Vietnamese Tet - traditional and modern
On the occasion of Spring At Ty 2025, Nghe An Newspaper had a conversation with writer and researcher Bui Viet Thang about the flavor of Tet in poetry and literature and changes in life during Tet.
Minh Quan (Implemented) • January 25, 2025
PV:Dear writer Bui Viet Thang, on the occasion of the upcoming Lunar New Year, as a literary researcher, can you tell readers about the scent of Spring and the taste of Tet in your poems and literature?
Writer Bui Viet Thang:In literature, Spring and Tet are always a rich source of inspiration, not only for writers but also for readers. It is no coincidence that the poetess Anh Tho (1918-2005), in the collection “Countryside Painting” (1941), wrote 8 poems praising the beauty of Spring and Tet: “Spring Afternoon”, “Spring Day”, “Spring Night”, “Spring Moon Night”, “Spring Day Market”, “Tet Thirtieth Afternoon”, “Tet Thirtieth Night”, “Tet Day”. Her Tet poems are simple, imbued with the scent of the countryside:“On the muddy streets, the water flows/A little boy in red pants rides on his grandmother’s back/Girls wearing gold and incense hold their skirts/Smiling, wishing lucky money to passersby”(New Year's Day).
However, perhaps the one who left the most impression on today's readers was poet Doan Van Cu (1913 - 2004) with his unique poems about Spring and Tet in the famous collection of poems "Village Songs" (1944). In this collection of poems imbued with "rustic" character, he composed 10 poems about Spring and Tet: "Spring Sunshine", "Spring", "New Year", "Tet", "Spring Play", "Village Market in Spring", "Tet Market", "Grandma's Hometown Tet", "Spring Wedding", "Festival". The image of traditional Tet appearing in Doan Van Cu's poems is very close and familiar to all Vietnamese people:"The bamboo pole planted outside the gate/Reflects its image in the pond/The ceramic bell cluster meets the wind/Calls the soldiers above to pay their respects."It seems that each of us, whether young or old, if we have ever returned to our hometown to celebrate Tet, must have felt complete joy:“Spring sticky rice to make Chung cake/Fish grilled on charcoal at the end of the twelfth lunar month/Peach pants, red shirt, chicken and pig paintings/Spicy rice, pickled onions, and braised fatty meat”(Tet in grandma's hometown).
In particular, the poem “Tet Market” by Doan Van Cu has been passed down and loved by many generations for its vitality and overflowing joy like intoxication. It can be said that this is a picture of Tet painted in poetry:“People from the hamlets were bustling to go to the Tet market/They happily pulled their wares on the green grass/The boys in red shirts ran around/A few old people leaned on their canes and walked slowly/The girl in a red blouse covered her lips and smiled quietly/The little boy nestled his head next to his mother's blouse/Two villagers carried pigs and ran ahead”. It is a peaceful, idyllic scene, exuding the simple “village” atmosphere of the simple, gentle farmers. A “close-up” of the Tet market appears vividly:“Buyers and sellers fill the market gate/The buffalo stands there pretending to sleep/To listen to the customer chatter/The painting seller carries two baskets/Finds a crowded place to sit and sell/A scholar hunches over a bench/Sharpens inkstone, busily writing Spring poems/The old Confucian scholar stops to stroke his beard and chin/His mouth reciting a few lines of red parallel sentences/The old woman selling goods next to the ancient temple/The water of time washes her hair white”.
