Weekend Long Read: Is Someone Stealing Chinese New Year?

The term “Chinese New Year” is widely recognized around the world. It refers to the celebration of the New Year according to the Chinese calendar, during which people often greet each other with “Happy Chinese New Year!”

However, another term, “Lunar New Year,” is increasingly replacing “Chinese New Year.” Here “lunar” refers to the lunar calendar. But technically, it is not accurate to describe it as the “Lunar New Year,” because the Chinese calendar is a lunisolar, rather than purely lunar calendar.