Charlotte Latin School marked the onset of the Lunar New Year — and the Chinese Year of the Snake — with assemblies on February 6 for Upper School and Middle School students. Students explained the mythological traditions relating to the year, including the tale of the Jade Emperor sponsoring a race among all the animals in the world, vying for positions in the zodiac cycle.

Each assembly extended beyond astrological symbolism: Latin students detailed the modern celebrations of the Lunar New Year among different populations (Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Filipino, Indonesian, Persian), both in their homelands and as immigrants in other countries. (In Vietnam, people enjoy banh chung, little wrapped cakes, to express their wish for harmony; in the Philippines, children wishing to grow taller make sure to jump in the air at the stroke of midnight.)

The students who skillfully presented were Emily Cao ’26, Jolin Cheng ’26, Caroline Jin ’27, Sophia Oh ’26, Kathryn Wu ’27, Angelina Yang ’26, Isabel Yang ’26, Logan Yee ’25, and Lynn Zhao ’26.

Each assembly included a greeting filmed by Latin’s friends at the Hangzhou International School in the Zheihang province of China, and a compilation of video interviews with students and alumni about their favorite Lunar New Year traditions: many of them cited eating a family dinner (especially with dumplings) and receiving red envelopes for prosperity in the year ahead. Evan Li ’24, now a freshman at Brown, talked about how one of his favorite traditions was folding dumplings at night with his family: “While we’re folding the dumplings, my parents will tell me stories about when they were young and how their parents would teach them how to fold dumplings.”

The day also featured a New Year’s buffet in the Forum, with an emphasis on dumplings and Asian candy. The highlight of the program, however, came at its conclusion with a thrilling sword dance, “The Journey of the Elephant King,” a collaboration that included one Upper School student, one Middle School student, and three Lower School students. The swords that they waved in the air may have looked as if they were slicing through nothing — but in fact, they were working to cut away the barriers between different cultures on campus.