyers for the event and enrolling student volunteers were among the many things to prepare for the event.
The CLCC, the club that hosted the celebration, is one of KSU’s many student-led organizations and has been around for several years. It aims to introduce students to Chinese culture during their time at KSU.
“If you’re there and you’re willing to absorb information, they’re willing to tell you anything about the culture if you really want to know,” member of the CLCC Emiko Robie said.
Membership in the club is not limited to those with Chinese heritage, Skeen said. Those interested in joining do not need to have any prior knowledge of Chinese culture or the language. The club invites all who have an interest in learning about China.
“Even if you aren’t Chinese, just come if you’re interested,” Skeen said. “We are diverse. We are welcoming. As long as you love cultures and you’re not disrespectful, please come join us. We want to have you and we want to make this a huge event. Everyone’s welcome!”
