Around the world, not only in China and in Taiwan, celebrations and ceremonies have been set in motion to celebrate the Year of the Rabbit on Feb 3, 2011.
On the day, millions have lit incense and headed to public events. Fireworks were shot into the night sky, lion dancing, dragon dancing, ethnic folk dancing, and other activities took place on the day.
Wishing someone a Happy New Year in Cantonese is pronounced “Gung Hay Fat Choy.” In Mandarin Chinese, it is “Xin Nian Kuai Le” or “Xin Nian Yu Kuai.”
The origin of the holiday is linked to an ancient beast named Nian that used to come on the eve of the Lunar New Year and terrorize the countryside. Based on legend, the firecrackers were set off to ward off the beast.
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