'Nian' in Mandarin means 'year'. However, legend has it that Nian was also a mythical monster that terrorised humans during the New Year. It was so fierce that it threatened to destroy the entire race of mankind. At a loss at what to do, the Emperor summoned his advisors to find a solution to this armageddon. Having devised an infallible plan, the advisors approached Nian and challenged it to prove its real power by destroying the other monsters of the earth rather than to erase the humans who were obviously no match for its strength.

Nian took up the challenge and a year later, after destroying all the monsters on earth, returned to boast that it reigned supreme. Unfortunately, its desire to wipe out the entire human race was still there. As luck would have it, some children happened to be playing firecrackers on that day and noticed that Nian fled from the loud explosions. Since then, these rituals were carried out year after year to scare away the last remaining bits of the evil monster.

Another version of the story relates that Nian was defeated by an immortal god disguised as an old man who offered the monster the same challenge as the one above. In the end, the immortal rode off with Nian and was never seen again. The villagers came out from hiding and once again enjoyed peaceful times. Before the immortal left, he advised the villagers to put red paper decorations on their windows and doors at each year's end in order to keep Nian away, as it was afraid of the colour red. The phrase "Guo Nian", which means "Survive the Nian" became "Celebrate the Year" and the word "guo" in Mandarin means both "pass over" and "observe".

Legend also has it that the lion was the only animal that could manage to wound the ferocious Nian. This gave rise to the lion dance, as the villagers of the story tried to mimic the lion in their attempt to frighten the beast away.

Troupes of lion dancers travel in lorries during the 15-day period to perform at private homes and businesses, even hotels and shopping complexes. It is one of the more spectacular sights during this period, where performers balance on the shoulder of one another to reach an ang pow (red packet filled with cash) tied to the top of a tall pole.

Written by Adrian Cheah