The Chinese is obsessed with prosperity. Fame seems to be secondary to fortune in our books. Hence the Chinese New Year greeting, ???? (g?ngx?f?cái). Another icon of prosperity is the Carp, or popularly called koi or ? (l?), which not surprisingly features prominently in the decorations for Chinese New Year. Here’s an example:

A lantern with carp motifs

According to one account, Koi were brought to China from Persia:

It is said that King Shoko of Ro had presented a Koi to the first son of the great Chinese Philosopher Confucius at his birth somewhere between 551 and 479 BC. Confucius named his son (Kong Li, ??) after the fish because it was considered to be a symbol of strength and power. Legend has it that this Koi was the only fish able to swim up the Yellow River falls. Records dating back to this time suggest that these early koi were made up of basically a red and gray coloration.

Confucius

From here our story moves to Japan, where the Koi were introduced by the invading Chinese somewhere near 200 AD. They have been raised primarily for food in Japan until fish farmers started to notice color mutations somewhere in the beginning of the 18th century. The farmers of Niigata, a Northern prefecture of Japan, were fascinated by these fish and would catch and remove the fish from their food ponds and isolated them. Soon they were breeding the mutations for color and conformation and the koi industry had begun. To this day the Niigata region is the center of the worlds finest koi breeding.

However, there is some doubt about the accuracy of the above account, which might have arisen from the misinterpretation of the name “Lu Zhaogong” to Ro Shoko by the Japanese.

The common carp, Cyprinus carpio, was initially bred for food but later it’s beauty was noted and they were kept for ornamental reasons. The name “koi” originated from the Japanese for “carp”. The name for carp kept for its beauty is “Nishikigoi” (??). A homonym of koi means ‘love, affection’ and koi are therefore symbols of love and friendship in Japan.

Also, the koi is associated with perserverance in adversity and strength of purpose. Because of its strength and determination to overcome obstacles, it stands for courage and the ability to attain high goals. There is a Chinese legend that a carp which succeeds in swimming upstream and hurdling the upper rapids of the Yellow River, called the Dragon’s Gate, will be transformed into a dragon. There is a Chinese idiom, ????? (l?yú tiào lóngmén), literally “the carp leaps up to Dragon’s Gate”, which expresses the idea of a sudden improvement in one’s status.

The point where the narrow river meets the broad segment of the Huang He, there’s a stretch of 100-metre wide fall. Imagine the koi leaping up the waterfalls.

Why are kois painted in odd numbers, particularly 9? Nine koi symbolise longevity. Also, odd numbers represent the “yang” element. Since water is a “yin” element, an odd number of fish will complement it.

Nine carps in a Chinese painting.

And finally, what has koi got to do with prosperity? It’s fish. The Chinese word for fish is ? (yú), which sounds like ? (yú), meaning, surplus. So fish is a symbol of overflowing blessings. As they say… ????.

Icthyos.

References:
1. http://www.butterflykoi.com/aboutkoi.html
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koi
3. http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_symbolism_of_koi_fish
4. http://www.huaxia.com/ly/shls/he/hh/lytlm.html
5. http://www.geomancy.net/resources/art/arowanafish.htm

Of course the peony must be accompanied by this:

Are the small pink flowers that dot the thin, long, straight branches (or should I call them twigs?) “plum blossoms” or “cherry blossoms“? I thought they were “cherry blossoms” and have always called them that. Now I know… they’re PLUM BLOSSOMS, ?? (méihu?), Prunus mume. What’s the difference?

Here’s a commentary from simplesongs:

In any case, you’ve probably heard about how cherry blossoms are a big deal in Japan. They bloom in the Spring, creating an amazingly beautiful display for about a week or so and then they are gone…. Less celebrated is the plum blossom. Typically blooming in late February/early March, plum blossoms signal that Spring is coming rather than that Spring has come. Blooming in shades of pink and white, most plum blossoms have 5 petals (many varieties of cherry blossoms also have five petals, but you are also likely to see cherry blossoms with 10 petals, 50 petals, up to 100 or so).

There’s an amazing photo site of Asian images by Kevin Kelly; there’s a photo plum blossoms and an insight into the difference.

A reader named al writes:
“Has the plum blossom come into bloom? How about the Cherry blossom??” These lyrics are part of a famous traditional Ozashiki Uta (Geisha Music) song, “Ume Wa Saitaka? Sakura Wa Madakaina?” Every year people in Japan impatiently wait for the arrival of spring. Plum tree comes to bloom in February and cherry does in April. They have similarity in representing people’s yearning for spring but they do have difference: Firstly the two trees don’t come to bloom in the same time. Secondly most of cherry blossom has pink color while plum has either white or dark pink (like this one in the picture). Thirdly, each petal of plum flower is smooth round shape (like this) while cherry’s has a sort of notched cut on top. So we know this is a plum not cherry.

In Japan, plum and cherry blossoms are called “ume” and “sakura” respectively. They bloom at different times. The Sakura is Japan’s unofficial national flower. Plum blossoms are Taiwan’s national flower.

Plum blossoms ??(méihu?)

Cherry blossoms ?? (y?nghu?)

Plums blossoms have become a traditional decoration during the Lunar New Year simply because of the timing of the blooms, i.e. just before spring, in February and March, during the New Year festivities.

The Chinese see the blossoms as more of a symbol for winter rather than a harbinger of spring. It is precisely for this reason that the blossoms are so beloved, because they bloom most vibrantly amidst the winter snow while all other flowers have long since succumbed to the cold and died. Thus, they are seen as an example of resilience and perseverance in the face of adversity, and thus has also been used as a metaphor to symbolize revolutionary struggle.

… from Wikipedia.

The fruit, plum, is used in various ways in Chinese cooking, including sauces and condiments and pickled plums. Umeishu ?? (méiji?) is a liquor made from green ume in clear liquor. Dark plums, ?? (w?méi) are used to treat parasites, ulcers and a tonic for the digestive system and the heart.

A finally, here’s a piece of art from the Song dynasty (?),

Update: I just noticed that Vista, a Nippono-phile apparently, included a Sakura song on his post, with translations. Go and listen.

References:

1. http://simplesongs.blogs.com/head_shoulders_knees_and_/2006/02/plum_blossoms.html
2. http://www.asiagrace.com/detail.php?i=376
3. http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2013.html
4. http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2011.html
5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plum_blossom
6. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/mqin/ho_1986.493.2.htm