The Lion Dances Tonight Trivia Quiz

Answer: China

The lion dance originated in China, with roots tracing back to early Chinese dynasties. Over time, it spread to other Asian cultures such as Vietnam, Korea, and Japan. It's a traditional performance featuring dancers in elaborate lion costumes. They move to the rhythm of drums and cymbals. During the New Year period, lion dances are performed to ward off evil spirits and bring good luck to businesses and households. I watched one on YouTube when I was doing research for this quiz. It was spectacular.

The holiday includes several key customs. Families gather for large dinners on New Year's Eve, often eating foods believed to bring good fortune. Children and unmarried adults receive red envelopes filled with money, known as hongbao or lai see. These envelopes symbolise luck and prosperity, but the true blessing lies in the red colour and the act of giving rather than the amount inside. That's like saying it's the thought that counts.

Answer: Vietnam

Tết is the Vietnamese Lunar New Year celebration. It's also known as Tết Nguyên Đán and it marks the arrival of spring based on the Vietnamese calendar. It's the most important and widely celebrated festival in Vietnamese culture, falling between late January and mid-February.

The celebration lasts for several days. Families gather for reunion meals and pay respects to their ancestors, and visit relatives. People clean their homes thoroughly before Tết to sweep away bad luck from the previous year, and they often decorate them with peach blossoms in the north or yellow apricot blossoms in the south. These symbolise prosperity and good fortune.

Special foods are also eaten, like the traditional dish Bánh chưng, which is a square glutinous rice cake filled with mung beans and pork. Its square shape is said to represent the Earth. The symbolism of the square cake is interesting as the earth is a sphere, not square. Children and unmarried adults receive lucky money in red envelopes, a tradition similar to other Lunar New Year customs across Asia.

Answer: Korea

Seollal is the Korean Lunar New Year celebration. It's one of the most significant traditional holidays in their culture. Like other Lunar New Year festivals across East Asia, it takes place in late January or early February and it's the first day of the lunar calendar. It spans three days and centres around family gatherings and ancestral rituals.

On Seollal morning, families perform a ceremony called charye, where they prepare and offer food to their ancestors as a sign of respect and gratitude. After the ceremony, family members share a traditional meal together. One of the customs is the wearing of hanbok, traditional Korean clothing, especially by children. Younger family members perform a deep traditional bow called sebae to their elders. In return, they receive words of wisdom and often money or gifts.

A popular traditional food eaten during Seollal is teokguk, a soup made with sliced rice cakes, which symbolises gaining another year of age and starting fresh. Being a senior citizen, gaining another year of age is something I don't like to dwell on. : )

Answer: Japan

The Japanese New Year celebration is known as Shōgatsu. It's traditionally observed from January 1st to January 3rd, though preparations often begin in late December. It's not like many other East Asian cultures that follow the lunar calendar as Japan celebrates the New Year according to the Gregorian calendar. This change occurred during the Meiji period in the late 19th century.

The celebration involves several distinctive customs and traditions. Homes are decorated with kadomatsu (pine and bamboo arrangements). These are placed at entrances to welcome ancestral spirits and deities. Many families also display kagami mochi, stacked rice cakes topped with a bitter orange, which symbolise good fortune for the coming year.

I love Japanese food, especially tempura, so I was interested to learn about how Traditional foods play an important role during Shōgatsu. They have Osechi-ryōri, which consists of various dishes packed in special boxes and each food has a symbolic meaning for health, prosperity, or longevity. A lot of people also eat toshikoshi soba (year-crossing noodles) on New Year's Eve, as the long noodles represent longevity and letting go of the past year's hardships.

Answer: Thailand

Songkran is the traditional Thai New Year festival. It's celebrated annually from April 13th to 15th. It's based on the solar not the lunar calendar, and marks the beginning of the traditional Thai solar year. The festival is also celebrated in neighbouring countries, including Laos, Cambodia, and Myanmar, though under different names.

The most recognisable feature of Songkran is the widespread water festivities that take place throughout the celebration. It began as a gentle ritual of pouring water over Buddha statues and the hands of elders as a sign of respect. Later, it evolved into large-scale water fights in the streets, with people using water guns, buckets, and hoses. The water symbolises purification and the washing away of bad luck and sins from the previous year.

Songkran involves several other important traditions. Families clean their homes thoroughly and perform merit-making activities at temples. Also, traditional foods and sweets are prepared and shared, and many.

Answer: Myanmar

Thingyan is the Burmese (Myanmar) New Year Water Festival. It's celebrated over several days in mid-April from April 13th to 16th. The festival marks the end of the dry season and the beginning of the traditional Burmese lunar new year. Its timing coincides with other Southeast Asian New Year celebrations like Songkran in Thailand.

