The Lantern Festival was celebrated on Google’s homepages with a special logo in Taiwan and Hong Kong today. The Lantern Festival falls on the 15th day of the first month of China’s lunar year to mark the end of celebrations for the Chinese New Year.
The Lantern Festival has been celebrated for about 2,000 years on the night of the first full moon of the year. Lanterns are created to depict the animals of the zodiac, warriors, and historical figures – or, in the case of the Google Doodle, to create the letters for Google’s logo.
Lanterns also have riddles displayed for people to solve. The Lantern Festival is considered to be the Chinese version of Valentine’s Day. Yuanxiao, a glutinous rice ball, is one of the staple foods of the festival, as it is believed eating it will reward people with a good life.
The Chinese New Year was celebrated January 23. This is the Year of the Dragon.