Marketers Ring in the Year of the Rabbit and the Year of the Cat

There are many stories as to why there isn't a cat among the 12 core Chinese zodiac figures, and several stories as to why there isn't a rabbit on the Vietnamese calendar. The fable I was told as a child involves a rat. Allegedly, the Lord Buddha himself called several animals to visit him, including the cat. The cat told his friend the rat about Buddha's call. Unfortunately for the cat, his friend the rat forgot to wake him up in time for the meeting with Lord Buddha. The rat was so eager to see Lord Buddha that he was the first in line for the meeting; hence, the rat is the first icon to lead the Chinese zodiac. The cat, being complacent and very comfortable in his bed, overslept and missed the party altogether. Therefore, cats aren't celebrated or listed in the Chinese zodiac. For the Vietnamese, the cat is an important part of their zodiac. For Vietnamese, cats symbolize strength of character and determination, tempered with thoughtfulness and sensitivity. And even though the Chinese zodiac doesn't include a cat, it isn't uncommon to see both rabbit and cat icons in Chinese and Vietnamese communities. This is due, in part, to the large number of Vietnamese of Chinese heritage living here in North America. Asian Lunar New Year is observed and celebrated in various ways and styles by several Asian communities. Some communities celebrate at the beginning of the year, including Koreans and Japanese. Other communities such as Cambodian, Hmong, Lao and Thai celebrate their Lunar New Year in March, April, May or even December. Most of these celebrations involve traditional foods, family gatherings, visits to temples and churches, and community events. If you were born in any of these years, you would be deemed a rabbit and/or a cat: 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, or 1999. Here in North America, many companies and governmental agencies recognize that the Asian Lunar New Year is observed by a large and growing number of their customers. I'd like to show you some examples of advertisements that were especially created to commemorate the Asian Lunar New Year. Gung Hay Fat Choy Gong Xi Fa Chai Ch�c Mung Nam Moi California Bank & Trust Citi East West Bank International Media Distribution (DirecTV ) International Media Distribution (DirecTV ) MassMutual (Chinese and Korean Ads) McDonald's (Chinese and Korean Ads) MetLife (Chinese) Royal Canadian Mint (Chinese) Southwest Airlines (Chinese) Wells Fargo (Chinese) Western Union (Chinese)

Marketers Ring in the Year of the Rabbit and the Year of the Cat

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