Chun Yun is a forty-day travel period when millions of Chinese people travel back to their homes to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Here’s all you need to know about the world’s largest migration.
Chun Yun and the Lunar New Year holiday season
The Lunar New Year or the spring festival period is a time for epic family reunions in China. It marks the start of the new year according to the traditional lunisolar calendar of China. Moreover, it is also celebrated in Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Tibet, and Vietnam.
The “Chun Yun” period began on January 7 and China is gearing up for a massive rise in travelers and Covid-19 cases. Additionally, this is the first time Lunar New Year celebrations will be held without covid restrictions since the ban on domestic travel in 2020.
In the last four weeks, China observed dramatic changes following the removal of its zero-covid policy. The government faced heavy criticism and historic protests against its policy restricting movement. Moreover, the frequent mass testing and lockdowns led to massive economic losses.
More on the festivities and current happenings
While modern China uses the widely adopted Georgian calendar, the nation’s holidays are decided based on the lunisolar calendar, in use since the 21st century BC. The Gregorian calendar was officially adopted in 1912 and the Lunar New Year was renamed Spring Festival. The date of the lunar new year varies based on the phase of the moon. This year, the festival falls on January 22.
Investors are hoping the nation’s $17 trillion economy will experience reinvigoration by reopening the “Chun Yun” and the festivities. As per the Chinese Ministry of Transport, over two billion passengers will travel in the coming 40 days. “China’s rural areas are wide, the population is also large, and the per capita medical resources are relatively insufficient. It’s necessary to provide convenient services, accelerate vaccination for the elderly in rural areas, and construct grassroots lines of defense,” stated Mi Feng. Deng is the spokesperson for the National Health Commission.