Flar's Freyja
December 31st, 2002, 03:51 PM
http://www.novareinna.com/festive/newyear.html
New Year's Day is the first day of the calendar year.
Celebrated in almost every country today, January 1st
has only been recognized as a holiday by Western
nations for approximately 400 years. Since earliest
times, people have sought to satisfy the deep-rooted
longing for recreation by celebrating the New Year.
Observed on varying dates in different lands, New Year
festivals mark the pivotal point where time is deemed
to begin anew...an emergence of the pure and pristine
for both the world itself and individuals alike,
provided the proper steps are taken. First, celebrants
must banish the malicious spirits and accumulated
evils of the past in order to prevent infection of the
coming year. Next, come rites of purification,
followed by positive acts which ensure an auspicious
future. Sometimes, participants are unaware that they
are following ancient mystical practices. Few
Westerners, for example, realize that their New Year
horns and fireworks were once used as tools intended
to banish evil spirits.
Although they had no written calendar, ancient
Babylonians (who resided in modern day Iraq)
celebrated the beginning of a New Year on what is now
March 23rd, the time of year when Spring arrives and
new crops planted. It was a festival which lasted for
11 days, during which the King was stripped of his
clothes and banished. For a few days, the people could
do as they pleased. Upon the return of the King...in
grand procession and wearing fine robes...the
Babylonians went back to work and behaved in proper
fashion once more. Thus, each New Year, did the people
make a fresh start to their lives.
Ancient Egyptians originally celebrated the New Year
with the Feast of Opet around the middle of June,
which was when the Nile River usually overflowed its
banks. Consequently, people were unable to work and
would be free to take part in the festivities. Statues
of the God, Amon, together with effigies of his wife
and son, would be taken by boat down the Nile from
Karnak to Luxor, where the people would sing, dance
and feast for a 24 days before transporting the
statues back to the temple. Phoenicians and Persians
proclaimed the beginning of the New Year on the
Autumnal Equinox (September22nd). Early Greeks first
observed the occasion at the Winter Solstice (December
21st) and later, at the Summer Solstice (June 21st).
The Romans initially observed their New Year in March,
a festival which they called Calends or Kalends. It
was a time when people decorated their homes with
lights and greenery and gave each other gifts
carefully chosen for their luck-bringing properties,
such as sweets or honey to ensure peace...gold, silver
or monetary presents to ensure propsperity...and lamps
for a year filled with light. The festival lasted for
three days, during which time slaves and masters dined
together and normal rules of the society were put on
hold while everyone was permitted to do what they
pleased. The Emperor and other select politicians
would usually be presented with gifts and wishes of
good fortune for the year ahead. However, since the
Roman calendar was constantly being tampered with by
the Emperors, it became out of synchronization with
the Sun. In order to set the calendar right, the
Senate, in 153 B.C., proclaimed that the first day of
a New Year would be observed on January 1st.
Nevertheless, tampering with the calendar continued
until 46 B.C., when Julius Caesar established what was
to later be known as the Julian Calendar. Again, it
designated January 1st as the New Year but, in order
to synchronize the calendar with the Sun, Caesar was
obliged to allow the previous year to continue for 445
days.
New Year's Day became a Holy Day in the Christian
Church in 487 A.D., when it was declared the Feast of
the Circumcision. Originally, parties were not allowed
on this day because the pagans had followed that
custom. However, in time, attitudes changed and it was
deemed that celebrations could again be held. January
1st became generally recognized as New Year's Day in
the 1500s, when the Gregorian Calendar was introduced.
By this time, the Julian Calendar, once more out of
calibration, placed the first day of the year 13 days
later on January 14th.
