Ang bao

A red packet of money given at Chinese New Year and weddings.

An ang bao (红包, red packet) holds money given as a gift, mostly at Chinese New Year and at weddings. Married couples give them to children and unmarried relatives; guests give them to the couple at a wedding dinner.

A few local habits: amounts are usually even numbers, crisp new notes are preferred, and amounts with the number 4 are avoided because it sounds like “death” in Chinese. Wedding ang bao amounts are often pitched to cover the guest’s share of the dinner, so they vary by venue.

Malay families give green packets (duit raya) at Hari Raya, and Indian families may give money at Deepavali too.