In pictures: Welcoming the Lunar New Year

Millions of people across Asia and the world are welcoming the Lunar New Year which coincides with the first new moon of the lunar calendar.

Widely considered to be the most important event in the year for many in Asia and some Asian communities worldwide, the Lunar New Year represents a fresh start for those who celebrate.

Fireworks, music, fairs, lanterns, dragon and lion dancing filled streets across Asia as celebrations that typically last about 15 days began.

In Beijing, China, performers took to the stage to celebrate the start of the Year of the Snake. Image Source - Andres Martinex Casares / EPA - EFE 

Stilt walkers joined a parade through a park in Beijing. - Image Source - Florence Lo/Reuters

Candles were lit at a Chinese temple in Yangon, Myanmar. - Image Source - Nyein Chan Naing/EPA-EFE

A woman prays at a shrine in Bangkok... Image Source - Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP

While others pose for pictures to share with friends and family. - Image Source - Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP

Prayers are offered at the Hong San Koo Tee temple in Surabaya in Indonesia. - Image Source - Juni Jriswanto/AFP

Dancers perform the Lion Dance in Banda Aceh as people gather to watch. - Image Source - Chaideer Mahyuddin/AFP

In Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur worshippers gather at the Taoist temple of Sin Sze Si Ya to celebrate and pray. - Image Source - Hasnoor Hussain/Reuters

Dragon dancers make their way through the streets of Manila as firecrackers explode around them. - Image Source - Eloisa Lopez/Reuters

Large candles are lit Darma Ramsi Temple to mark the Chinese Lunar New Year in Bandung, West Java, Indonesia. - Image Source - Timur Matahari/AFP

Dancers wearing lion costumes perform during a midnight Lunar New Year celebration in New York's Chinatown. - Image Source - Adam Gray/Reuters

Dancers perform a traditional dance at Namsangol Hanok Village in Seoul, South Korea. = Image Source - Hwawon Ceci Lee/Anadolu via Getty Images

A woman holds incense as she prays in Hanoi, Vietnam, where the Lunar New Year celebrations are known as Tet. - Image Source - Nhac Nguyen/AFP