The tradition of giving lucky money is an inseparable part of Vietnamese culture throughout history. It is associated with beautiful wishes during the first days of the Lunar New Year, conveying messages of good luck, health, and success to everyone.
Giving lucky money during Tet Nguyen Dan is an age-old custom among the Vietnamese. Whether in the past or present, this tradition has always been preserved and has become an essential cultural beauty during the Tet celebrations. However, with the development of society, this custom has been exploited, distorted, and deviated from its original values. Therefore, preserving and promoting the symbolic nature of this tradition is extremely meaningful.
Giving money as a form of lucky money during the New Year or other festive occasions is a common custom in many East Asian countries. This practice has long been popular in Vietnam during Tet Nguyen Dan, known as “li xi”. During Tet, adults often give children a small amount of money placed in beautifully designed red envelopes, which symbolize luck and prosperity, referred to as lucky money.
This custom originated from China, where it is said that long ago in Dong Hai, there was a large peach tree inhabited by many supernatural creatures, such as fox spirits, rat spirits, and old wolves… They always wanted to go out to cause harm, but there were usually deities guarding them, preventing their escape.
However, on New Year’s Eve, all the deities had to return to the heavens to reorganize their duties, giving the mischievous creatures a chance to break free during the transition of the divine responsibilities. On this occasion, a particular type of spirit would often appear on New Year’s Eve to pat the heads of sleeping children, startling them and causing them to cry out, leading to high fevers or foolishness. Therefore, families with small children had to stay awake all night to guard against these spirits harming their children. Once, a few deities passed by a house, transforming into coins lying near the child. The child’s parents wrapped these coins in red cloth. When the spirits arrived, the coins shone brightly, scaring them away. This miraculous event spread, and since then, during Tet, people began putting money into red bags as gifts to children, calling it lucky money.
Lucky money at the beginning of the year symbolizes health, luck, and success…
Another legend states that the tradition of giving lucky money originated from the Tang Dynasty in China. That year, Yang Guifei gave birth to a prince, and upon hearing the news, the emperor personally visited and gifted Yang Guifei a sum of gold and silver wrapped in red paper. Yang Guifei considered this both a gift and a talisman from the emperor for the child to ward off evil. This story spread from the palace to the common folk, and many people began to imitate the practice of giving money, also seeing it as a gift to ward off disasters and bring good luck to children.
According to other studies, the custom of giving lucky money in China dates back to the Qin Dynasty. During that time, a red thread was used to string coins together in the shape of a dragon or a sword to place at the foot of the child’s bed or beside their pillow. This string of coins was called money to suppress the year, similar to what the Chinese people call today, meaning a gift of money for the child, wishing them wealth and good fortune to surpass that year with blessings and luck.
In ancient China, lucky money often consisted of a red string of 100 coins, symbolizing the wish for a long life of a hundred years. Today, the lucky money at the beginning of the year also symbolizes health, luck, and success and is placed in envelopes made of red paper or red velvet, adorned with auspicious decorations, and phrases wishing for peace, prosperity, and happiness, such as “Peace for the family,” “Gold and jade fill the path,” “Wishing you all your desires.” Therefore, giving lucky money is also referred to as giving red envelopes.
The term “li xi” in Vietnamese, commonly used in the South, is believed to originate from Chinese, as a phonetic reading of “li shi” or “li shi” (pronounced in Mandarin as li shi, in Cantonese as lì xì), which means a gift or money that brings benefits, good fortune, and luck. Giving li xi expresses goodwill and luck for the child.
Today, the custom of giving lucky money has become more open, especially for younger individuals who are married and have an income, allowing them to give lucky money to elders like parents and grandparents…
In Vietnam, giving lucky money traditionally refers to coins placed in red paper envelopes, or eye-catching gilded decorations, which adults give to children during Tet. When children receive lucky money, they smile, and their laughter can chase away bad fortune. Therefore, giving lucky money also symbolizes wishing for good fortune and blessings in the new year.
According to customs in some regions, younger individuals do not give lucky money to older ones, as it is not in line with the tradition and is considered “disrespectful.” However, today, the custom has become more flexible, especially for younger individuals who are married and have an income, allowing them to give lucky money to elders, wishing them good fortune, health, and peace. On the morning of the first day of Tet or the “Chính đán”, all activities cease, and children gather at the clan leader’s house to pay respect to ancestors and wish grandparents and elders a happy Tet, exchanging lucky money among themselves. Traditionally, as the new year arrives, both adults and children naturally gain one year in age. Adults “give lucky money” to children specifically with new coins placed in “envelopes.” The lucky money received during Tet is called “opening money.” In the past, it was customary to give lucky money in odd amounts (not even), implying that this money would multiply and prosper.
Some notes when giving lucky money during Tet
- Give lucky money in new bills: Giving lucky money (Li xi) is a tradition that carries beautiful meanings during the new year. Using new bills for li xi is a wish for a fresh, good start for the recipient.
- Give lucky money in envelopes: Envelopes symbolize discretion, avoiding comparison between givers to prevent unnecessary disputes. It is advisable to use red envelopes, as the red color represents auspiciousness, fortune, and prosperity throughout the year. Additionally, it is considered the color of hope and good luck.
- Avoid using old envelopes: It is not advisable to use previously used or unused old envelopes from last year. This is seen as a lack of respect when you give old items during the new year, as well as not valuing the recipient.
- Prefer giving even amounts to symbolize good fortune: In East Asian culture, even numbers signify good luck. Therefore, when placing money into the lucky money envelope during Tet, it is better to use even amounts instead of odd ones.
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