Category Archives: Rituals, festivals, holidays

The Red Wedding Dress in Chinese Cultures

Nationality: Asian
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Palm Springs, California
Performance Date: Monday, April 18th, 2016
Primary Language: English

“So Chinese women typically wear red wedding dresses because it symbolizes good luck … happiness and good fortune. Also it signifies a prosperous marriage.”

 

When did you first learn of this tradition?

“I first learned about this tradition when flipping through old photo books of my grandpa’s wedding to my grandma. My grandma was wearing a bright red dress and I asked my dad why, and he told me that it symbolized good fortune for the marriage.”

 

Will you personally follow in this tradition?

“Personally, I will probably stick to the American tradition of a white or ivory dress because I grew up in America.”

 

What does this story mean to you?

I” personally, directly I don’t have the tradition, and I’m probably not going to follow it when I get married, but knowing that my adoptive family has been following the tradition of wearing the red dresses really roots me to where I was adopted from. I was adopted from Southern China.”

 

Who usually talks about this story?

“Mainly my dad’s side of the family who are all Chinese Americans. Every time someone is married, there is a child born, or Chinese New Years it just intertwines with traditions in general and we usually talk about it then. Red is a very prominent color in Chinese culture because it represents good fortune.”

 

Analysis:

I’ve heard a lot of references about the color red symbolizing good fortune in Asian culture, but I was surprised to find out how interwoven it is into some of the Chinese traditions. The story of the red wedding dress demonstrates the informant’s connection to her Chinese background. While she does not think that she will follow in this tradition, the informant still values the history and family connection to the dress color. The red wedding dress also symbolizes an initiation into maturity, and granting good luck in this process of marriage. I also think it is unique that her adopted family and her biological family all have connections to this tradition.

The Tangerines

Nationality: Asian
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Palm Springs, 2016
Performance Date: Monday, April 18th, 2016
Primary Language: English

“The tangerines are supposed to have at least one leaf attached to them … Back story about the tangerines, tangerines are supposed to be picked freshly from a tree and placed in each room of the household during Spring Cleaning. To Chinese culture, it is supposed to ward off negativity and bring in positivity with its citrus scents and the life that it brings to your home because it is a living fruit.”

 

When did you first hear about this tradition?

“My entire life I have done this. My parents and I would always grab tangerines from my … tangerines from our tangerine tree. When the fruit eventually dried up from not being watered or attached to the tree, that signified that Spring Cleaning was over and it was time to start anew.”

 

“Chinese Spring Cleaning is a component of Chinese New Year. As opposed to American calendar years, the Chinese use the lunar calendar. So Chinese New Years usually falls at the end of January or the beginning of February. And each year signifies a new animal. For this year is the year of the monkey 2016. And so the festivities in each house hold is to clean and get ride of all of the hold and negativity that you have been harboring for the past year and start fresh. A lot of traditional China Chinese people pray to their ancestors and Buddha in a mental cleaning sense but also seep out all of the dirt of their house and dust and literal dirt out of their living space.”

 

What do you see as the significance of this tradition?

“For us it is a great way to start a new. As I said, it usually takes place in January or February so it is right before westernized Spring Cleaning so it ties in with that as well.”

Analysis:

The tangerines represent a refreshing start to the year and the cleansing of the mental and physical home. I think that the tangerines also represent the new wave of crops, so the fruit physically represents the new taking place of the old. I think the theme of reds and oranges in Chinese culture symbolizing good fortune or good luck is an interesting trend.

The Chinese Lunar Calendar

Nationality: Asian
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Performance Date: Monday, April 18th, 2016
Primary Language: English
Language: Chinese: Cantonese

“Ok so the jist of it is, the Lunar Calendar, the Chinese Lunar Calendar is dictated by the year of the animal. Every year it is a different animal. The year of the tiger, year of the dragon, year of the lamb. There are 12 animals that go on rotation. Every twelve years the same animal will come to be. So depending on what year you were born on, you would be born to the year of that certain animal. And the year of the animal changes every Chinese New Year. So there are twelve animals in the Chinese zodiac/lunar calendar and the legend is that the order that the order the animals came is through a race.

