Marry This Year: In China, All Signs Point to Wedded Bliss
Zodiac and Lunar Calendar
Smile on Happy Couples;
'We Can Have a Pig Baby'
SHANGHAI -- Sun Lidong and Liu Weijia had been dating for about 18 months when they first heard that this year would be an especially auspicious time to get married. They decided to take the plunge.
"Getting married at the right time will bring you more happiness and more luck in the future," says Ms. Liu, 24 years old, a customer-service manager. "It's very important."
Liu Weijia and Sun Lidong, seen here in one of their wedding photos, believe that a 2006 union bodes well for a successful marriage.
A rare quirk of the lunar calendar -- and its alignment with the 12-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac -- has set off a wedding frenzy in China, as brides and grooms try to harness the forces of cosmic fortune to strengthen their marriages.
During the first three months of this lunar year, which began in late January, 44,000 couples registered their unions with the city authorities here. That is twice the number who registered during the same period in 2005. Couples often line up outside the city's marriage-registration centers on weekends and holidays by 5:30 a.m. so they can beat the rush when the doors open at 9.
The wedding mania is rippling across China and through the Chinese diaspora. Chris Chen, co-owner of wedding planner Dynasty Weddings in New York, which caters to the area's Chinese community, says his business has doubled from last year. "Everyone's just getting married like crazy," Mr. Chen says.
Yan Guiying is intent on finding a husband for her 27-year-old daughter. For more than two months, she has turned up every Saturday at People's Park in Shanghai for what is essentially a bustling market of parents trying to find mates for their children.
Clutching a hand-lettered sign with her daughter's vital statistics -- she's five-feet-three-inches tall, weighs 105 pounds, has white skin and earns $560 a month as a fashion designer for an Italian company -- Ms. Yan joined hundreds of other mothers and fathers trading their children's pictures and statistics.
"I'm very anxious," said Ms. Yan, a retired bank clerk. "Everyone wants their kids to get married this year."
Behind the boom: This lunar year, 4703 in the Chinese calendar, will last a longer-than-usual 385 days and contain two lunar springs. The advent of spring, or li chun, is considered especially propitious for starting a family. So, having two springs in a single year is doubly lucky.
Yan Guiying (center, with glasses) is among the parents who gather at People's Park in downtown Shanghai hoping to find spouses for their children. Ms. Yan's sign touts the attributes of her daughter, a 27-year-old fashion designer.
The extra-long year is a very uncommon event, tied to the complicated system used to keep lunar timekeeping roughly in sync with the solar calendar. The last one occurred in 1944, five years before the Communist Party took control of the country. People seem to have decided that the rarity will magnify the good fortune of the double spring.
Adding to the pressure, the years on either side of 2006 are considered exceptionally unlucky since they have no lunar spring. They are known as "widows' years." Many people believe women married in those years will lose their husbands at an early age. Marriage registrations in Shanghai were down nearly 20% last year.
Then there is the zodiac, which in Chinese culture holds that one's birth year helps determine his personality and prospects. This is the year of the dog, which is widely viewed as good for marriage. Next year is the year of the pig, which is seen as a time when fortune smiles on newborn babies.
The upshot of all the signs is that China is facing a demographic jolt as marriages that would have been spread over three years are being concentrated into one. At the same time, a significant spike in births is expected next year. Nielsen Media Research says it has already detected a surge in advertising for diapers and baby food on Chinese television and in magazines and newspapers.
"I've never seen anything like this," says veteran wedding planner Xu Hongliu, who has handled more than 100 weddings so far this year. "It's causing severe shortages" of everything from disc jockeys to photographers. Prices for roses and lilies have climbed as much as 30% in Shanghai's markets as demand has increased, she says.
Sociologists say that the wedding boom this year is part of a broader resurgence in traditional beliefs suppressed under Communist rule. They say it is fueled by the uncertainties of China's shift to a free market economy. "People feel like they are not in control," says Xu Anqi, a sociologist at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, and they "want to get help and blessings from [supernatural] forces for a good life."
LUCKY IN LOVE?
