Happy Meow Year!

January 19, 2023 6:10 PM

Vietnam goes cat-crazy for Tet!
posted by dorothyisunderwood (14 comments total)

There is also a thoughtful piece on the meaning of Tet as a respite for the year, but mostly: cats! I did not know I needed a giant cat statue outside my door, but now I am looking for one.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 6:11 PM on January 19, 2023

Does Vietnam have a different lunar zodiac? Because it’s the Year of the Rabbit this year.
posted by awfurby at 6:26 PM on January 19, 2023

Does Vietnam have a different lunar zodiac?

Yes.
posted by mbrubeck at 6:27 PM on January 19, 2023 [4 favorites]

How about that - I had no idea.

“The Vietnamese zodiac is similar to the Chinese zodiac in its usage and arrangement of animals, but replaces the ox with the water buffalo and the rabbit with the cat. The Sino-Vietnamese name for the year of the cat/rabbit is Mão/Mẹo(卯) which is very similar in pronunciation to the native Vietnamese word Mèo for cat.“
posted by awfurby at 6:29 PM on January 19, 2023 [5 favorites]

Those statues are great. I wish the U.S. did something similar...
posted by hydra77 at 6:42 PM on January 19, 2023 [1 favorite]

Why Is There No Cat in the Chinese Zodiac? - LGO Translations

The animals had to arrive early to get on the calendar, but the cat was known for sleeping at odd hours and getting grumpy when woken up. So the rat sincerely promised his friend to wake him with enough time to get to the palace in good spirits. Come the next morning, the rat quietly went about his routine. He washed and prepared to meet the emperor and quietly left without the cat.

posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 6:57 PM on January 19, 2023 [13 favorites]

Friendship ended with CHINESE ZODIAC
posted by seanmpuckett at 5:56 AM on January 20, 2023 [2 favorites]

Enjoyed these pieces! Fell down a Wikipedia hole, though, ha! (There’s a morphogenic protein named Sonic hedgehog?)
posted by Don.Kinsayder at 6:20 AM on January 20, 2023

Does this mean that our fates differ in Vietnam as opposed to rabbit fancy nations? Or is it a matter of a rabbit by any other name?
posted by BWA at 7:44 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]

Every 12 years, Al Stewart gets his due.
posted by stannate at 8:09 AM on January 20, 2023 [3 favorites]

The flower street cats!
Cat or rabbit, it's Year Of The Fluff!
posted by winesong at 9:18 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]

For cats, licking is a sign of dominance.
For rabbits, being licked is a sign of dominance.

So you get a cat licking a rabbit buddy and they're both "haha I am better than joo."
posted by seanmpuckett at 9:19 AM on January 20, 2023 [6 favorites]

Rabbit Year / Cat Year stuff led me into a mild identity crisis. I always thought I was a Snake. Looking up all that stuff it turns out I’m actually a Dragon. Found out I’m about 70% compatible with my significant other who is an Ox.
posted by Katjusa Roquette at 2:27 PM on January 20, 2023 [3 favorites]

Mr. Roquette and I need to schedule the yearly binge watching of Lion and Dragon dance watching.
posted by Katjusa Roquette at 2:28 PM on January 20, 2023