The 15 days of Chinese New Year 2027 run from Saturday, 6 February (Day 1) to Saturday, 20 February (Day 15, Chap Goh Meh), with the reunion dinner on the eve, Friday, 5 February. Each day carries its own traditional meaning: Day 1 is for greetings and elders, Day 2 for married daughters and the “opening of the year”, Day 3 is the quiet “red mouth” day, Day 5 welcomes the God of Wealth, Day 7 is everyone’s birthday, Day 9 belongs to the Jade Emperor, and Day 15 closes the season under the first full moon.
Most people only experience the first two days and the reunion dinner, and I think that is a pity. The fortnight is shaped like a good meal: a heavy opening, a pause, a second course of business and celebration, and a gentle finish. If you want the dates, the Malaysian holiday notes and the home preparation checklist, start with my Chinese New Year 2027 guide. This article goes deeper into what each day is for and what families commonly do. I describe customs as they are widely practised, and where they differ by community or where I am unsure, I say so.
The 15 Days at a Glance
All dates and weekdays below come from a calendar computation for 2027. The lunar first month begins on 6 February.
| Day | Date | Traditional meaning | What families commonly do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eve 除夕 | Fri, 5 Feb | Closing the old year | Reunion dinner, staying up late 守歲 |
| Day 1 初一 | Sat, 6 Feb | New Year’s Day | Greet elders, prayers, angpao to children, avoid sweeping |
| Day 2 初二 | Sun, 7 Feb | Opening of the year; daughters visit | 開年 meal in many Cantonese families, visiting parents |
| Day 3 初三 | Mon, 8 Feb | Chi Kou 赤口 | Many stay home to avoid quarrels |
| Day 4 初四 | Tue, 9 Feb | Welcoming deities back | Prayers, offerings in many families |
| Day 5 初五 | Wed, 10 Feb | Po Wu 破五; God of Wealth | Business reopening, Choy San prayers |
| Day 6 初六 | Thu, 11 Feb | Horse day in the folk series | Visiting resumes |
| Day 7 初七 | Fri, 12 Feb | Ren Ri 人日 | Yee sang, “everyone’s birthday” |
| Day 8 初八 | Sat, 13 Feb | Preparation day | Hokkien families prepare for midnight prayers |
| Day 9 初九 | Sun, 14 Feb | Tian Gong 天公誕 | Hokkien prayers to the Jade Emperor |
| Days 10 to 14 | Mon, 15 to Fri, 19 Feb | Quieter period | Return to work, visits, lanterns ahead |
| Day 15 十五 | Sat, 20 Feb | Chap Goh Meh, first full moon | Lanterns, family meal, orange throwing |
The Eve and Day 1: Closing and Opening
On the eve, Friday, 5 February, the household gathers for the reunion dinner 年夜飯 (nián yè fàn). Many families offer incense to the ancestors and deities beforehand, switch on the lights in the main rooms and stay up late. I give more on that evening in my guide to the Chinese New Year reunion dinner.
Day 1, Saturday, 6 February, is for relationships. The young greet the old first, and elders hand out angpao to children and unmarried adults. Many families avoid sweeping on this day, avoid scissors and knives and keep their words kind. The reasoning behind these habits is the subject of my guide to Chinese New Year taboos, so I will not repeat it here. Day 1 is also when many families make their first visit to the family altar or temple. Customs for the first prayer vary, and I always advise following your own family’s practice rather than a generic one.
Day 2: Opening the Year and Visiting Parents
Day 2 is Sunday, 7 February 2027. In traditional custom this is the day married daughters return to their parents’ home, often with gifts and with their husband and children. It carried a special meaning when daughters moved far away after marriage and seldom saw their own family; Day 2 was their formal permission to return.
In many Cantonese families, Day 2 is also 開年 (kāi nián), literally “opening the year”. Families share a meal, make offerings, and businesses often perform their first opening ritual, sometimes with a lion dance. If you want to know what the lion dance is meant to do, I cover it in the lion dance guide. Not every community marks 開年 on Day 2, and some perform it on a different day in the first week.
