21 September 2010

中秋節 Not Chuseok

Every child of three and up knows that Zhongqiu (literally, the middle of autumn) is a Chinese harvest festival, which has blessed the Sinitic world, including Vietnam and the Korean Peninsula, with great joy.

Yet, the Koreans claim it as a "Korean holiday." Calling it "chuseok," Arirang TV translates it as "Korean Thanksgiving." There's no such concept as thanksgiving in the Sinitic world or in the broader Asian world. Thanksgiving is a Western concept, and Thanksgiving Day is purely American.

It's Zhongqiu, and it's Chinese in origin with Korean and Vietnamese variations.

This year Zhongqiu falls on September 22. So happy 中秋節!

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