IVE’s Jang Wonyoung And Girls’ Generation’s Seohyun Both Receive Hate Comments For Celebrating The “Lunar New Year”
In celebration of the Lunar New Year, also referred to as Seollal in Korea and by Koreans, K-Pop idols have been sharing festive posts on their social media platforms.
Likewise, IVE‘s Jang Wonyoung and Girls’ Generation‘s Seohyun also wished their fans a luck-filled 2023 via Instagram…
Have a happy Seollal 🐰🤍
— IVE’s Jang Wonyounng
…dressed in the traditional Korean hanbok attires.
Wishing you a prosperous new year ❤️
Happy Lunar New Year 🙇🏻♀️— Girls’ Generation’s Seohyun
Both stars captioned the posts referring to the holiday as either Seollal or Lunar New Year; Though this has unfortunately caused an influx of hate comments for being a “cultural appropriation” of the Chinese New Year.
IVE’s Jang Wonyoung confronted haters flooding her Instagram comments section with vomiting and middle finger emotes…
…while Girls’ Generation’s Seohyun saw the same “Happy Chinese New Year” comments “fixing” her good-hearted greeting.
Neither Jang Wonyoung nor Seohyun has responded in particular to the reactions, and their more supportive fans have since flushed out the negative comments with more positive ones.
This is not the first time K-Pop idols have gotten themselves into the center of the debate regarding the proper term to use among Seollal, Lunar New Year, and Chinese New Year.
Earlier, NewJeans‘ Danielle apologized after she faced criticism from Koreans for using “Chinese New Year” in a Phoning message.
NewJeans’ Danielle Apologizes For Calling The Lunar New Year “Chinese New Year”
Amid the growing heat over what to call the public holiday, Asian Americans and other members of the AAPI communities are coming to an agreement that—as a time of celebration observed all over Asia and among Asians worldwide—the fight over its name goes against the core essence of the actual celebration: Marking new beginnings and fresh starts.
Though this holiday is often called Chinese New Year in the United States, festivities marking the new year according to China’s lunar calendar (technically, a lunisolar calendar) are not limited to China. Countries like Japan, South Korea and Vietnam use the same calendar to mark important holidays, including the new year.
Generally, Lunar New Year celebrations can span around 15 days (from new moon to full moon), but the duration and ways of celebrating vary between cultures, religions, and geographical regions. “Lunar New Year is celebrated around the world,” Leung explains. “Particularly in Asia, [in countries] such as China, Vietnam, and Korea.”
When referring specifically to a new year event where Chinese traditions and culture are celebrated, you can refer to it as Chinese New Year. Lunar New Year is more inclusive and encompasses all celebrations that mark the new year according to the lunisolar calendar.
— Tria Wen, Reader’s Digest
