What Is Lunar New Year and How Is It Celebrated?
Voice of America
A laughing monk approaches a toddler as lion dancers perform on Yaowarat Road in Chinatown in Bangkok on Feb. 9, 2024, on the eve of the Lunar New Year. People gather to look at a giant dragon figure at a park in Beijing on Feb. 9, 2024, which marks the eve of the Lunar New Year. This will be the Year of the Dragon. People buy dragon puppets on Yaowarat Road in Bangkok's Chinatown on Feb. 9, 2024, on the eve of the Lunar New Year. FILE - U.S. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden speak during a reception to celebrate the Lunar New Year in the East Room of the White House in Washington on Jan. 26, 2023.
On February 10, Asian American communities around the United States will ring in the Year of the Dragon with community carnivals, family gatherings, parades, traditional food, fireworks and other festivities. In many Asian countries, it is a festival that is celebrated for several days. In diaspora communities, particularly in cultural enclaves, Lunar New Year is visibly and joyfully celebrated.