Tet is not only in the pages of poetry but also in the pages of literature. I am particularly impressed with the short story “Tet Market” by writer Nguyen Minh Chau (1930-1989) - a son of Nghe An. This is a story about the Tet market in a coastal countryside, on a land still devastated by bombs and bullets:“On the uneven, bumpy ground, two huts made of bamboo and thatched roofs had been erected. In one of the huts, a book stall of a state-owned store was seen, the main items displayed being paintings of carp, paintings of fruit trays, and several sets of parallel sentences. In the hidden corner of another hut, there was an old fortune teller wearing a gray Sun Yat-sen shirt like a tax official.”. Overcoming the deprivation, the writer depicted a stream full of vitality of the people:“Dinh was delighted to look at the red painted clay pigs, the clay trumpets shaped like roosters, the indifferent flower branches with the glitter paper flowers full of needle marks. Squeezing between the children gathered around a table, Dinh stood watching a guy wearing a fedora, his face pockmarked with flowers, squeezing the seedling… Something surrounded Dinh, an atmosphere always enveloping Dinh, it was familiarity, a familiar way of life that had existed for a long time and nothing had been broken, displayed in the first Tet market, making Dinh fascinated and moved”.
PV:Besides poetry and literature, what other aspects of traditional Vietnamese Tet are you interested in?
Writer Bui Viet Thang:I am also very interested in the culinary culture of the traditional Vietnamese Tet. During Tet, talking about cuisine is not only to enjoy delicious food but also to evoke the elegant pleasure in enjoying material things. According to the expression of writer Nguyen Tuan, the beauty of culinary culture lies not only in the food but also in the space in which it is practiced, with whom and with what attitude to be worthy of the style of "literary people and guests".
From ancient times, the couplet: "Fatty meat, pickled onions, red parallel sentences/Flag pole, firecrackers, green square cakes"reflecting the traditional Tet flavors of the Vietnamese people for thousands of years. In traditional culinary culture, "thuc" (dishes) is often richer than "am" (drinks). On the Vietnamese Tet tray, common dishes include: Banh chung (North, Central) or banh tet (South), gio cha, boiled chicken, sticky rice, pork (boiled or fried), jellied meat, fried spring rolls, bamboo shoots, vermicelli, pickled onions, salad,...
The "drinks" during the old Tet holiday were often simple, mainly country wine, with famous specialties such as yeast wine (Lang Son), Meo Vac corn wine (Ha Giang), Lang Van wine (Bac Giang), Kim Son wine (Ninh Binh), Bau Da wine (Binh Dinh), Go Den wine (Long An), Nghi Loc wine (Nghe An), Can Loc wine (Ha Tinh)... Refreshments were usually tea (dried tea), green tea, lemon juice, orange juice (to sober up) or coconut water. Desserts included candies and cakes such as Che Lam, peanut candy, Doi candy (often called "twin sisters"), or traditional jams such as lotus, ginger, peanut, pumpkin, coconut, persimmon, kumquat, apple... These jams are especially suitable to be served with tea.
Traditional Tet cuisine is not only limited to the tray of food but is also supported by other elements such as red parallel sentences, poles, and firecrackers. It can be said that if cuisine is the "internal scene", then the "external scene" is the colors, sounds, and typical objects that contribute to creating a colorful and multi-tonal traditional Tet picture.
During the subsidy and war period, despite the difficult economic conditions, the Tet tray was still carefully preserved, maintaining the traditional flavor, but also faintly adding a few new colors. The "drink" part gradually appeared with some types of state-owned wine such as lemon wine, orange wine, coffee wine... with eye-catching colors and rich flavors. Two bottles of colored wine on the altar often made the space more solemn and brought "the breath of the times". In addition, high-quality state-owned teas such as Ba Dinh, Hong Dao, Thanh Huong... also became popular drinks. Desserts were supplemented with candies from famous brands such as: Hai Ha, Hai Chau, Ha Noi,... creating a Tet atmosphere that was both familiar and modern.
PV:During the development process, Vietnamese Lunar New Year has changed a lot compared to before. Can you share your feelings about this?
Writer Bui Viet Thang:In a flat world, change is inevitable. Cultural researcher Phan Ngoc once commented: “Contact means compromise from both sides. Therefore, sooner or later, Vietnamese culture will also take on new nuances, with regional and global characteristics.” With the current Vietnamese Tet, many traditional elements have gradually faded away, such as the pole (in large cities and some localities), or disappeared completely due to legal regulations, such as firecrackers (recently, fireworks have been allowed). In the @ and 4.0 era, young people and middle-aged people have gradually shifted from “eating” to “playing”. Young families or families with grown children often organize outdoor activities, picnics, or travel domestically and internationally in groups, thanks to family or work relationships.
