Lunar New Year is one of the most important celebrations of the year among East and Southeast Asian cultures, including Chinese, Vietnamese and Korean communities, among others. [It] is celebrated for multiple days—not just one day as in the Gregorian calendar’s New Year.
“China’s Lunar New Year is known as the Spring Festival or Chūnjié in Mandarin, while Koreans call it Seollal and Vietnamese refer to it as Tết.
“Tied to the lunar calendar, the holiday began as a time for feasting and to honor household and heavenly deities, as well as ancestors. The [Lunar] New Year typically begins with the first new moon that occurs between the end of January and spans the first 15 days of the first month of the lunar calendar—until the full moon arrives.”
Key Stats
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, International Database (demographic data) and USA Trade Online (trade data); Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook (country reference maps). Countries with Lunar New Year celebrations include:
- Population Clock, World Population: Bhutan
- Population Clock, World Population: China (map graphic below)
- Population Clock, World Population: India
- Population Clock, World Population: Indonesia
- Population Clock, World Population: Korea, South
- Population Clock, World Population: Laos
- Population Clock, World Population: Malaysia
- Population Clock, World Population: Mongolia
- Population Clock, World Population: Singapore
- Population Clock, World Population: Taiwan
- Population Clock, World Population: Vietnam
Note: Click on the image above for the full page with additional charts on trade and population.
More Stats
From the International Programs Center:
Note: Click on the image above for the full interactive table. Click the “Population” column twice to sort most to least populous, as shown above. To find other countries, click the “Country/Area” filter button on the left and click the box for each country.