Other cultures observe their traditional or religious New Year's Day according to their own customs, typically (though not invariably) because they use alunar calendar or alunisolar calendar.Chinese New Year, theIslamic New Year, Tamil New Year (Puthandu), and theJewish New Year are among well-known examples. India, Nepal, and other countries also celebrate New Year on dates according to their own calendars that are movable in the Gregorian calendar.
During theMiddle Ages inWestern Europe, while the Julian calendar was still in use, authorities moved New Year's Day, depending upon locale, to one of several other days, including March 1, March 25, Easter, September 1, and December 25. Since then, many nationalcivil calendars in theWestern World and beyond have changed to using one fixed date for New Year's Day, January 1—most doing so when theyadopted the Gregorian calendar.
Contrary to common belief in the west, the civil New Year of January 1 is not anOrthodox Christian religious holiday. TheEastern Orthodox liturgical calendar makes no provision for the observance of a New Year. January 1 is itself a religious holiday, but that is because it is the feast of theCircumcision of Jesus (seven days after his birth), and acommemoration of saints. While the liturgical calendar begins September 1, there is also no particular religious observance attached to the start of the new cycle. Orthodox nations may, however, make civil celebrations for the New Year. Those who adhere to therevised Julian calendar (which synchronizes dates with the Gregorian calendar), including Bulgaria, Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Romania, Syria, Turkey and Ukraine, observe both the religious and civil holidays on January 1. In other nations and locations where Orthodox churches still adhere to theJulian calendar, including Georgia, Israel, Russia, the Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro andRussian-occupied Ukraine, the civil new year is observed on January 1 of the civil calendar, while those same religious feasts occur on January 14 Gregorian (which is January 1 Julian), in accord with the liturgical calendar.
TheJapanese New Year (正月, Shōgatsu) is currently celebrated on January 1, with the holiday usually being observed until January 3, while other sources say that Shōgatsu lasts until January 6. In 1873, five years after the Meiji Restoration, Japan adopted the Gregorian calendar. Prior to 1873, Japan used a lunar calendar with twelve months each of 29 or 30 days for a total year of about 354 days.[3]
Lunisolar calendars count months according tolunations but, because there are not an even number oflunar cycles in asolar year, the calendar must be restarted annually on the first, second or even third new moon after thewinter solstice. (The term "lunar calendar" is often used of lunisolar calendars, but truelunar calendars (such as theIslamic calendar) count only lunations and ignore the solar seasons.)
TheChinese New Year, also known as Spring Festival or Lunar New Year, occurs every year on thenew moon of the first lunar month, about the beginning of spring (Lichun). The exact date can fall any time between January 21 and February 21 (inclusive) of theGregorian Calendar. Traditionally, years were marked by one of twelveEarthly Branches, represented by an animal, and one of tenHeavenly Stems, which correspond to thefive elements. This combinationcycles every 60 years. It is the most important Chinese celebration of the year.
TheKorean New Year is aSeollal or Lunar New Year's Day. Although January 1 is, in fact, the first day of the year, Seollal, the first day of the lunar calendar, is more meaningful for Koreans. A celebration of the Lunar New Year is believed to have started to let in good luck and ward off bad spirits all throughout the year. With the old year out and a new one in, people gather at home and sit around with their families and relatives, catching up on what they have been doing.
TheVietnamese New Year is theTết Nguyên Đán which most times is the same day as the Chinese New Year due to the Vietnamese using a lunisolar calendar similar to the Chinese calendar.
TheTibetan New Year isLosar and falls between January and March.
TheTaiwanese New Year is called Kuè-nî and falls between January and March.
March
Babylonian New Year began with the first New Moon after thenorthward equinox. Ancient celebrations lasted for eleven days.[5]
Nava Varsha is celebrated in India in various regions from March–April.
TheIranianNew Year, calledNowruz, is the day containing the exact moment of the Northward equinox, which usually occurs on March 20 or 21, marking the start of the spring season. TheZoroastrian New Year coincides with theIranian New Year ofNowruz and is celebrated by theParsis in India and by Zoroastrians and Persians across the world. In theBaháʼí calendar, the new year occurs on the vernal equinox on March 20 or 21 and is calledNaw-Rúz. The Iranian tradition was also passed on to Central Asian countries, including Kazakhs, Uzbeks, and Uighurs, and there is known asNauryz. It is usually celebrated on March 22.
TheBalinese New Year, based on the Saka Calendar (Balinese-Javanese Calendar), is calledNyepi, and it falls on Bali's Lunar New Year (around March). It is a day of silence, fasting, and meditation: observed from 6 am until 6 am the next morning, Nyepi is a day reserved for self-reflection and as such, anything that might interfere with that purpose is restricted. Although Nyepi is a primarily Hindu holiday, non-Hindu residents of Bali observe the day of silence as well, out of respect for their fellow citizens. Even tourists are not exempt; although free to do as they wish inside their hotels, no one is allowed onto the beaches or streets, and the only airport in Bali remains closed for the entire day. The only exceptions granted are for emergency vehicles carrying those with life-threatening conditions and women about to give birth.
