by 4 people |
Ahh, New Years. The day of celebration, tradition, and resolutions.
"Happy New Years!", a greetings that will be said and heard throughout the world for at least the first couple weeks as the new year gets under way.
But did you know that the day celebrated as New Year's Day in modern America was not always January 1...
Featured New Years Websites
- New Years Traditions Around the World
- This website provides how over 50 countries celebrate New Years with in-depth information.
- Creative New Years Ideas
- Want something different to celebrate New Years? This is a great resource for some awesome creative ideas.
- New Years Recipes
- A website listing of recipe ideas for the New Years celebration including Black Eyed Peas and Ham!
New Years History
The celebration of the new year is infact the oldest of all holidays. The holiday was first observed in ancient Babylon around 4000 years ago. Around 2000 BC, the Babylonian New Year began with the first New Moon after the Vernal Equinox (the first day of spring!).
The start of spring is the logical time to start a new year considering it is the time of blossoming, rebirth, and planting of new crops. On the contrary, January 1st has no astronomical nor agricultural significance.
The Babylonian new year celebration lasted for 11 days. Each day had its own particular mode of celebration, but it can be said that modern New Year's Eve festivities pale in comparison.
So how did January 1st become the standard date for the New Year? Well, in 153 BC, the Roman senate declared it, but it wasn't official until Julius Caesar reigned and developed what we know as the Julian Calendar.
Interested in knowing more..?
Visit the New Year's Day Homepage by Wilstar.com
The start of spring is the logical time to start a new year considering it is the time of blossoming, rebirth, and planting of new crops. On the contrary, January 1st has no astronomical nor agricultural significance.
The Babylonian new year celebration lasted for 11 days. Each day had its own particular mode of celebration, but it can be said that modern New Year's Eve festivities pale in comparison.
So how did January 1st become the standard date for the New Year? Well, in 153 BC, the Roman senate declared it, but it wasn't official until Julius Caesar reigned and developed what we know as the Julian Calendar.
Interested in knowing more..?
Visit the New Year's Day Homepage by Wilstar.com
New Years Tradition & Beliefs
All holidays have tradition. With New Years there is no exception and has all sorts of tradition to be followed, the most popular in which we know as making New Years Resolutions.
Traditional New Year foods are thought to bring good fortune. Many cultures believe that anything in the shape of a ring is good luck, because it symbolizes a "coming full circle," completing a year's cycle. For this reason, the Dutch believe that eating donuts on New Year's Day will bring good fortune.
A few parts of the United States celebrate the new year by consuming black-eyed peas. These legumes are commonly accompanied by either hog jowls or ham. Black-eyed peas and other legumes have been considered good fortune in many cultures. The hog, and in turn, its meat, is considered lucky because it symbolizes prosperity. Cabbage is another "good luck" vegetable that is consumed on New Year's Day by many.
Cabbage leaves are also considered a sign of prosperity, being representative of paper currency. In some regions, rice is a lucky food that is eaten on New Year's Day.
Most common modern day tradition in the United States includes waiting until count down the night before New Years and celebrating by drinking champaigne or shooting off fireworks for the New Year, followed with resolutions for the New Year.
Hungry for Tradition..?
Infoplease.com provides information on New Years tradition throughout the world.
Traditional New Year foods are thought to bring good fortune. Many cultures believe that anything in the shape of a ring is good luck, because it symbolizes a "coming full circle," completing a year's cycle. For this reason, the Dutch believe that eating donuts on New Year's Day will bring good fortune.
A few parts of the United States celebrate the new year by consuming black-eyed peas. These legumes are commonly accompanied by either hog jowls or ham. Black-eyed peas and other legumes have been considered good fortune in many cultures. The hog, and in turn, its meat, is considered lucky because it symbolizes prosperity. Cabbage is another "good luck" vegetable that is consumed on New Year's Day by many.
Cabbage leaves are also considered a sign of prosperity, being representative of paper currency. In some regions, rice is a lucky food that is eaten on New Year's Day.
Most common modern day tradition in the United States includes waiting until count down the night before New Years and celebrating by drinking champaigne or shooting off fireworks for the New Year, followed with resolutions for the New Year.
Hungry for Tradition..?
Infoplease.com provides information on New Years tradition throughout the world.
Global Good Luck Traditions
With New Year's slowly coming up, here's a look at some of the good luck traditions and rituals from around the world. They are believed to bring good fortune and prosperity in the coming year.
