Rob: Thank you Don for joining us today to celebrate the Lunar New Year.
I’m Rob Mailloux, the executive sponsor for the ASIAN ERG. I’d like to wish you all a happy new year. Maybe have Rob say “Happy New Year” in a few different languages. For example:
Vietnamese: “Chuc Mung Nam Moi”
Chinese (Cantonese): “Gong Hai Fat Choy”
Bangladesh: “Shuvo noboborsho”
For those of you that aren’t familiar with the Chinese Zodiac, the Monkey is actually the 9th animal in 12 Zodiac signs. Each sign in the Zodiac is represented by an animal and its reputed attributes. As Don detailed out earlier, the characteristics and attributes of the dog greatly align with Freddie Mac! As the fortune stated, I’m looking forward to the great partnerships ahead …show more content…
It is a holiday based on the Lunar calendar, versus the Western calendar that we’re all familiar with. If you’re wondering what the difference is, the Western (Gregorian) calendar is based on the Earth’s orbit around the sun whereas the Lunar calendar is based on the moon’s orbit around the Earth. Now that we’re done with the technicalities, the Lunar New Year is a time for many important aspects of Asian culture, such as family reunions and the observance of several traditions based on the hope of a prosperous new year. These traditions include cleansing the house in order to sweep away any ill-fortune and also make way for incoming good …show more content…
This is similar to how Americans travel back home on Thanksgiving to celebrate and give thanks with their families. Each year, this event sparks one of the world’s largest annual human migrations accounting for over 3.6 billion trips made across China. In China, the holiday spans over two weeks. Celebrations don’t only occur throughout Asia but also in places with a large Asian demographics, especially in the United States and Europe, with London and San Francisco claiming to host the largest celebrations outside of Asia. To emphasize the importance of this holiday, over a sixth of the world—celebrates Lunar New Year!
During the New Year, families will typically celebrate outdoors with lion dances--similar to what you just saw--parades with dragon dances and firecrackers. While at home, families have dinners, reunite with loved ones and exchange gifts. The color red is considered lucky so red clothing, red lanterns, and red envelopes are essential for New Year’s celebrations. Oh, I almost forgot to mention the food! There are many different types of dishes that are served in celebration of the New Year, such as (in China):
• Boiled Chicken
• Fish (sometimes, fish is merely displayed on the eve of the New Year because the pronunciation of fish makes it a homophone for surpluses.)
• Dumplings
• Taro and Turnip
I’m Rob Mailloux, the executive sponsor for the ASIAN ERG. I’d like to wish you all a happy new year. Maybe have Rob say “Happy New Year” in a few different languages. For example:
Vietnamese: “Chuc Mung Nam Moi”
Chinese (Cantonese): “Gong Hai Fat Choy”
Bangladesh: “Shuvo noboborsho”
For those of you that aren’t familiar with the Chinese Zodiac, the Monkey is actually the 9th animal in 12 Zodiac signs. Each sign in the Zodiac is represented by an animal and its reputed attributes. As Don detailed out earlier, the characteristics and attributes of the dog greatly align with Freddie Mac! As the fortune stated, I’m looking forward to the great partnerships ahead …show more content…
It is a holiday based on the Lunar calendar, versus the Western calendar that we’re all familiar with. If you’re wondering what the difference is, the Western (Gregorian) calendar is based on the Earth’s orbit around the sun whereas the Lunar calendar is based on the moon’s orbit around the Earth. Now that we’re done with the technicalities, the Lunar New Year is a time for many important aspects of Asian culture, such as family reunions and the observance of several traditions based on the hope of a prosperous new year. These traditions include cleansing the house in order to sweep away any ill-fortune and also make way for incoming good …show more content…
This is similar to how Americans travel back home on Thanksgiving to celebrate and give thanks with their families. Each year, this event sparks one of the world’s largest annual human migrations accounting for over 3.6 billion trips made across China. In China, the holiday spans over two weeks. Celebrations don’t only occur throughout Asia but also in places with a large Asian demographics, especially in the United States and Europe, with London and San Francisco claiming to host the largest celebrations outside of Asia. To emphasize the importance of this holiday, over a sixth of the world—celebrates Lunar New Year!
During the New Year, families will typically celebrate outdoors with lion dances--similar to what you just saw--parades with dragon dances and firecrackers. While at home, families have dinners, reunite with loved ones and exchange gifts. The color red is considered lucky so red clothing, red lanterns, and red envelopes are essential for New Year’s celebrations. Oh, I almost forgot to mention the food! There are many different types of dishes that are served in celebration of the New Year, such as (in China):
• Boiled Chicken
• Fish (sometimes, fish is merely displayed on the eve of the New Year because the pronunciation of fish makes it a homophone for surpluses.)
• Dumplings
• Taro and Turnip