NEW YEAR _ A TIME OF RENEWAL

by Pam North

Little remains of 2001; it won't be long until 2002 will be ushered
in.  While the modern world recognizes the date of January 1st as
New Year's Day, it hasn't always been so.

The celebration of the new year is the oldest of all holidays.  Its roots go 
back about 4000 years to ancient Babylon.  In the years around 2000 BC, 
the Babylonian New Year began with the first New Moon (actually the first 
visible crescent) after the Vernal Equinox (first day of spring).  The 
beginning of spring, a season of rebirth and the planting of new crops,
is a logical time to start a new year.  January 1st, in contrast,
has no astronomical nor agricultural significance; it is a purely arbitrary
date.  The Babylonians celebrated the new year for eleven days, each
with its own particular mode of festivity, so however rowdy our modern
New Year's Eve partying is, it probably pales in comparison.

The Romans continued to observe the new year in late March, but their
calendar, continually tweaked by various emperors, soon fell out
of synchronization with the sun.  Caesar's solution to restore agreement
of the calendar with the sun was to let the previous year drag on for 445
days.  Although in the first centuries AD, the Romans continued
celebrating the new year, the early Church condemned the festivities as
pagan.  As Christianity gradually became more widespread, the church
found it wise to scheduling its own religious observances concurrently
with many of the pagan celebrations.  New Year's Day finally found
a niche; it is now observed as the feast of Christ's circumcision by many
Christian denominations.  During the Middle Ages, the Church remained
opposed to celebrating the new year, and the acceptance of January 1st
as a holiday has evolved in only about the past 400 years.  Also,
Great Britain and its colonies adopted the Gregorian calendar in 1752,
which in which January 1st was restored as New Year's Day.

The practice of making New Year's resolutions also dates back to the
Babylonians.  While popular current-day intentions might include such
promises as losing weight or quitting smoking, the early Babylonians'
most common resolution was to return borrowed farm equipment.
The tradition of using a baby as a symbol of the new year began in Greece
around 600 BC.  The Greeks celebrated their god of wine, Dionysus,
by parading a baby in a basket, a representation of the annual rebirth
of that god as the spirit of fertility.  Early Egyptians also favored
an infant as a symbol of rebirth.  Although early Christianity initially
denounced these practices as pagan, the Church, in the face of the overwhelming
popularity of the baby/rebirth/new year beliefs, re-evaluated its position,
with the result that Christians were finally allowed to celebrate the new
year, and the infant symbol became acceptable, although more in relation
to the birth of Jesus.  The use of an image of a baby with a new year
banner was brought to America by the Germans, who had displayed such an
effigy since the 14th century.

Traditionally it was thought that one's luck in the coming year could
be affected by what was done or eaten on that year's very first day.  For 
that reason, it became common for folks to celebrate the first few
minutes of the new year in the company of family and friends.  It
was once believed that the first visitor on New Year's Day would bring
either good luck or bad luck for the rest of the year, and it was considered
particularly lucky if that visitor happened to be a tall dark-haired man.

Traditional New Year's foods are also thought to bring luck.  Many
cultures believe that anything in the shape of a ring is auspicious, because
it symbolizes coming full circle or completing a year's cycle.  Following
that line of reasoning, the Dutch believe that eating donuts on New Year's
Day will bring good fortune (perhaps a bowl of Cheerios should be the food
of choice for Americans).  Many parts of the United States celebrate
the new year by observing the custom of consuming black-eyed peas, typically
spiced or accompanied by either hog jowls or ham.  Legumes are considered
good luck in many other cultures as well, and the hog, and thus its meat,
is considered lucky because it symbolizes properity.  Cabbage is another
good luck vegetable that is favored by many on New Year's Day; the 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.

Ways of celebrating the new year differ all over the world, according
to customs and religions.  People in Moslem societies celebrate the
new year by wearing new clothes.  Southeast Asians release birds and
turtles to assure themselves of good luck in the twelve months ahead.
Jewish people consider the day holy, and hold a religious ceremony at a
meal with special foods.  Hindus of India leave shrines next to their
beds so that they can look at beautiful objects at the start of the new
year.  The Japanese prepare rice cakes at a social event the week
before the new year, and also eat long noodles to wish for a long life.
In Brazil people wear white clothes for luck, and go to the beach to jump 
seven waves, and throw flowers into the sea while making a wish.
In Korea a bell is struck 33 times, and in Japan a bell is struck 109
times.  Venezuelans who want travel in their future take a suitcase
outside, and carry it around the house on New Year's Eve.  The
Chinese make beautiful paper cuttings to paste on their windows to keep
out evil spirits and to bring good luck.  Colombian families dress
a stuffed male doll with old clothes from each member of the family, and
burn it to symbolize forgetting all the bad things of the old year.In 
Equador people wear masks to burn on December 31st to drive away bad
luck.  Spanish people have a tradition of having twelve grapes ready
when the clock starts to chime midnight, and the grapes must be eaten before
the chiming stops.  This task apparently isn't easy, as it usually
results in everyone laughing hysterically with their mouths full of grapes.
The tradition apparently began long ago when there was a plentiful grape
harvest, and the king gave grapes to all his subjects to eat on New Year's
Eve.

In the United States the federal holiday is January 1st, but celebration
begins on December 31st.  Masquerade balls are often held, with guests
donning costumes and covering their faces with masks, the latter remaining
in place until midnight, when they are then removed (the midnight unmasking
itself is a very old tradition).  At New Year's Eve parties (which
often last well into the middle of the night) in America, guests usually
enjoy watching television as part of the festivities; most of the channels
show live coverage of Times Square in the heart of New York City.  At one 
minute before midnight, a lighted ball begins to descend slowly from the top 
to the bottom of a pole on one of the buildings.   People count down the 
final seconds in unison as the ball drops, and when it reaches the bottom, 
the new year sign is lighted, signalling for everyone to hug, kiss and 
merrily wish each other "Happy New Year!"

The song "Auld Lang Syne" traditionally plays in the background at the
stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve in almost every English-speaking country
in the world.  Early variations of the song were in evidence prior
to 1700, and were the inspiration for Robert Burns to write down his version
and embellish it in the 1700s; it was published in 1796 after his death.  An 
old Scottish tune, "Auld Lang Syne" literally means "old long ago," or simply
"the good old days."

One of America's favorite ways of celebrating the New Year is the Tournament
of Roses Parade, which dates back to 1887, when a zoologist, who had witnessed
a similar festivity in France, suggested that the Valley Hunt Club sponsor "an
artistic celebration of the ripening of the oranges" at the beginning of the 
year.  At first it was a parade line of horse carriages decorated with flower,
with athletic events in the afternoon, and a ball in the evening.   
In later years, colleges began to compete in football games on New Year's Day,
and these soon became the afternoon focus.  The parades grew longer each
year, and the flower-bedecked floats became ever more elaborate, reflecting
a new theme chosen for each year. Now the parade is usually more than five 
miles in length, with numerous marching bands, celebrities, and thousands of 
participants.

Whatever the custom, most people feel the same sentiment. With a new year we 
have visions of a new life.  We fervently wish each other good luck, and 
make heartfelt, solemn promises to change our own lives for the better in the 
coming year - promises that, however good the intentions are behind them, 
usually are  broken and forgotten within a very short time.