During the month of April, the Lao, Thai and Cambodian New Year’s are celebrated, and festivals are held for the annual occasion. UC High students participated in the festivities.
Starting on April 14 and ending on April 16, the Lao New Year, called Songkran or Pii Mai, is celebrated during the same time as the monsoon season. “Lao New Year is the New Year of the country, and there are lots of traditions that we do,” said Sophomore Annaly Keodara. Although it lasts for three days from April 14 to April 16, celebrations can last for more than a week in other areas, according to Keodara.
The first day is the last day of the old year, and the second day of the festival is the “day of no day,” a day that falls in neither the old year or the new year, according to Junior Justin Bourommavong. The last day of the festival marks the start of the new year. The traditional Lao celebration of the New Year incorporates water, sand, animals, flowers, music and dance according to Freshman Shannon Phetsamy.
“We have a tradition where we pour water on people, and it washes away all the bad stuff and welcomes the new stuff,” said Keodara. “There’s a dance that people can watch, and beauty pageants as well,” said Phetsamy.
Starting on April 13 and ending on April 15, the Thai New Year, also known as the Songkran Festival, was celebrated by Thai people. According to a website dedicated to giving information about the Thai New Year, the Songkran tradition is rich with symbolic traditions, and the mornings start with merry-making. Offering food to the Buddhist monks and visiting the local temples is commonly practiced. Water also plays a vital role in Thai New Year Traditions, and it’s used in rituals like pouring it on Buddha statues. The holiday is known for its water festival, which is mostly celebrated by young people (songkran2015.com).
“When I was little, I used to go up to the temples and give offerings to the monks. We’d have a festival after that with a lot of food, because food is important,” said Sophomore Annie McMannis.
Starting on April 13 and ending on April 16, the Cambodian New Year is celebrated by the Khmer people, who are the predominant ethnic group in Cambodia. Those who live abroad are given the choice to celebrate during a weekend rather than just specifically April 13 through April 16. For their New Year’s customs, the Khmer traditionally create sand hillocks on the ground inside their temples. According to McMannis, this big pointed hill or dome of sand in the center of the temple represents the Valuka Chaitya, the stupa at Tavatimsa where the Buddha’s hair and diadem are buried. Usually, the big stupa is surrounded by four small ones, which represent the stupas of the Buddha’s favorite disciples: Sariputta, Moggallana, Ananda and Maha Kassapa. They also have a tradition called Sraung Preah, in which they pour water or liquid plaster on an elder relative or people who are younger, explained McMannis.