|
New Year's Eve.
The first New Year's Eve was celebrated in Mesopotamia 2,000 BCE. Since then it has been celebrated at different times of the year according to various cultures.
In 45 BCE, Julius Caesar, on the advice of the Greek astronomer Sosigenes, improved the old Roman calendar. Caesar’s calendar became known as the Julian Calendar. It was adopted by the Roman Empire and all its territories and remained in use for over 1500 years. The Julian Calendar abandoned aligning the months with lunar cycles, and adopted months of 30 or 31 days in length, keeping February at 28 days. He also introduced an extra day in February in leap years.
In the original Roman calendar, March was the first month of the year and this continued with the Julian Calendar. March 1st, was roughly in synch with the Vernal Equinox as the official start of spring and the New Year.
However, the Julian Calendar became out of alignment over the centuries with the seasons and the churches religious festivals, so the Julian Calendar was revised under Pope Gregory XIII by a priest/astronomer named Christopher Clavius. By 1582 the accumulated error was estimated to have amounted to 10 days.
Pope Gregory XIII made January 1st the beginning of the year. January was named after Janus the god of change, the guardian deity of gates and doors and the god of good beginnings. The god is depicted as a two headed figure facing two ways - looking back and looking forward. Hence we break with the old year and we start a new year looking forward to new beginnings. The new calendar was known as the Gregorian Calendar. Although most of Europe adopted the Gregorian Calendar, it was not accepted in Scotland until 1600, England until 1752, and in Russia, not until the Russian Revolution. In England it was a question of not conceding to the changes made by the Roman Catholic Church, no matter how much sense it made.
The custom of ringing bells is to chase away the old spirits and start the New Year fresh. The tradition of using a baby to signify the New Year started in Greece around 600 BCE to celebrate their god of wine, Dionysus. A baby was paraded in a basket, representing the annual rebirth of that god as the spirit of fertility.
Auld Lang Syne The song Auld Lang Syne is traditionally sung on the stroke of midnight each New Year’s Eve. The words Auld Lang Syne literally translates from old Scottish dialect meaning 'Old Long Ago' and is about love and friendship in times past. The lyrics in the song referring to 'We'll take a Cup of Kindness yet' relate to a drink shared by men and women to symbolize friendship.
The words to Auld Lang Syne were written in 1788 by Scotland's famous poet, Robert Burns, who lived from 1759 to 1796. The tune with the Burns’ words quickly became a famous song and before long was popular as the last song to be sung when an evening party broke up. The ritual developed that the group stood up in a circle, each one crossing his arms in front of his chest and clasping his neighbours' hands to left and right. While singing, all arms were swung forward and back in time with the music.
Bandleader Guy Lombardo first heard Auld Lang Syne in his hometown of London, Ontario, where it was sung by Scottish immigrants. When he and his brothers formed the famous dance band, Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians, the song became one of their standards. Lombardo played the song at midnight at a New Year's Eve party at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City in 1929, and a tradition was born.
Auld Lang Syne Lyrics (first two verses)
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
For auld lang syne, my dear,
|