Tết - Vietnamese Lunar New Year
- lorisolan
- Feb 24, 2018
- 3 min read
I was lucky enough to be in Vietnam around the time of the build up to Tết, the Vietnamese Lunar New Year. We landed in Hanoi on the 4th of February and you could tell there was a buzz and anticipation for the upcoming holiday.
As most shops are closed over this time, everyone is in a rush to get out and get a fresh haircut, buy new clothes, clean and decorate their homes, visit friends, settle outstanding debts, and stock up on traditional delicacies such as Banh Chung (steamed sqaure cake) and Gio Cha (Vietnamese sausage). Stalls pop up selling candied fruits and jams, traditional cakes, fresh fruit and vegetables and lots and lots of flowers. Read some more on other unique Tết food here.
Hanoi and especially Hoi An were filled full of colourful displays and the streets and buildings were lined and decorated with beautiful orange trees as well as many different types of flowers from bright yellow daisies, peach and pink apricot, gladiolas, lillies and orchids.
As with Chinese New Year the Vietnamese have lots of amazing traditions that they uphold around this time of year. I was curious to know what these were so did some research and chatted to some locals about how they spend their time in the lead up and on the day.
Tết Nguyen Dan or Tết is the most important Vietnamese holiday of the year. It marks the arrival of spring based on the Lunar calendar and is usually held in late January/early February. Although officially a 3 day occasion, festivities may last up to a week, mainly indulging in eating, drinking and attending social events. Tết Nguyen Dan translates to Feast of the very First morning.
Tết is celebrated on the same day as Chinese New Year and the Vietnamese also decorate with the colours red and yellow as they are seen to be the colours of good fortune. The Vietnamese acknowledge this holiday by cooking lots of traditional food, cleaning their home and decorating their Tết tree all the while carrying out other important customs such as giving children and elderly money in a red envelope (called Li Xi in the South or Tien Mung Tuoi in the North).
During this time of year the Vietnamese will visit their relatives and temples and wish away and forget any troubles from the previous year and look forward to all there is to come over the following year. People consider what they do on the morning of Tết to shape the fate for their whole year hence why you will see most Vietnamese at their friendliest with big smiles.
The first visitor to a families home on New Years Day is imperative to the families entire years success and fortune. It is ideal to have a person with good morals who is currently successful therefore whoever the family know that falls in to this category gets invited in to their home first. This tradition is called xông đất or xông nhà, and is one of the most important rituals during Tet. According to Vietnamese tradition, if positive and fortunate things come to the family on the first day of the lunar New Year, the entire year will be full of luck.
Tết is also a significant time for people to remember and paying respect to their ancestors and Vietnamese families usually have an altar or a specific place where they can place offerings. One of the offerings is the 'five fruit tray' which is placed on this altar during the Tet Holidays. It is a symbol of the admiration and gratitude of the Vietnamese to Heaven and Earth and their ancestors. The five fruits signify the hope that Heaven and Earth blesses humans.
Kumquat and orange trees are popular for Tết in families homes and businesses especially in the north or central Vietnam due to their ability to be able to survive colder weather. It is believed the many fruits on this tree are a symbol of the fertility and fruitfulness the family hopes to have over the coming year.
People get so into the holiday they even get their dog involved...
If you are considering a holiday around this time of year then I would urge you to consider a trip to Vietnam to see for yourself the beauty and wonder of their Lunar New Year.
Chúc Mừng Năm Mới '18 - Happy New Year '18
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