Every year, between late January and early February, billions of people around the world celebrate Lunar New Year — an important holiday in many Asian countries that is often celebrated for multiple days. This year, Lunar New Year occurred on Feb. 10, although celebrations at Penn began earlier and will continue throughout the coming weeks. 

The Penn Museum presented its 43rd annual CultureFest! Lunar New Year celebration on Jan. 27. The day-long event featured song and dance performances from community organizations and Penn performing arts groups such as Penn k-Beats and Penn Lions.

Tena Thomason, the associate director of public engagement at the Penn Museum, said the Lunar New Year celebration is one of the museum’s most popular events. “We are excited to work alongside our community partners to highlight this important cultural celebration, which incorporates diverse customs such as gift exchanges, lantern lighting, and offerings to deities,” Thomason said.

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The James Joo-Jin Kim Center for Korean Studies hosted an event celebrating Seollal, or Korean New Year, on Feb. 9. Students had the opportunity to play yutnori and jegichagi, Korean traditional games associated with the Lunar New Year. Seok Lee, Associate Director of Academics at the Kim Center, stated that the Center hosts the event to celebrate Korean culture.

“I know that on the West Coast now, Lunar New Year is a huge holiday,” Lee said. “I hope soon, on [the] East Coast too, Lunar New Year can be a holiday [recognized] by the state government … Not only for Asian people, but for [everyone].”

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The Asian Pacific American Nursing Student Association (APANSA) also hosted a Lunar New Year celebration on Feb. 9, making dumplings at Gutmann College House. Wharton and Nursing junior Priscilla Wong, the financial chair of APANSA, stated the club wanted to support students’ cultural identity, citing the underrepresentation of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the nursing field.

Beyond club support, Wong, like Lee, said she wanted Penn to do more to recognize Lunar New Year.

“Last year, the Nursing School tried to schedule an exam on Chinese New Year, or Lunar New Year. First of all, making [Lunar New Year] more of a holiday that is recognized so students can be excused from things could be a good start,” Wong said. “Penn’s doing a good job of doing events; I know Penn Lions has been performing at every dining hall and things like that. That brings really good awareness, but there could always be more that can be done.” 

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On the evening of Feb. 9, Penn Chinese Calligraphy helped members write chunlian, or spring couplets, and fu, the Chinese character meaning “fortune.” These decorations are traditionally hung outside of doors during Chinese New Year.

Penncasila, Penn’s Indonesian student association, celebrated Lunar New Year with a dinner at the Radian. A meal was catered from Sang Kee Peking Duck House in Chinatown to ring in the new year with more than 35 attending students.

Leaders from Penncasila and other clubs on campus emphasized the importance of food and spending time with friends in celebrating Lunar New Year.

“Any way that you celebrate [Lunar New Year], as long as you’re doing it with the people that you care about, that’s all that matters,” Wong said. “Food is a big part of Chinese culture and other Asian cultures, so having yummy foods to eat is also a great way to celebrate. I think food and people are the two most important things — in no particular order.”

Continuing with the festivities, the Chinese Student and Scholar Association at Penn (CSSAP) hosted their annual Lunar New Year Gala in Irvine Auditorium on Feb. 11. The event featured 20 performances, including dance performances from Penn Chinese Dance Club, and prize giveaways to the audience.

Beyond these events, the Penn community celebrated in many other ways. Harnwell College House took residents to the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s Family Festival: Lunar New Year Event on Feb. 11, and Kings Court English College House celebrated with a Chinese New Year-themed study break on Feb. 7. The Vietnamese Student Association (VSA) celebrated Tết, or Vietnamese Lunar New Year, with a fire noodle challenge during their general body meeting on Feb. 10. The Pan Asian Graduate Student Association threw a party in Bodek Lounge with performances from PennSori A Cappella, Penn Lions, and presentations from VSA and CSSAP.