In Ancient Rome, the beginning of the New Year was a
time to expunge the ills of the past twelve months and
establish a pattern for the twelve months to come
through good conduct. Friends reconciled any
differences, adversaries suspended litigation and
people exchanged gifts. Many Roman citizens also
brought gifts to the Emperor and wished him good
fortune. Initially, these donations were simple
branches of bay and palm leaves but later, more
expensive presents were given. Roman Senators received
flowers and fruits...or even bolts of beautiful
fabrics...from people who wanted favors. Roman
merchants carried this gift-giving custom as far east
as Persia (now known as Iran). There, the ancient
Persians followed the Roman tradition by exchanging
presents of eggs. Since an egg hatches into life, this
custom meant much the same thing as "turning over a
new leaf." The Celts, a race of people who lived in
Gaul (now known as France) and some areas of Britain
prior to the Roman invasion celebrated their New Year
at the end of October. The festival was called
Samhain, which means "summer's end."
When the Roman legions arrived in England, they found
that the Druid priests celebrated their New Year on
March 10th. The priests would cut branches of
mistletoe which grew on the sacred oak and give the
boughs to the people for charms. The early English
adopted many of the Roman traditions. Later, English
people followed the custom of cleaning chimneys on New
Year's Day. This was supposed to bring good luck to
the household during the coming year. Today, the
common phrase is "cleaning the slate," rather than
"cleaning the chimney," but the intent is the
same...the making of resolutions to correct faults and
bad habits and the resolve to make the coming year a
better one than before. The actual tradition of making
New Year Resolutions is believed to have originated
with the ancient Babylonians, whose most popular
resolution is thought to have been the return of
borrowed farm equipment.
The Roman custom of giving gifts to their Emperor was
revived by the English in the 1200s. Jewelry, gloves
and other presents were brought to the English
monarch. Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603), for example,
built up a fine collection of hundreds of pairs of
richly-embroidered and bejeweled gloves by virtue of
this custom. English husbands also adopted the habit
of giving their wives money on New Year's Day with
which to buy pins for the whole year. This custom
disappeared in the 1800s when machines were developed
to manufacture pins, but the term "pin money" still
refers to small amounts of spending cash.
Many ancient Roman traditions continue to survive in
Europe and Latin America, overlaid with new
superstitions. In many areas, the first person to
enter a house on New Year's Day is thought to
determine the luck for the coming year. Bad luck is
believed to accompany a woman...particularly one with
fair or red hair. Tall, dark-haired men are highly
favored as "first-footers," supposedly bringing the
assurance of a happy year to come.
New Year's Day is the first day of the calendar year.
Celebrated in almost every country today, January 1st
has only been recognized as a holiday by Western
nations for approximately 400 years. Since earliest
times, people have sought to satisfy the deep-rooted
longing for recreation by celebrating the New Year.
Observed on varying dates in different lands, New Year
festivals mark the pivotal point where time is deemed
to begin anew...an emergence of the pure and pristine
for both the world itself and individuals alike,
provided the proper steps are taken. First, celebrants
must banish the malicious spirits and accumulated
evils of the past in order to prevent infection of the
coming year. Next, come rites of purification,
followed by positive acts which ensure an auspicious
future. Sometimes, participants are unaware that they
are following ancient mystical practices. Few
Westerners, for example, realize that their New Year
horns and fireworks were once used as tools intended
to banish evil spirits.
Although they had no written calendar, ancient
Babylonians (who resided in modern day Iraq)
celebrated the beginning of a New Year on what is now
March 23rd, the time of year when Spring arrives and
new crops planted. It was a festival which lasted for
11 days, during which the King was stripped of his
clothes and banished. For a few days, the people could
do as they pleased. Upon the return of the King...in
grand procession and wearing fine robes...the
Babylonians went back to work and behaved in proper
fashion once more. Thus, each New Year, did the people
make a fresh start to their lives.
Ancient Egyptians originally celebrated the New Year
with the Feast of Opet around the middle of June,
which was when the Nile River usually overflowed its
banks. Consequently, people were unable to work and
would be free to take part in the festivities. Statues
of the God, Amon, together with effigies of his wife
and son, would be taken by boat down the Nile from
Karnak to Luxor, where the people would sing, dance
and feast for a 24 days before transporting the
statues back to the temple. Phoenicians and Persians
proclaimed the beginning of the New Year on the
Autumnal Equinox (September22nd). Early Greeks first
observed the occasion at the Winter Solstice (December
21st) and later, at the Summer Solstice (June 21st).