No li chun ("widow" year, or not good for marriage): 1956, 1959, 1962, 1964, 1967, 1970, 1972, 1975, 1978, 1981, 1983, 1986, 1989, 1991, 1994, 1997, 2000, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2013
Two li chun (good for marriage): 1995, 1957, 1960, 1963, 1966, 1968, 1971, 1974, 1976, 1979, 1982, 1984, 1987, 1990, 1993, 1995, 1998, 2001, 2004, 2006, 2009, 2012, 2014
Dog years with li chun: 1958, 1982, 1994, 2006
Astrologers warn people not to take these dates too seriously, because there are a number of other factors, including feng shui, zodiac compatibility, and element compatibility, that are considered when making matches; they also say those married in widow years should not think that all marriages in those years are doomed.Ms. Liu and Mr. Sun were married last month in a Shanghai hotel before hundreds of their friends and family members. In a short ceremony conducted by the DJ, the pair re-enacted their engagement -- with Mr. Sun on one knee -- before exchanging vows and rings. After Mr. Sun's boss made a toast, bubble machines were turned on as the DJ led the crowd in a rousing rendition of "If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands."
"Of course, this is a good year. It's a year of the dog and a double spring," said Mr. Sun. "It's even better that we can have a pig baby" -- since 2007 is a year of the pig. Explained Ms. Liu: "Pigs are fat, they live a comfortable life. My pig friends are all doing quite well."
Seated to one side was Rei Wang, 25, and his new wife, Eva Chu, also 25, who were married on May 1. "I wanted to hold off for a couple of years," confided Mr. Wang. But, he said, "Our parents ordered us to get married this year."
The aunt of Ms. Liu, the bride, however, said she didn't understand what all the fuss was about. Weng Xiuzheng, 64, spent her career in the People's Liberation Army and didn't consider lucky dates when she got married in 1962.
"When the army decided it was OK, we moved to be together" in the barracks at a military hospital, she said. "People didn't worry too much about the timing in the old days, and we're all still doing OK."
Many young Chinese aren't taking any chances. Tang Yihuan and his then-fiancée, Cheng Ting, were all set to get hitched last year. The couple bought an apartment and filled it with furniture. They picked out rings and hired a photographer. Then, they found out about "the widows' year," and preparations screeched to a halt.
The wedding was put on hold until this past March. In the meantime, the couple lived with Ms. Cheng's parents to "keep everything new," says Mr. Tang. "If we got married last year, it would have been a disaster," he says.
