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Then & Now | Why tangerines and kumquats are a must at Lunar New Year, and why imported Florida and California oranges were used in ritual offerings the rest of the year
- Kumquat and tangerine trees are popular Lunar New Year purchases because their Chinese names are homophones for luck and gold. But their fruit is rarely eaten
- Teochew sweet oranges from southern China are a seasonal treat; the rest of the year, families would buy pricey imported oranges – for use as ritual offerings
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Overflowing piles of oranges, tangerines and kumquats in street markets and homes epitomise Lunar New Year in Hong Kong. In Cantonese, the common tangerine or mandarin orange (Citrus reticulata) is known as kam – a homophone for gold.
Associations with wealth and prosperity, along with seasonal availability, make these a popular snack around Lunar New Year.
While the bright-orange hue symbolises the desirability of personal wealth as represented by gold, the juicy-firm texture, and characteristic citrus taste, a mixture of robust sour-sweetness, are attributes without which human life has little savour.
These fruits are also common votive offerings placed upon street-side shrines and family and temple altars all over Hong Kong, and right across the Chinese diaspora.
Several decades ago, almost all imported California or Florida oranges were used for ritual purposes; relatively few such fruit were eaten.
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