The Romans initially observed their New Year in March,
a festival which they called Calends or Kalends. It
was a time when people decorated their homes with
lights and greenery and gave each other gifts
carefully chosen for their luck-bringing properties,
such as sweets or honey to ensure peace...gold, silver
or monetary presents to ensure propsperity...and lamps
for a year filled with light. The festival lasted for
three days, during which time slaves and masters dined
together and normal rules of the society were put on
hold while everyone was permitted to do what they
pleased. The Emperor and other select politicians
would usually be presented with gifts and wishes of
good fortune for the year ahead. However, since the
Roman calendar was constantly being tampered with by
the Emperors, it became out of synchronization with
the Sun. In order to set the calendar right, the
Senate, in 153 B.C., proclaimed that the first day of
a New Year would be observed on January 1st.
Nevertheless, tampering with the calendar continued
until 46 B.C., when Julius Caesar established what was
to later be known as the Julian Calendar. Again, it
designated January 1st as the New Year but, in order
to synchronize the calendar with the Sun, Caesar was
obliged to allow the previous year to continue for 445
days.
New Year's Day became a Holy Day in the Christian
Church in 487 A.D., when it was declared the Feast of
the Circumcision. Originally, parties were not allowed
on this day because the pagans had followed that
custom. However, in time, attitudes changed and it was
deemed that celebrations could again be held. January
1st became generally recognized as New Year's Day in
the 1500s, when the Gregorian Calendar was introduced.
By this time, the Julian Calendar, once more out of
calibration, placed the first day of the year 13 days
later on January 14th.
In Ancient Rome, the beginning of the New Year was a
time to expunge the ills of the past twelve months and
establish a pattern for the twelve months to come
through good conduct. Friends reconciled any
differences, adversaries suspended litigation and
people exchanged gifts. Many Roman citizens also
brought gifts to the Emperor and wished him good
fortune. Initially, these donations were simple
branches of bay and palm leaves but later, more
expensive presents were given. Roman Senators received
flowers and fruits...or even bolts of beautiful
fabrics...from people who wanted favors. Roman
merchants carried this gift-giving custom as far east
as Persia (now known as Iran). There, the ancient
Persians followed the Roman tradition by exchanging
presents of eggs. Since an egg hatches into life, this
custom meant much the same thing as "turning over a
new leaf." The Celts, a race of people who lived in
Gaul (now known as France) and some areas of Britain
prior to the Roman invasion celebrated their New Year
at the end of October. The festival was called
Samhain, which means "summer's end."
When the Roman legions arrived in England, they found
that the Druid priests celebrated their New Year on
March 10th. The priests would cut branches of
mistletoe which grew on the sacred oak and give the
boughs to the people for charms. The early English
adopted many of the Roman traditions. Later, English
people followed the custom of cleaning chimneys on New
Year's Day. This was supposed to bring good luck to
the household during the coming year. Today, the
common phrase is "cleaning the slate," rather than
"cleaning the chimney," but the intent is the
same...the making of resolutions to correct faults and
bad habits and the resolve to make the coming year a
better one than before. The actual tradition of making
New Year Resolutions is believed to have originated
with the ancient Babylonians, whose most popular
resolution is thought to have been the return of
borrowed farm equipment.
The Roman custom of giving gifts to their Emperor was
revived by the English in the 1200s. Jewelry, gloves
and other presents were brought to the English
monarch. Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603), for example,
built up a fine collection of hundreds of pairs of
richly-embroidered and bejeweled gloves by virtue of
this custom. English husbands also adopted the habit
of giving their wives money on New Year's Day with
which to buy pins for the whole year. This custom
disappeared in the 1800s when machines were developed
to manufacture pins, but the term "pin money" still
refers to small amounts of spending cash.
Many ancient Roman traditions continue to survive in
Europe and Latin America, overlaid with new
superstitions. In many areas, the first person to
enter a house on New Year's Day is thought to
determine the luck for the coming year. Bad luck is
believed to accompany a woman...particularly one with
fair or red hair. Tall, dark-haired men are highly
favored as "first-footers," supposedly bringing the
assurance of a happy year to come.