Ugadi (Telugu:ఉగాది,Kannada:ಯುಗಾದಿ); the Telugu and Kannada New Year, generally falls in the months of March or April. The people ofAndhra Pradesh,Telangana andKarnataka states in southern India celebrate the advent of New Year's Day in these months. The first month of the new year is Chaitra Masa.
In the Kashmiri calendar, the holidayNavreh marks the New Year in March–April. This holy day ofKashmiri Brahmins has been celebrated for several millennia.
Gudi Padwa is celebrated as the first day of theHindu year by the people ofMaharashtra, India and Sanskar Padwa is celebrated inGoa. This day falls in March–April and coincides withUgadi. (see:Deccan)
TheSindhi festival ofCheti Chand is celebrated on the same day asUgadi/Gudi Padwa to mark the celebration of the Sindhi New Year.
TheThelemic New Year on March 20 (or on April 8 by some accounts) is usually celebrated with an invocation toRa-Hoor-Khuit, commemorating the beginning of theNew Aeon in 1904. It also marks the start of the twenty-two-day Thelemic holy season, which ends on the third day of the writing ofThe Book of the Law. This date is also known as The Feast of the Supreme Ritual. There are some[who?] that believe the Thelemic New Year falls on either March 19, 20, or 21, depending on the vernal equinox, which is The Feast for the Equinox of the Gods on the vernal equinox of each year to commemorate the founding of Thelema in 1904. In 1904 the vernal equinox was on March 21, and it was the day afterAleister Crowley ended his Horus Invocation that brought on the new Æon and Thelemic New Year.
From 1155until 1752, the civil year in England and its possessions began on March 25 (seebelow.)
April
The Assyrian-Babylonian New Year, calledKha b'Nissan or Resha d'Sheeta, occurs on April 1.
Thelemic New Year Celebrations usually end on April 10, after an approximately one-month-long period that begins on March 20 (the formal New Year). This one-month period is referred to by many as the High Holy Days, and end with periods of observance on April 8, 9, and 10, coinciding with the three days of the Writing of the Book of the Law byAleister Crowley in 1904.[6]
The new year of manySouth andSoutheast Asian calendars falls between April 13–15, marking the beginning of spring.
TheBalochHindu people inPakistan andIndia celebrate their new year called Bege Roch in the month of Daardans according to their Saaldar calendar.
Tamil New Year (Tamil:தமிழ்புத்தாண்டுPuthandu) is celebrated in theSouth Indian state ofTamil Nadu, on the first ofChithrai (சித்திரை) (April 13, 14, or 15). In the temple city ofMadurai, the Chithrai Thiruvizha is celebrated in theMeenakshi Temple. A huge exhibition is also held, called Chithrai Porutkaatchi. In some parts of SouthernTamil Nadu, it is also called ChithraiVishu. The day is marked with a feast inHindu homes and the entrance to the houses are decorated elaborately withkolams.
Nepal New Year in Nepal is celebrated on the 1st ofBaisakhBaisākh which falls on 12–15 April in the Gregorian calendar. Nepal follows theBikram Sambat (BS) as an official calendar.
TheDogra ofHimachal Pradesh celebrate their new year Chaitti in the month of Chaitra.
Manipuri New Year or Cheirouba is celebrated on April 14 in the Indian State of Manipur with much festivities and feasting.
Sinhalese New Year is celebrated with the harvest festival (in the month of Bak) when the sun moves from the Meena Rashiya (House of Pisces) to the Mesha Rashiya (House of Aries). Sri Lankans begin celebrating their National New Year "Aluth Avurudda (අලුත් අවුරුද්ද)" in Sinhala and "Puththandu (புத்தாண்டு)" in Tamil. However, unlike the usual practice where the new year begins at midnight, the National New Year begins at the time determined by the astrologers by calculating the exact time that sun goes from Meena Rashiya (House of Pisces) to the Mesha Rashiya (House of Aries). Not only the beginning of the new year but the conclusion of the old year is also specified by the astrologers. And unlike the customary ending and beginning of the new year, there is a period of a few hours in between the conclusion of the Old Year and the commencement of the New Year, which is called the "nona gathe" (neutral period) Where part of the sun in House of Pisces and Part is in House of Aries.
Western parts ofKarnataka where Tulu is spoken, the new year is celebrated along with Tamil/ Malayali New year April 14 or 15, although in other parts most commonly celebrated on the day ofGudi Padwa, theMaharashtrian new year. InKodagu, in Southwestern Karnataka, however, both new year, Yugadi (corresponding to Gudi Padwa in March) and Bisu (corresponding to Vishu in around April 14 or 15), are observed.
