The origin of the red envelope, what is the origin of the red envelope

The custom of sending red envelopes has been popular for a long time, but at that time, people just wrapped a note full of blessings on auspicious bright red paper and gave it to relatives and friends as a token of gratitude.

In the Qing Dynasty, people switched to a piece of red paper with a shape similar to a square, wrapped copper coins, and sealed them as "Li Shi". The first generation of red envelopes came out at the end of the Qing Dynasty when printing technology began to be widely used. At that time, the so-called red envelopes were very simple, only the butter was printed on red paper, and then the undried butter was decorated with gold dust, the effect was just like the red envelopes with gold characters today, and the patterns were mostly simple, and then with auspicious words.

The origin of the red envelope is as follows:Tracing back to the roots, the earliest "red envelopes" in China can be traced back to the Warring States Period. In the Confucian classic "Zhou Li", many ** duties are listed, such as distributing wine, meat and currency to samurai, commoners, lonely old people, orphans, etc.

This should be the earliest red envelope.

The meaning of the red envelope1. Look at identity: The red envelopes on the birthday of different identities are also different, such as family, friends, lovers, etc.

2. Look at age: The red envelopes of our elders are different from the red envelopes of our juniors and peers.

3. It depends on the situation: the birthday red envelope is also different in different situations, the personal situation of the red envelope and the personal situation of the birthday person, etc.

Tracing back to the roots, the earliest "red envelopes" in China can be traced back to the Warring States Period.

In the Confucian classic "Zhou Li", many ** duties are listed, such as the distribution of wine, meat and currency to samurai, commoners, lonely old people, hungry orphans, etc. This should be the earliest red envelope. The earliest New Year's money is also called tired of winning money, or called big pressure winning money, this kind of money is not the currency circulating in the market, it is specially minted into the shape of a coin to ward off evil in order to wear a reward.

In the Tang Dynasty, the wind of scattering money in spring prevailed in the court. At that time, the Spring Festival was the "beginning of spring", which was a day of mutual worship in the palace, and the folk Bu Minhui did not have this custom. After the Song and Yuan dynasties, the first day of the first lunar month replaced the beginning of spring and was called the Spring Festival.

Many of the customs that originally belonged to the beginning of spring have also been moved to the Spring Festival. The custom of scattering money in spring has evolved into the custom of giving children New Year's money.

Red envelope meaning

New Year's money has a good meaning, and it is usually believed that it has the ability to ward off evil spirits and drive away ghosts, and bless peace. It is said that the New Year's money can suppress the evil spirit, and the younger generation can spend the year peacefully when they get the New Year's money. There is a custom of giving out red envelopes during the Spring Festival every year, and in some areas, married people give them to unmarried relatives and friends.

The habit of giving red envelopes generally only exists between close relatives and friends.

There are also some areas where the scope of red envelopes given on the New Year is more extensive, such as the younger generations of neighbors and ordinary colleagues, but the amount in this red envelope is often relatively small, and the size of the red envelope often represents auspicious meaning. In industrially developed areas, the company will send a "red envelope for start-up" to all employees during the Spring Festival. In most parts of China, many people have become accustomed to using freshly printed banknotes to make red envelopes, which are not only more elegant, but also symbolize the old and welcome the new.