Chinese New Year
There is an old Chinese legend behind the nian or the New Year which can explain why the Chinese New Year is celebrated. Nian was a Chinese monster who used to come to the Chinese village once every year at the beginning of spring and demanded for the sacrifice of a young child for him to eat. And the people used to obey him every year. But eventually, the villagers decided that they will not sacrifice anymore. They had found out that nian was afraid of loud noises and colors. So the next time nian came, they banged drums and gongs, and also set off a lot of firecrackers, which scared the monster. He ran away and didn't come back for a year. And every year since then, the villagers put up red paper and blasted firecrackers, just in case nian came back. This is how the celebrations for the New Year became a tradition in the whole of China.