Vietnamese New Year
05/02/2019Vietnamese New Year (Tết Holiday)
Vietnamese New Year or Tết Holiday is the most important celebration and considered the biggest festival of the year in Vietnam. Celebrated on the first day of the first month in Lunar Calendar. Tet holiday may last up seven to ten days. The people come back the hometown where they were born to “eat” Tet.
Tet is the occasion for remembrance their ancestors as well welcome the New Year with their beloved family members.
During the Tet, the family will get together to decorate house with the Traditional Flower for Tet, cook the traditional food and have big meals with all the family. The ancestral altar is especially taken care of, with careful decoration of five kinds of fruits and votive papers, along with many religious rituals. Everybody buy new clothes and shoes to wear on the first days of New Year, especially children.
Like other Asian countries, Vietnamese believe that the color of red and yellow will bring good fortune, which may explain why these colors can be seen everywhere in Lunar New Year. Besides, gifts are exchanged between family members and friends and relatives, while children receive lucky money kept in red envelope.
Before and after Tet Nguyen Dan, Vietnamese people have many different customs depended on each region. There are some main customs as below:
“Tat nien” Party is on the 30 of December (the last month of the Lunar Year) when all people finish works of an old year. The Vietnamese families prepare a meal for worshiping ancestors to say goodbye the old year. And all the members of family gather for dinner. When the time to wish the good new year.
New Year’s Eve party (Giao Thua)
The Giao Thua is the time to start of new year with many customs and practices, amusement and entertainment, all of a distinct Vietnamese folk culture. The Giao Thua is the moment of seeing off the old chieftain upon the conclusion of his term and welcoming in the new one upon his assumption of office. For this reason, every home makes offerings in the open air to pray for a good new year.
What people often wish each other Vietnamese New Year.
Tet holidays are the moments of happiness and family enjoy, therefore Vietnamese often dedicate the most beautiful words to their family and friends on this occasion. Here is the list of the most common ones:
– I wish you a healthy new year
– I wish you a wealthy new year
– I wish that you will get promoted in the new year
– I wish that the new year will bring health to all your family
– New year, new triumphs (often heard in political speech)
– All wishes come true
– Eat more, grow rapidly (for children)
– New lover will come in the new year (for single people)
– Money influx is as strong as Da’s river; expenditure is as little as dripping coffee