Day 3: Chi Kou, a Day of Quiet
Monday, 8 February 2027 is Day 3, 赤口 (chìkǒu), the “red mouth” day. Folk belief holds that arguments flare easily, so many families avoid visiting and stay home, and some go to a temple instead. Because it falls on a Monday in 2027, many people will already be back at work, and for them the custom takes care of itself. I look on this day as a gift: a pause after two days of intense hospitality.
Day 4: Welcoming the Deities Back
Many families believe that the Kitchen God 灶君 (Zàojūn) leaves the household about a week before the new year, traditionally on the 23rd or 24th day of the twelfth lunar month, to report on the family to heaven. In 2027 the 23rd falls on Saturday, 30 January. Other household deities are said to return in the days after the new year, and Day 4, Tuesday, 9 February 2027, is a day that many families choose to welcome them back with incense, fruit and sweet offerings. This is often called 接神 (jiē shén).
Which day is observed, and how, varies. Some families do it on Day 4, some on another early day, and some simply continue their normal daily offerings. If your family has no tradition for it, you need not invent one. A fresh set of fruit and a few sticks of incense at the family altar, with a quiet word of thanks, is quite enough.
Day 5: Po Wu and the God of Wealth
Day 5, Wednesday, 10 February 2027, is 破五 (pò wǔ), “breaking the fifth”. The various restrictions of the first days, such as the sweeping and rubbish taboos, are considered lifted in many families. Rubbish may be cleared, and the home can return to a normal rhythm.
This is also the day on which many businesses reopen after the festival and welcome Choy San 財神 (Cáishén), the God of Wealth. Firecrackers or lion dances are traditional where local rules allow, and shops hang a fresh sign or place offerings at the entrance. If you want the background to the figure himself, see my article on Choy San, the God of Wealth. Customs for Day 5 differ across regions, and in Malaysia the focus on commerce is particularly strong.
Days 6 and 7: Horse Day and Ren Ri
Day 6 is Thursday, 11 February. An old folk series assigns an animal to each of the first days: chicken for Day 1, dog for Day 2, pig for Day 3, sheep for Day 4, ox for Day 5, horse for Day 6, then humans on Day 7 and grain on Day 8. The tradition says that clear weather on an animal’s day foretells that creature will thrive in the year. I find the series charming, and it is a reminder that these days predate the modern festival. Most families do not observe it with any ceremony.
Day 7, Friday, 12 February 2027, is 人日 (Rén Rì), “the day of humankind”. Traditionally it is everyone’s birthday, and in older reckoning everyone became a year older on this day, whatever the date of their actual birth. It is considered a day to reflect on relationships and to wish people long life.
In Malaysia, Ren Ri is closely tied to yee sang 魚生 (yúshēng), the raw fish salad tossed with chopsticks while people call out blessings. Many Malaysians eat it throughout the first fortnight, though Day 7 is the day with the strongest tradition. Its exact origin is debated, and I would not give you a definitive story. I describe the ritual in my guide to yee sang and the prosperity toss. Some families also eat noodles for longevity on this day, and a few prepare special dishes of seven ingredients, though I would not claim this as universal.
Days 8 and 9: Tian Gong and the Hokkien Midnight Prayer
Day 8 is Saturday, 13 February, and for Hokkien families it is a day of preparation. Sugar cane is bought, the altar table is set up outside, and offerings are arranged. The main prayer takes place at midnight as Day 8 becomes Day 9, so in 2027 that is around midnight between Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 February.
Day 9, Sunday, 14 February 2027, is 天公誕 (Tiāngōng Dàn), the birthday of the Jade Emperor. Hokkien communities treat this as one of the most important days of the first month, and some regard it as more important than Day 1 itself. If you are a Hokkien reader or have Hokkien friends, I explain the whole practice, from sugar cane to the altar set-up, in my article on Tian Gong, the Jade Emperor’s birthday. Readers from other dialect groups will see little of it unless they live among Hokkien neighbours, but you may smell incense and see sugar cane tied to gates on the night.
