See more on Chinese New Year Flowers and Fruits. Plants and flowers are extremely popular in Hong Kong and Macau as Chinese New Year Decorations. The most popular blooming plants traditionally used during this period are: branches of plum blossoms, orchids, peonies, and peach blossoms. It is not uncommon to decorate houses with blooming flowers, which symbolize the coming of spring and wishes for a prosperous new year. Blooming Flowers - Wishes for a Prosperous New YearĬhinese New Year, also called Spring Festival, marks the beginning of spring. Kumquat trees are a very popular plant displayed during the Chinese New Year holidays, especially in South China's Cantonese-speaking regions of Hong Kong, Macau, Guangdong, and Guangxi. Therefore, having a kumquat tree at home symbolizes a wish for both wealth and good luck. The word ju not only sounds like the Chinese word for 'good luck' (吉 jí /jee/), but also contains the Chinese character if written 桔. Likewise in Mandarin, the kumquat is called jinju shu (金桔树 jīnjú shù /jin-jyoo shoo/), and the word jin (金) is the Chinese word for gold. The word gam (金) is the Cantonese word for 'gold', and the word gat sounds like the Cantonese word for 'good luck'. In Cantonese, the kumquat is called gam gat sue. People liked the alternative meaning so much that they started fixing their fu decorations upside down to "invoke" a 'pouring out' of blessings. So "你们的福倒了" could be understood as ‘Your fu (blessing) has been poured out’. 倒 (dao /daoww/) means 'to invert', but also means 'to pour out'. In fact, many of our friends share that making paper lanterns is a big hit for Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations at school, church, and local communities. On the first day of Chinese New Year, their first guest came to visit, and saw the upside-down 福, and kindly shouted to them: "你们的福倒了!" ('Your fu is upside down!'). Making lanterns for Chinese Lunar New Year: a special tradition We’re not the only ones who love making these lanterns. One Chinese New Year's day (the exact year is not known now), a family attached their 福 ( fu) upside down as a careless mistake. China Vietnam Korea Lunar New Year Greetings Lunar New Year is one of the most important celebrations of the year among East and.This interesting tradition may have come from an innocent mistake. So by upturning the character implies they're "pouring out" the jar of good fortune on those coming through the door! The Legend of the Upside-Down Fu The right side of the character was originally a pictogram for a jar. Fu means 'good fortune', and posting the character upside down means they want the 'good fortune' to "pour out" on them. The fu characters are deliberately inverted. Read on to find out more about the Chinese zodiac, Lunar New Year decorations and how they'll bring good luck into your life this year.Similar to New Year couplets, and sometimes as paper cuttings, is the pasting of big diamonds (squares at 45°) of paper calligraphy with the inverted Chinese character 福 (fú /foo/) on or over doors. This year, the Lunar New Year will be celebrated on January 22, 2023. "Before decorating, it’s important to note that it’s not just about decor – it’s also about bringing in the new and letting go of the old, so it’s just as important to make sure to clean the house first." Alyssa Chiang, co-founder of Lotus Magazine, shared some information about how her Taiwanese household observes the holiday. Some of them can even be DIY projects, if you're feeling crafty.īut before putting up the lanterns and doorway hangings, you'll want to tidy your space. We've rounded up several ideas for Lunar New Year decorations that you can buy on Amazon or Etsy. But across countries, one things that's relatively consistent is the fact that people decorate their homes and businesses in honor of the holiday. It's celebrated differently around the world, with countries like China, Vietnam, and Korea bringing some of their own traditions to the holiday. Lunar New Year is a time to celebrate with family and friends, enjoy delicious food, say hello to a new year, and bring a little luck into your life.
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