“So apparently, a race was called um and animals would have to race together and the first twelve that made it across the finish line would make it onto the calendar. And depending on the order those twelve came across the finish line, that would be the order one to twelve. So the main gist of the story is that the challenges that they would all have to race, they would have to jump a creek and race all of the way through and throughout the whole race, the ox was in the lead. Um during the race, the rat jumps on top of the ox and as the ox is running and right as it is by the finish line, with all of the other animal behind them, and they’re going, just as the ox is approaching the finish line the rat jumps off the ox’s head and steals first place. And so the ox becomes second. Tiger third and all of the other animals follow until twelve. That is the legend of how the lunar calendar came to be.

 

Who told you this story?

“My dad.”

 

And in what setting?

“My guess would be a discussion about Chinese New Year.”

 

Who usually talks about this story?

“People that are native from China or find that the story is interesting to pass along discuss it at Chinese New Year.”

 

What does this story mean to you?

“Um it doesn’t affect the way I live my life, a funny insight into how the Chinese culture characterizes what western culture tends to objectify. Even years form the Chinese people have a life incorporated into it. The fact that you apply living animals to every year. And there is a story to how they collaborated and how they approach one another and how that came to be.”

 

Analysis:

I think that this story is a very significant aspect of tradition Chinese culture. It is unique that animals play such a large role in the development of the calendar because I have heard that animals are good luck charms in Chinese tradition. While this story does help us understand the meaning of the Chinese Lunar Calendar, it is also a fun story to listen to and take part in the tradition.

Roscón de Reyes

Nationality: Hispanic
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Chicago, Illinois
Performance Date: Tuesday, April 19th, 2016
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

“In English this means the Ring of Kings. And it is a celebration for … that is celebrated on the Day of Kings, which is usually January 6th and on this day, children receive presents not from Christ or Santa Claus, from the Kings – the three wise men from the story of Christ. And in this day a little figurine of baby Christ is put in a ring-shaped cake and whoever pulls it out is blest for the rest of the year by Christ himself. And in Mexican culture you also have to make dinner for the whole family. Whoever pulls out Christ has to make dinner to spread the blessings. Celebration of the three wise men.

 

“The cake starts getting cut on January 6th but it can spread out over the whole week. In Hispanic culture we celebrate Christ and the Kings over two or three weeks. Its like a two or week party. Christmas to January 12th.”

 

When did you start celebrating this tradition?

“I started first celebrating when I was around four. I remember this because my family would actively avoid trying to get Christ from the ring of kings and I saw my sister once get it and put it back because no one wants to make tallies.”

 

What does this story mean to you?

“To me, it is something my mom liked to do and brought my family together to the same table and see everyone together especially since everyone is so busy.”

 

Analysis:

It seems as though the celebration of Roscón de Reyes is primarily celebrated to bring everyone in the informant’s family together. I got the sense that no one in the family actually wanted to get the good luck charm because of the inconvenience of having to spread their luck by making a meal for everyone. I have heard of the Biblical Story of the Three Kings but never in a physical celebration. I think that the cake is another way to bring the family together.

 

For another version of what is celebrated for Roscón de Reyes, please visit:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/dailydish/2012/01/three-kings-day-tba.html

Harris, Jenn. “Celebrate Three Kings Day with Rosca De Reyes.” L.A. Now. LA Times, 5 Jan. 2012. Web. 26 Apr. 2016.

Dia De Los Muertos

Nationality: Hispanic
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Chicago, Illinois
Performance Date: Tuesday, April 19th, 2016
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

“Day of the Dead. It is just the celebration of the past ancestors. It’s celebrated before Halloween or on Halloween, I’m not sure. Wait – it’s November 1st. we usually celebrate it by going to the cemetery and having a picnic, setting up their favorite food and celebrating their memory. Who they are and who they are as a person.”

 

Do you have a favorite memory from this day?

“When we celebrated my grandfather. We celebrated his memory here in the States. We set up a little shrine for him and set out some of his favorite food: sweetbread and molé.”

 

When did you start celebrating this day?

“When my grandfather died so when I was like five.”

 

Who usually participates in this tradition?

“Usually the whole family. Usually go to the big family plot and visit all of the family members, the ones from recent memory.”

 

Analysis:
I think this celebration is very popular in one form or another for many cultures in order to celebrate the dead. I think it is unique that the informant and his family in their culture celebrate all of their dead on one day. They remember their recently deceased and memorialize them. This tradition enables the family to mourn and celebrate the passing of important people in their lives and bring them together as a whole.