- CHINA - For the Chinese New Year, every front door is adorned with a fresh coat of red paint, red being a symbol of good luck and happiness. Although the whole family prepares a feast for the New Year, all knives are put away for 24 hours to keep anyone from cutting themselves, which is thought to cut the family's good luck for the next year.
- ENGLAND - The British place their fortunes for the coming year in the hands of their first guest. They believe the first visitor of each year should be male and bearing gifts. Traditional gifts are coal for the fire, a loaf for the table and a drink for the master. For good luck, the guest should enter through the front door and leave through the back. Guests who are empty-handed or unwanted are not allowed to enter first.
- GREECE - A special New Year's bread is baked with a coin buried in the dough. The first slice is for the Christ child, the second for the father of the household and the third slice is for the house. If the third slice holds the coin, spring will come early that year.
- HAITI - In Haiti, New Year's Day is a sign of the year to come. Haitians wear new clothing and exchange gifts in the hope that it will bode well for the new year.
- JAPAN - The Japanese decorate their homes in tribute to lucky gods. One tradition, kadomatsu, consists of a pine branch symbolizing longevity, a bamboo stalk symbolizing prosperity, and a plum blossom showing nobility.
- SPAIN - In Spain, when the clock strikes midnight, the Spanish eat 12 grapes, one with every toll, to bring good luck for the 12 months ahead.
- UNITED STATES - The kiss shared at the stroke of midnight in the United States is derived from masked balls that have been common throughout history. As tradition has it, the masks symbolize evil spirits from the old year and the kiss is the purification into the new year.
- Want more tradition? Goalsguy.com provides you more tradition from other countries!
Resolution Suggestions
As the New Year begins to draw closer, you should really start thinking about what you are going to do to make the New Year better than the last -- think of the New Year as a fresh start and a chance to prove yourself and accomplish your goals. Make a resolution.
Resolution Suggestions
1) Take a morning walk and enjoy the crisp, cool morning air and meet a neighbor you haven't bothered talking to and have a nice warm cup of coffee with them.
2) Make it your priority to do your best at work and ask your boss for that raise you always wanted.
3) Make an impact on someone's life - something as simple as mowing the lawn for your old next door neighbor is suffice.
4) Learn a new vocabulary word each day, sign up at www.dictionary.com for a daily word and by the end of the year you'll have learned 365 new words to use in your vocabulary!
5) Save up a little money each month, perhaps conserve on things you've taken for granted, and take a nice trip to Hawaii or Paris the following New Year!
Resolution Suggestions
1) Take a morning walk and enjoy the crisp, cool morning air and meet a neighbor you haven't bothered talking to and have a nice warm cup of coffee with them.
2) Make it your priority to do your best at work and ask your boss for that raise you always wanted.
3) Make an impact on someone's life - something as simple as mowing the lawn for your old next door neighbor is suffice.
4) Learn a new vocabulary word each day, sign up at www.dictionary.com for a daily word and by the end of the year you'll have learned 365 new words to use in your vocabulary!
5) Save up a little money each month, perhaps conserve on things you've taken for granted, and take a nice trip to Hawaii or Paris the following New Year!
Top 10 New Years Resolutions
- Lose Weight
- Stop smoking
- Stick to a budget
- Save or earn more money
- Find a better job
- Become more organized
- Exercise more
- Be more patient at work/with others
- Eat better
- Become a better person
Quick New Years Facts
New Years starts on January 1st with the Solar Calendar and starts February 12th on the Lunar Calendar.
Korean culture celebrates on both the Solar and Lunar New Year days.
Chinese New Years is celebrated for a 15 day period.
New years is known as shogatsu or oshogatsu in Japan.
The Vietnamese New Year is the Tet Nguyen Dan. It is celebrated on the same day as Chinese New Year.
Korean culture celebrates on both the Solar and Lunar New Year days.
Chinese New Years is celebrated for a 15 day period.
New years is known as shogatsu or oshogatsu in Japan.
The Vietnamese New Year is the Tet Nguyen Dan. It is celebrated on the same day as Chinese New Year.
Resources
Credit goes to these websites for this wonderful information.
- Goalsguy.com
- Provided the Global Good Luck Tradition's information.
- Wikipedia's New Year Page
- An awesome resource with information on the New Year.
- Time And Date
- The countdown until the New Year.
- China Page
- Information on the Chinese New Year.
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