So Long 2011, Hello 2012!

Rather than bemoan the fact that this New Year's Eve brings with it (once again) an economy that leaves a lot to be desired, unemployment, clowns running for office, etc., I thought I would be fun (remember fun?) to look at the reasons why we have certain traditions on New Year's  Eve.  Some of them are very interesting.

January 1

The date of our new year in terms of time, is relatively new.  Up until the time of Julius Caesar, the new year began on March 1.  The January 1 date coincided with the date that the Roman governmental figures and new consuls were inducted into office.  The occasion also brought with it games and partying.  Caesar decided to change the date to January to honor the god Janus--the god of all beginnings and the gatekeeper of heaven and earth.  This god was also depicted with two faces.  This was rather apropos for New Years.  One face looking back at the past, the other looking forward to the future.

When emperor Constantine came along and with him Christianity, he decided to keep the date January 1, as opposed to returning it to March 1.  He decided to take it from a day of festivals and merriment, and make it a day of fasting and prayer--a chance for Christians to turn over a new leaf.

However, even as late as 1582, Great Britian and the English colonies in America kept March for the beginning of the year. Perhaps they felt that spring was a better beginning. It wasn't until 1752 that Britain and it's colonies adopted the new Gregorian calendar and January 1 as the beginning of the year. Many Puritans in New England felt the Roman god Janus was a pagan god and chose to ignore January 1 as a New Years Day. Instead they just made the entire month of January as "The First Month" of the months.

Father Time
This symbol of the new year once again has roots in Greek and Roman Mythology.  The Greek god Cronus, known to the Romans as Saturn, god of agriculture, is thought to be the source of the image of the bearded, scythe-carrying old man known as Father Time. Saturn is typically associated with the sowing of seeds and the tilling of the soil.

The ancient Romans celebrated Saturnalia, a week-long harvest festival in December, to honor Saturn, and this festival has in many ways influenced Christian tradition. In A.D. 354, when Pope Liberius ordered that Dec. 25 be observed as the birthday of Christ, he cited the precedent of Saturnalia, probably hoping the new holiday would divert attention from the pagan revelry. That’s why the images of Father Time and Father Christmas, and the passing of the old year and the coming of the new have all come to be associated with one another over the centuries.

Scholars now believe that the name Cronus is actually pre-Greek and is not etymologically related to chronos, one of several Greek words for time. But the confusion between Cronus and chronos has probably reinforced the scythe-wielding Father Time image.

Auld Lang Syne
"Auld Lang Syne" the title of a Scottish folk song that many English speaking people sing at midnight on New Year's Eve translates roughly to "days gone by"  Poet Robert Burns has been credited with transcribing
adapting, and partially rewriting the song in the late 18th century.  The lyrics rhetorically ask whether "auld acquaintance"  should be forgot have been interpreted as a call to remember friends and events of the past.

Noisemakers
As far back as 335 AD, New Year’s Eve was  the night of Holy Sylvester, the Pope who converted the Roman Emperor Constantine to Christianity.  After the Emperor’s conversion, pagan gods fell from favor but fought back through the souls of the living.  The people protected themselves from their return during the darkness of New Year’s Eve by wandering the streets shouting to strangers, frolicking with noisemakers, and generally acting foolish, a custom that resurfaces every New Year’s Eve.  Sound familiar??

Resolutions
Once again, this goes back to Roman times. ancient Romans.  They took it upon themselves to indulge  in alcoholic and sexual excess as a way of acting out all the chaos that they hoped a new year would get rid of. They reasoned that the New Year's festival was a way to start over. By purging yourself of all this so-called excess energy and confessing your sins, there was a hope that you would be much better in the year ahead.

As time went on, the Puritans never did approve of  this merriment at the New Year.  They instead celebrated the date as a time of religious renewal of cleansing, purging, and fasting.   They encouraged young people not to waste the new year on foolish things but to use it as an opportunity to make a good change in their lives for the good.  They in turn also made New Year's vows or pledges focused on overcoming their own weaknesses and  to enhance their god-given talents and to make them better citizens to others.

The popular idea of making  New Year's Resolutions began during the 20th century.  It was mostly done tongue in cheek with an understanding that they would not be kept--seriously, how many resolutions have you kept over the years?

The resolutions today are  a secular version of the religious vows people made in the past toward spiritual perfection. They are often made with good intentions and broken with a sense of humor and renewed annually.

Champagne
One theory for the consumption of champagne on New Years Eve is that the correct way to open the bottle, by popping the cork, sounds very much like a starter's pistol...a new beginning.  Just a theory, but it makes sense!

As we all look with OPTIMISM toward 2012, let's  hope it brings with it all of the good things we hope for and aspire to in the coming year.  HAPPY NEW YEAR!