What are Cantonese red New Year couplets and decorations called?

Cantonese red New Year couplets and decorations are called fai chun.

Fai chun are auspicious paper decorations displayed around Chinese New Year, especially in Cantonese-speaking communities. They commonly appear on doorways, walls, and windows, carrying wishes for prosperity, health, good fortune, or academic success. Traditional examples use black or gold calligraphy on bright red paper.

A formal spring couplet, or chunlian, usually consists of two vertical lines placed on opposite sides of a doorway, sometimes accompanied by a horizontal banner above the frame. Other fai chun are square or rectangular panels, including the familiar diamond-shaped “fortune” decoration. The terms overlap: fai chun is the Cantonese name commonly used for the broader decoration, while chunlian more specifically describes the paired couplet form.

The tradition is linked to older peach-wood charms called taofu, which were believed to protect homes. Popular New Year folklore also connects red decorations with the monster Nian, said to fear red, fire, and loud noises. Fai chun are not the same as hongbao, which are red envelopes containing gifts of money, or joss paper, which is burned as a ritual offering.