How ancient Chinese new year cards went from elites’ greetings to bribery instruments

I have just sent off a tranche of Lunar New Year cards to friends and family, especially those living overseas.

I almost never send festive greetings at this time of year, probably because for a long time I was a Lunar New Year Ebenezer Scrooge for whom “Lunar New Year”, “Chinese New Year”, “Spring Festival”, or whatever one chooses to call it felt like a dreadful obligation best avoided.

Perhaps this is what mellowing with age looks like. This year, I decided to keep my “Bah, humbug!” to myself and send cards instead – modest tokens to good friends and close family members for whom meeting in person is difficult.

In imperial China, wishing someone a happy new year was anything but casual. Among people of status, it was a highly formal affair, governed by etiquette, hierarchy and a good deal of social anxiety.

The ancestor of today’s greeting card was the bainian tie – literally, a new year calling card. Used mainly among officials, scholars and other elites, it functioned as both festive greeting and social signal. Its wording and presentation mattered, since a clumsy phrase could be as embarrassing as omitting someone entirely.