Mr. Tang says the delay is already paying off. Shortly after his wedding, he says, he was offered a new job, with higher pay, at a public-relations company that handles big multinational clients.
That's the kind of story that inspires parents. "I want my son to get married this year," says Zhang Yongfang, who started coming to the People's Park matchmaking gatherings in February.
But, she says, she's worried. It's already June and she hasn't found any takers so far. She holds out photos of her 27-year-old son in a green vinyl portfolio. "We are running out of time," says Ms. Zhang. "He can't get married next year. That would be horrible. He'll have to wait until the year after that."
黄道吉年结婚忙
孙立栋和刘蔚佳交往一年半了，突然听说今年特别适合结婚，于是决定今年把事儿办了。
24岁的刘女士是一位客户服务经理，她说，“结婚选对日子会让以后更加幸福快乐，因此非常重要。”
农历狗年和双立春掀起了中国人今年的结婚潮。新郎新娘都赶著借助这冥冥中的力量让自己的婚姻更加幸福美满。
今年的农历新年始于1月底，春节过后的前三个月内，仅上海就有44,000对新人登记结婚，是去年同期的两倍。周末或假日期间，这些准新郎、新娘们往往一大早5:30就来到结婚登记处门口，等著9点一开门就抢先办手续。
中国大地涌动著结婚热，而海外华人聚居区也毫不逊色。纽约市婚礼筹办机构Dynasty Weddings的共同所有人Chris Chen说，今年他们承办的婚礼比去年多了一倍。这家公司专门为纽约的华人社区提供婚庆服务。“人人都疯了似的抢著结婚。”
双语阅读
? In China, All Signs Point To Wedded Bliss 闫桂英的女儿27岁了，还是单身，这让做妈妈的倍感焦急。两个多月了，闫妈妈每个礼拜六都会到上海市人民公园去，这里还有许多其他大龄青年男女的父母，他们自发组织到一起，为儿女们征婚。
她把女儿的基本情况都写在一张小纸板上：身高1米60、体重47.5公斤、意大利公司时装设计师、月收入人民币5,000元。然后拿著这张纸与公园里其他的父母交换信息。
“我急死了，”闫妈妈说，“这儿的人都想让儿女今年就结婚。”
今年的农历年要长于往年，共有385天，还有年头年尾两次立春，意味著双重的幸运，这可是结婚的大好良机。
农历年的编制非常复杂，要经过很多调整使之与阳历年大体保持一致。像这样超长的年份很少见。按中国黄历纪年算，今年是4703年。上一个有385天的双立春年是1944年，也就是新中国成立前五年。中国人普遍认为，这种年份稀有而且珍贵，也意味著加倍的幸福美满。
今年有两个立春，而前后两个农历年却整年都没有立春这个节气，人们通常把这种年份称为“寡妇年”，认为此时结婚的少妇会早早失去丈夫。这就让今年的结婚气氛更加紧迫、更加浓厚了。去年，上海市登记结婚的人数锐减20%。
推波助澜的还有生肖。中国人普遍认为一个人的属相，也就是出生那一年的生肖，决定了一个人的个性和一生的命运。今年是狗年，传统的“宜婚”年。明年恰好就是猪年，最适合生孩子。
这些因素构成了一个全新景象：本来可以在三年内择机成婚的青年男女们全都挤到一年来了，明年估计就是个新生婴儿年。尼尔森媒体研究(Nielsen Media Research)就说，已经观察到中国的电视、杂志和报纸上出现了大量的纸尿裤和婴儿食品的广告。
“我还从没见过这样，”长期从事婚礼承办业务的徐红柳说。今年她已经筹办了100多起婚礼。从司仪到摄像师，“哪里的人手都不够”，玫瑰和百合的价格甚至都上涨了30%。
社会学家认为，今年的结婚热是中华传统文化复兴的表现之一。而中国经济迈向自由的市场经济所带来的不确定因素也推动了民族文化的重新兴起。上海社科院(Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences)社会学家徐安琪说，人们觉得身心得到释放，想得到超自然力量的祝福和保佑，过上幸福生活。
上个月，刘女士和孙先生在上海的一家酒店举办了结婚典礼，宴请了数百名亲朋好友。在司仪主持的简短仪式上，新人从定婚礼开始，新郎单膝下跪求婚，然后双方宣读结婚誓言，交换结婚戒指。孙先生的老板致了简短的祝酒辞，欢乐的乐声响起──“如果感到幸福你就拍拍手”。
“今年当然是个好年头，不但是狗年，还有两个立春，”孙先生说，“再说还能生个猪宝宝”──2007年恰好是猪年。刘女士接著说，猪仔胖乎乎的，能过上好日子。“我的属猪的朋友们都过得不错。”
旁边坐著25岁的Rei Wang和新婚妻子Eva Chu，他们五一刚刚结婚。“我想再等几年，”Rei Wang说，但是“双方父母都催我们今年就结婚。”
刘蔚佳的姨妈翁秀珍却不太理解这股热潮。她今年64岁，从部队的职位上退休，自己1962年结婚的时候从没考虑过什么良辰吉日。
“部队批准以后，我们就搬到”部队医院的临时宿舍，“过去大家不怎么考虑选日子，现在也都过得挺好。”
很多年轻人可不想这么随意。唐亦欢和程婷本来准备去年结婚，买了房子，也装修了，选好了结婚戒指，也请了摄像师，却突然发现去年是个“寡妇年”。一切戛然而止。
婚礼一直推迟到今年三月才举行。这段时间小两口一直和陈女士的父母住在一起，用唐先生的话说，是为了“保持新鲜感”。“如果去年结婚就糟了。”
唐先生说，婚礼推迟对了。结婚后不久，他就在一家公关公司谋到了一份新工作，薪水更高，客户都是大型跨国企业。
唐先生的经历给那些惦念儿女终身大事的父母们以启迪。“我想让儿子今年结婚”，张永芳说到。今年2月份开始，她也加入了人民公园的父母相亲大军。
不过，她说自己也很担心。现在已经6月了，她还没有找到合适的人选。她把儿子的照片拿出来，一位27岁的小伙子。“时间不多了”，她说“明年不适合结婚，那就得等到后年了。”
