Cal State San Bernardino will play host to a Chinese New Year celebration on Friday, Feb. 16 at the university’s Santos Manuel Student Union starting at 5:30 p.m. featuring cultural performances, food and opportunity drawings for prizes, totaling $2,000.

Chinese New Year, which officially begins on Feb. 16, will celebrate the Year of the Dog, one of the 12 Chinese zodiac animals.

Chinese New Year is the most important holiday in China. Tied to the Chinese lunar calendar, the holiday was traditionally a time to honor household and heavenly deities as well as ancestors. Chinese New Year typically begins with the new moon that occurs between the end of January and the end of February, and it lasts about 15 days, until the full moon arrives with the Festival of Lanterns.

Each New Year was marked by the characteristics of one of the 12 zodiac animals: the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and pig.

The celebration is organized by the CSUSB Chinese Student and Scholars Association and sponsored by Associated Students Inc., the College of Extended Learning, the SMSU Cross Cultural Center, and the University Diversity Committee.

For nearly a decade, the Chinese New Year celebration has offered a night of fun and cultural experiences.

Tickets are $6 and are available at the ASI box office. Fifty free tickets will be available to students on a first-come, first-served basis.