Chinese New Year, also called Lunar New Year, is a 15 day celebration that typically takes place between January 21st and February 20th. Chinese New Year does not take place on the same day every year because it is determined by the lunar calendar. Chinese New Year takes place on the second new moon after the winter solstice (December 21). This year, Chinese New Year falls on Sunday, January 22.

This celebration started because the Jade emperor was looking for a way to measure time. Therefore, the animals were told to compete in a race across a river and the first 12 to finish would be rewarded by having a year named after them. The rat made a deal with the ox and rode on the Ox's back. Right before the finish line, the rat leapt off of the ox's head, finishing first and becoming the first zodiac year, and the ox became second. The tiger swam all the way across the river to become the third zodiac year. The rabbit finished fourth after hopping across stones before finally finding a log that brought it down the river. Next up was the dragon, that flew over the river, but made a quick pit stop making rain and blowing wind in order to help the rabbit finish. As the horse was just about to finish, a snake unraveled from his hove making the snake the sixth zodiac sign and the horse the seventh. The goat, monkey and rooster worked together to create a raft arriving together. The emperor named the goat eighth, monkey ninth and rooster tenth. In eleventh was the dog as it had stopped to bathe in the river. Finally, the pig came, after eating a meal and taking a nap.

Today, each new year is celebrated as each animal takes turns being celebrated. A big part of Chinese New Year is the year that you were born is associated with one of these 12 animals. For example, if you were born in 2005 your animal would be the rooster, 2006 would be the year of the dog, and so on. This year, 2023, is the year of the rabbit.