Water plays a part in Thingyan festivities. It symbolises the washing away of the previous year's bad luck and sins, preparing for a fresh start in the new year. During the festival, people splash water on each other in the streets, and elaborate pavilions called pandals are set up where people throw water at passersby. They also visit pagodas to pour water over Buddha images, offer food to monks, and perform acts of merit.

Many people also release fish into rivers and ponds as an act of compassion. That's lovely. I used to have tropical fish and goldfish, so I can appreciate that. The final day, known as New Year's Day, is quieter and focuses on visiting pagodas and spending time with family.

Answer: Cambodia

Choul Chnam Thmey is the Cambodian New Year celebration, marking the end of the harvest season and the beginning of the traditional Buddhist solar new year. The celebration takes place from April 13th to 16th. It represents one of the most significant holidays in Cambodian culture. The name translates to 'Enter the New Year' in Khmer.

The festival combines Buddhist religious observances with traditional cultural practices. Cambodians clean their homes thoroughly and decorate them with flowers and colourful decorations. Many people return to their hometowns to celebrate with family and participate in temple ceremonies. At pagodas, people offer food to monks, pour water over Buddha statues as a blessing, and build sand stupas decorated with flags and flowers.

Traditional games and activities play an important role during Choul Chnam Thmey. Popular games include chaol chhoung, where players throw a rolled scarf at each other, and leak kanseng, a traditional Khmer dance. Families prepare special foods and sweets to share with relatives and neighbours. A lot of people also wear new or traditional clothing during the celebrations. The festival emphasises themes of renewal, family unity, and paying respect to elders and ancestors.

Answer: Laos

Boun Pi Mai is the Lao New Year celebration, observed in Laos from April 14th to 16th. It marks the end of the dry season and the beginning of the traditional solar new year. The name translates roughly to 'New Year Festival' in English, and it represents one of the most important holidays in Lao culture.

Water is symbolic in Boun Pi Mai celebrations, as the purification and washing away of bad luck from the previous year. People engage in water splashing and throwing throughout the streets and have festive water fights similar to neighbouring countries' celebrations. The practice began as a gentle pouring of water over Buddha statues and the hands of elders as a sign of respect, but has evolved into more spirited celebrations with buckets, water guns, and hoses.

There's also the Miss New Year pageant, where young women are chosen to represent celestial princesses, which is also a part of the celebration. Traditional foods are prepared and shared, and many people wear traditional Lao clothing during temple visits and family gatherings.

Answer: Mongolia

Tsagaan Sar is the Mongolian Lunar New Year celebration. It means 'White Moon' or 'White Month' and it marks the beginning of spring according to the Mongolian lunisolar calendar. The festival occurs in late January or February and represents one of the most important holidays in Mongolian culture.

Tsagaan Sar traditions are not water-based celebrations. They're shaped by Mongolia's nomadic heritage and harsh winter climate. It focuses on family gatherings and the honouring of elders. A key ritual is the zolgokh, which is a traditional greeting where younger people hold their arms outstretched with palms up under the elbows of their elders, to show support and respect.

Families prepare elaborate displays of traditional foods, such as ul boov, a towering stack of large, flat cookies arranged in odd-numbered layers. The tower often reaches great heights and symbolises prosperity and abundance. Wow! I would love to see these. Many Mongolians also visit Buddhist temples during Tsagaan Sar to pray for good fortune in the coming year.

Answer: Bali

Nyepi is the Balinese Day of Silence, which marks the Balinese New Year according to the Saka calendar. It's celebrated primarily in Bali, Indonesia and falls in March or April. What really struck me when I first learned about it is that instead of fireworks and countdowns, the day is spent in silence, meditation and fasting. This, as you can imagine, makes it one of the most unique New Year's traditions in the world.

On Nyepi itself, the entire island of Bali comes to a standstill. Balinese Hindus observe Catur Brata Penyepian, four prohibitions: no lighting fires or lights (amati geni), no working (amati karya), no entertainment or pleasure (amati lelungan), and no travelling (amati lelanguan). Even the island's airport closes for the day. The streets are empty, and special security patrols called pecalang ensure the rules are followed. The purpose is to meditate, reflect on the past year, and trick evil spirits into thinking the island is deserted so they will leave.

However, as I discovered, all is not quiet, because the day before Nyepi, they have lively celebrations. Large, elaborate demon effigies called ogoh-ogoh are paraded through the streets in noisy processions accompanied by gamelan music. These monsters represent negative spirits and evil forces, and after the parade, many are burned or destroyed to symbolically cleanse the island.