Days 10 to 14: A Quieter Stretch
After Day 9, the festival changes tone. Folk calendars do assign meanings to nearly every day of the first month, but the traditions differ so much between regions that I would be inventing detail if I claimed a standard programme for Days 10 to 14, Monday 15 to Friday 19 February. I would describe this stretch simply as quieter.
In practice, it is when most people return to work and school, when remaining visits are squeezed into evenings and weekends, and when preparations for the last night begin. It is a good time to finish eating the festive biscuits, plan the Day 15 dinner and, if you have not already done so, think about what you want from the year. This is also the natural window to review your home. Look at what the festival has left on the floor and in the cupboards, and begin planning what to tidy.
Day 15: Chap Goh Meh and the Close of the Festival
Saturday, 20 February 2027 is Day 15, 十五暝 (Chap Goh Meh) in Hokkien, the “fifteenth night”, and the Lantern Festival 元宵節 (Yuánxiāo Jié). The first full moon of the lunar year is traditionally the end of the New Year season. Families share a meal, light lanterns, and in some places single women toss mandarin oranges into the water in a custom linked to romance. I cover the customs, the sea-throwing debate and how to plan the night in my full guide to Chap Goh Meh.
Feng shui-wise, this is the traditional point at which the festive decorations are packed away, and the household returns to its ordinary routine. Mandarin oranges that remain should be eaten or shared, as explained in my mandarin orange guide.
How to Use the 15 Days Practically
You do not have to follow every day. I suggest choosing three or four that mean something to your family:
- Protect Day 1 and the eve. These two days carry the greatest weight for most families.
- Pick one day for quiet. Day 3 is the natural one.
- Mark the day that matches your heritage. For a Hokkien family it is Day 9, for many Cantonese families it is Day 2, and for many Malaysians it is Day 7.
- Close the festival properly on Day 15. A small dinner and a tidy home make a tidy start to the working year.
Common Questions
How many days does Chinese New Year last? The festival runs for 15 days, from the first day of the first lunar month to the Lantern Festival on the 15th. In 2027 that means 6 February to 20 February. Most workplaces and public holidays cover only a few days of it.
What is Chinese New Year Day 7? Day 7 is Ren Ri 人日, traditionally the birthday of humankind. It falls on Friday, 12 February 2027. Many families eat yee sang, and some regard it as the day everyone becomes a year older.
Is the first day or the fifteenth day more important? It depends on the family and the community. For most people Day 1 and the eve are the heart of the festival. Hokkien families often place special weight on Day 9, and the Malaysian community treats Chap Goh Meh as a major social occasion.
Are these customs the same everywhere? No. The overall shape is shared, but individual days differ a great deal by region, dialect and household. Treat the descriptions here as common practice, not rules.
Key Takeaways
- Chinese New Year 2027 runs 6 to 20 February, from Saturday, Day 1, to Saturday, Day 15, with the reunion dinner on Friday, 5 February.
- Day 2 (7 Feb) is for married daughters and, in many Cantonese families, the “opening of the year”. Day 3 (8 Feb) is the quiet Chi Kou day.
- Day 5 (10 Feb) is Po Wu, when taboos are lifted and many businesses welcome the God of Wealth.
- Day 7 (12 Feb) is Ren Ri, “everyone’s birthday”, linked in Malaysia to yee sang.
- Day 9 (14 Feb) is the Jade Emperor’s birthday for Hokkien families, with prayers at midnight between 13 and 14 February.
- Days 10 to 14 are a quieter stretch, and Day 15 (20 Feb) closes the festival with Chap Goh Meh. Customs vary by family, so keep what is meaningful to you.
If you would like help reading the Goat year against your own home, book a house Feng Shui consultation with me.