Particularly in the current Vietnamese Tet culinary culture, the “drinking” part has changed more clearly than the “drinking” part. Many cultural researchers have mentioned the concepts of “wine culture” and “beer culture” when discussing Tet cuisine. Asians, especially Japan, China and Vietnam, have a tradition of drinking rice wine, but today they are gradually reducing this habit, replacing it with drinks of Western origin, such as wine and beer.
On the family altar, the traditional tray of offerings now rarely sees the appearance of “banana leaf-corked” country wine bottles. Instead, there are bottles of light wine (like Italian, French, Spanish...) or strong alcohols like Cognac, Whisky. Some families even display cans of beer or soft drinks like Coca-Cola, Pepsi, with the thought: “The world is like the world”. The general trend of modern people, especially the young, is to prioritize “drinking” over “food”. In drinks, beer is often the most popular, even becoming a trend from the South to the North. The elderly, women and children love wine or soft drinks with attractive flavors.
Modern Tet also has a new custom: launching tree planting and afforestation, because as Uncle Ho once said:“For the benefit of ten years, plant trees. For the benefit of a hundred years, cultivate people.”. Each person can start with good deeds as Uncle Ho advised: "Spring is the season for planting trees/Making the country more and more Springy"Tree planting is not only a short-term campaign, a competitive movement, but also a fine custom, a manifestation of civilization and culture, originating from the profound principle: "Humans are a part of nature".
PV:As a son of Nghe An, born in Ha Tinh, spent his teenage years in Nghe An and always looked back to his homeland during his working years, how do you feel about the flavor of Tet in Nghe An?
Writer Bui Viet Thang:When talking about Tet in Nghe An, especially Nghe An, we cannot help but mention the colors and flavors of Tet of ethnic minorities. Currently, in Nghe An, there are 5 most populous ethnic minorities including Thai, Tho, Kho Mu, Mong, and O Du. In the context of an open and flat world, culture tends to integrate but still retains its own identity - it is the differences that create harmony.
To fully experience the diversity and richness of the traditional Tet combined with the modern Tet in Nghe An, you should not only stop to admire and enjoy the Tet colors in the cities, towns, or large industrial zones. "Set up camp" in the mountainous and border areas of the province - the largest area in the country (after Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City). There, you will encounter the sounds of the panpipes and folk dances of the Mong and Thai people; peach and plum gardens blooming in the valleys; jars of pristine, fragrant rice wine; delicious dishes such as clean pork, hill chicken, fresh wild vegetables and all the pure flavors of the nature of the mountains, forests, rivers and streams. Western Nghe An is also famous for its brilliant brocade colors, an attractive destination at the end of the year.
When the year ends and Tet comes, if you have the chance, go to the Western Nghe An to buy sweet, fresh oranges to display on the five-fruit tray to offer to your ancestors' altar. If you have the means, don't forget to bring back some majestic wild peach branches to decorate the traditional Tet space in the middle of the bustling city.
If you live in Vinh city, the three days of Tet are usually spent going to the pagoda (visiting the temple), both to celebrate Tet and to do good spiritual deeds. When I was a child, I often followed adults to famous pagodas in Vinh town (which became a city in 1963), such as Diec pagoda, Su Nu pagoda, Tap Phuc pagoda... At that time, the movement to worship Ong Hoang Muoi temple was not as exciting as it is now, both in Nghe An and Ha Tinh.
Nowadays, when the roads are clear and modern, the means of transportation are convenient, people's hearts are more open to the land and gods, you can take a walk to Huong Tich Pagoda (Can Loc, Ha Tinh) or to famous temples such as Con Temple, Cuong Temple in the North of Nghe An, and many other temples and pagodas to feel the traditional Tet atmosphere spreading throughout the land of Nghe An.
PV:Thank you for the conversation!
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