Hong Kong Government Lunar New Year kau chim tradition
# Hong Kong Government Lunar New Year kau chim tradition

In each year's Chinese New Year celebrations in Hong Kong, a member of the Hong Kong Government represents the city in a divination ritual called kau chim. The event takes place on the second day of the Lunar New Year at Che Kung temple, Sha Tin, where a fortune stick is drawn. The luck of the city for that upcoming Lunar year will be foretold by the message on the fortune stick. The message is written in the form of classical Chinese poetry and is then interpreted by a Feng shui sifu or fortune teller.

## Tradition

Usually one stick is drawn for the fortune of the city by a main representative person. Other sticks may be drawn for smaller community divinations. There are five categories of stick fortunes, from good (上), to mid (中), to bad (下). Each level also has internal degrees. For example, stick #27 is unlucky. It relates to the story of Qin Shi Huang, first emperor of the Qin dynasty, who built the Great Wall of China and sparked widespread opposition among his people.

## Results

| Year of the | Time frame | Stick drawer | Stick number | Result |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Goat | 15 Feb 1991 3 Feb 1992 | | | |
| Monkey | 4 Feb 1992 22 Jan 1993 | | 27 | Bad |
| Rooster | 23 Jan 1993 9 Feb 1994 | | | |
| Dog | 10 Feb 1994 30 Jan 1995 | | | |
| Pig | 31 Jan 1995 18 Feb 1996 | | 61 | |
| Rat | 19 Feb 1996 6 Feb 1997 | | 70 | |
| Ox | 7 Feb 1997 27 Jan 1998 | | 81 | |
| Tiger | 28 Jan 1998 15 Feb 1999 | | 37 | |
| Rabbit | 16 Feb 1999 4 Feb 2000 | Lui Hau-tuen | 34 | |
| Dragon | 5 Feb 2000 23 Jan 2001 | Lui Hau-tuen | 91 | |
| Snake | 24 Jan 2001 11 Feb 2002 | Lui Hau-tuen | 30 | |
| Horse | 12 Feb 2002 31 Jan 2003 | Lui Hau-tuen | 38 | |
| Goat | 1 Feb 2003 21 Jan 2004 | Patrick Ho Chi-ping | 83 | Bad |
| Monkey | 22 Jan 2004 8 Feb 2005 | Lau Wong-fat | 76 | Mid |
| Rooster | 9 Feb 2005 28 Jan 2006 | Lau Wong-fat | 53 | Mid |
| Dog | 29 Jan 2006 17 Feb 2007 | Lau Wong-fat | 75 | Good |
| Pig | 18 Feb 2007 6 Feb 2008 | Lau Wong-fat | 36 | Mid |
| Rat | 7 Feb 2008 25 Jan 2009 | Lau Wong-fat | 60 | Good |
| Ox | 26 Jan 2009 13 Feb 2010 | Lau Wong-fat | 27 | Bad |
| Tiger | 14 Feb 2010 2 Feb 2011 | Lau Wong-fat | 53 | Mid |
| Rabbit | 3 Feb 2011 22 Jan 2012 | Lau Wong-fat | 11 | Mid |
| Dragon | 23 Jan 2012 09 Feb 2013 | Lau Wong-fat | 29 | Mid |
| Snake | 10 Feb 2013 30 Jan 2014 | Lau Wong-fat | 95 | Bad |
| Horse | 31 Jan 2014 18 Feb 2015 | Lau Wong-fat | 4 | Mid |
| Goat | 19 Feb 2015 7 Feb 2016 | Lau Wong-fat | 20 | Mid |
| Monkey | 8 Feb 2016 27 Jan 2017 | Kenneth Lau | 72 | Good |
| Rooster | 28 Jan 2017 15 Feb 2018 | Kenneth Lau | 61 | Mid |
| Dog | 16 Feb 2018 4 Feb 2019 | Kenneth Lau | 21/41 | Mid |
| Pig | 5 Feb 2019 24 Jan 2020 | Kenneth Lau | 86 | Mid |
| Rat | 25 Jan 2020 11 Feb 2021 | Kenneth Lau | 92 | Mid |
