We all know that New Year is really a duration of celebration, a period to join with friends and family to say goodbye towards the problems of history and welcome the fortunes the future holds. But ever wondered why January 1 marks the start of the entire year? Have you ever considered why we celebrate in the manner that people do?
New Years Traditions and Superstitions
There are a number of superstitious traditions that began many years ago which have lost their meaning in current day. Typically these traditions were enacted to influence the luck one would have within the coming year. For example, the brand new Years Eve parties that people all know and love began due to the belief that what one did on the first day's the entire year may affect their luck. This is why parties go past midnight and in to the year and it also explains why they require plenty of family and friends.
When the clock strikes midnight it's common for us to kiss our loved ones and make plenty of noise to celebrate the start of a brand new year. Some people simply do this without really thinking about it, there is a superstitious reason behind this. Traditionally, people kissed each other to make sure that the connection lasted throughout the year and they made a lot of noise as they believed it would scare the evil spirits away.
History of New Years Day
The origins of recent Years celebrations go as far back thousands of years. In around 2000BC the Babylonians celebrated the brand new year over an 11-day period. This era did not begin on January 1 once we would expect, it really started with the first new moon following the first day of spring (also called the Vernal Equinox).
It wasn't until 153BC that January was declared as the start of the year by the Romans. The month was named after Janus the mythical god of beginnings. The calendar year became much more like that utilized in present day in 46BC when Julius Caesar established the Julian Calendar. After consultation by having an astronomer he matched the twelve months with the movement from the sun and marked January 1 as the start of the year.
New Years Resolutions
The most popular tradition of creating new years resolutions also has origins in Ancient Babylon and Rome. The Babylonians would typically return farm equipment that they had borrowed in the past year, during Caesar's time Janus became the symbol for resolutions while he had two faces that may turn to yesteryear and into the future.
Today we make New Years Resolutions to try to improve some facet of ourselves in next season. Popular resolutions include quitting smoking, losing weight and getting not in debt. This sounds good but the sad truth is that most of us break them prior to the year has gone out. In fact, a recent study discovered that 22% of people give up on their resolution within the first week and by the end of March over fifty percent of recent Years resolvers have fallen of the bandwagon.
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