Calligraphy preserved as a Tet tradition

Traditionally, when the Tet holidays approach, Vietnamese often keep the custom of writing nice words in calligraphy with the hope of bringing good luck to the home as well as to decorate the home for the holidays. That is why the image of the ong do (calligraphy scholar) is a symbol of Tet.
Calligraphy is a kind of visual writing art that first appeared as early as feudal times and reflects Confucianism.
In the aftermath of the war, when people lived in misery and poverty, the image of the ong do was evident only at Tet. In recent years, cultural agencies in HCMC and in Hanoi have broken out the significant tradition several days ahead of Tet, especially around the Hanoi Temple of Literature and the HCMC Cultural Youth House where many ong do, young and old, male and female, in traditional long dresses and caps, gather to paint calligraphy for residents and tourists.
Ong do look alike in form but differ in their writings. In the past, they wrote in Han script, or Chinese characters. Today they write the Vietnamese language in Latin letters. At Tet, people often ask ong do to write lucky words such as Phuc (happiness), Loc (prosperity) and Tho (longevity) or poems or proverbs with meanings of good health, good luck and prosperity for the new year.
The work is done on paper which is attached to bamboo curtains or carved in stone. Calligraphy is given as gifts to friends and colleagues. Therefore, ong do must not only be decorative but must also know many meaningful poems and proverbs to suit the buyer’s intention.
These days, many people come to the calligraphy writing site on the side-walk at the intersection of Truong Dinh and Dien Bien Phu streets of calligrapher Do Phuong.
“I always try to make the nicest words and the most meaningful works in an effort to bring a little warmness to families for the holidays as well as to preserve the tradition,” said calligrapher Phuong.
Some calligraphers also write in English for foreign tourists.