Also known as the Spring Festival, the event saw colourful dragons, pandas, dancers and a Scottish Pipe Band light up a special night in the city centre.

In Chinese culture, 2019 is the Year of the Pig. The Pig represents luck, overall good fortune, wealth, honesty and general prosperity. It symbolises a hard working, peace-loving person, who is truthful, generous, indulgent, patient, reliable, trusting, sincere, giving, and sociable, with a good sense of humour and understanding.

The event started off in George Square with dragon and lion dancers, a costume parade, face painting, balloon modelling and paper cutting for the children. The St. Francis Pipe Band from the Gorbals area of Glasgow provided a Scottish element to the event and were warmly welcomed by the crowd.

The event continued into the City Chambers, hosted by Lord Provost Eva Bolander where she welcomed the Chinese New Year to Glasgow. This was followed by an address from Mr Xinchun Pan, consul general of the consulate of China. There was then a full programme of entertainment including a display of Kung Fu and Chinese cultural music and dance.

The event was organised by the Chinese Cultural and Welfare Society Scotland (CCWSS) under the leadership of chairperson, Andy Chung. It was also supported by ng homes, Queens Cross Housing Association, Arnold Clark, the Consulate General of China in Edinburgh, the Glasgow Chinese Recreation Centre and the Glasgow Chinese Students Community amongst many others.

Andy Chung, chair of the Chinese Cultural and Welfare Society Scotland, said: “We are delighted to celebrate this very important event for Chinese people in our home city of Glasgow and we are pleased for the support of the Lord Provost to bring this colourful event to the heart of the city. This is the fourth year that we have organised this festival in Glasgow and we would like to thank our supporters and sponsors. We would like to see this event become a larger event in the city and hope that more businesses and communities can support us for next year to celebrate this with Scottish and other cultures.”

Margaret Fraser, head of regeneration at ng homes, said: “We have been pleased to support the work of the Chinese community over the last four years in opening up their culture and celebrations to the communities and the city of Glasgow. The idea to bring this celebration to Glasgow City Centre began four years ago with Andy Chung, chair of CCWSS. He wanted to see this important celebration become part of Glasgow’s annual festivities with a real multicultural element.

“It has been wonderful to see the dedication of community organisers and volunteers to organise such a large event. ng homes were once again delighted to help facilitate the Chinese New Year celebrations and will continue to put an emphasis on integrating and celebrating the rich variety of communities in North Glasgow and beyond. We will continue to support this event and hope that many others come on board to make this even more spectacular next year.”