TheWater Festival is the form of similar new year celebrations taking place in manySoutheast Asian countries, on the day of the full moon of the 11th month on thelunisolar calendar each year. The date of the festival is based on the traditional lunisolar calendar which determines the dates of Buddhist festivals and holidays, and is observed from April 13 to 15.[7] Traditionally people gently sprinkled water on one another as a sign of respect, but since the new year falls during the hottest month in Southeast Asia, many people end up dousing strangers and passersby in vehicles in boisterous celebration. The festival has many different names specific to each country:
It is also the traditional new year of theDai peoples ofYunnan Province, China. Religious activities in the tradition of Theravada Buddhism are also carried out, a tradition in which all of these cultures share.
June
The New Year of theKutchi people occurs onAshadi Beej, that is 2nd day ofShukla paksha ofAashaadha month ofHindu calendar. As for people ofKutch, this day is associated with the beginning of rains in Kutch, which is largely a desert area. Hindu calendar month of Aashaadh usually begins on June 22 and ending on July 22.
Odunde Festival is a celebration on the 2nd Sunday of June, where "Odunde" means "Happy New Year" in the Yorube Nigerian language.
TheXooy ceremony of theSerer people of Senegal, Gambia and Mauritania marks the Serer New Year.
Rosh Hashanah (Hebrew for 'head of the year') is a Jewish, two day holiday, commemorating the culmination of theseven days of Creation, and marking God's yearly renewal of His world. The day has elements of festivity and introspection, as God is traditionally believed to be assessing His creation and determining the fate of all men and creatures for the coming year. In Jewish tradition, honey is used to symbolize a sweet new year. At the traditional meal for that holiday, apple slices are dipped in honey and eaten with blessings recited for a good, sweet new year. Some Rosh Hashanah greetings show honey and an apple, symbolizing the feast. In some congregations, small straws of honey are given out to usher in the new year.[8]
TheMarwari New Year (Thapna) is celebrated on the day of the festival ofDiwali, which is the last dayKrishna Paksha of theAshvin month & also the last day of the Ashvin month of theHindu calendar.
TheGujarati New Year (Bestu/Nao Varas) is celebrated the day after the festival ofDiwali (which occurs in mid-fall – either October or November, depending on theLunar calendar). The Gujarati New Year is synonymous withsud ekam, i.e. first day ofShukla paksha of theKartik month, which is taken as the first day of the first month of the Gujarati lunar calendar. Most otherHindus celebrate the New Year in early spring. The Gujarati community all over the world celebrates the New Year after Diwali to mark the beginning of a new fiscal year.
The Nepal Era New year (seeNepal Sambat) is celebrated in regions encompassing original Nepal. The new year occurs on the fourth day ofDiwali. The calendar was used as an official calendar until the mid-19th century. However, the new year is still celebrated by theNewars community of Nepal.
Someneo-pagans celebrate their interpretation ofSamhain (a festival of the ancient Celts, held around November 1) as a New Year's Day representing the new cycle of theWheel of the Year, although they do not use a different calendar that starts on this day.
TheIslamic New Year occurs onMuharram. Since theIslamic calendar is based on 12lunar months amounting to about 354 days, its New Year occurs about eleven days earlier each year in relation to the Gregorian calendar, with two Islamic New Years falling in the Gregorian year 2008.
Satu Suro is theJavanese New Year, which falls on the first day of the month ofSuro and corresponds with the first Islamic month ofMuharram. MostJavanese inJava,Indonesia celebrated it by staying at home and refrain leaving the house.
The early development of the Christian liturgical year coincided with theRoman Empire (east and west), and later theByzantine Empire, both of which employed a taxation system labeled theIndiction, the years for which began on September 1. This timing may account for the ancient church's establishment of September 1 as the beginning of the liturgical year, despite the official Roman New Year's Day of January 1 in the Julian calendar, because the Indiction was the principal means for counting years in the empires, apart from the reigns of the Emperors. The September 1 date prevailed throughout all ofChristendom for many centuries, until subsequent divisions eventually produced revisions in some places.
After thesack of Rome in 410, communications and travel between east and west deteriorated. Liturgical developments in Rome and Constantinople did not always match, although a rigid adherence to form was never mandated in the church. Nevertheless, the principal points of development were maintained between east and west. TheRoman andConstantinopolitan liturgical calendars remained compatible even after theEast-West Schism in 1054. Separations between the CatholicGeneral Roman Calendar andEastern Orthodox liturgical calendar grew only over several centuries' time. During those intervening centuries, theLatin Church Catholic ecclesiastic year was moved to the first day ofAdvent, the Sunday nearest toSt. Andrew's Day (November 30). By the time of the Reformation (early 16th century), the Roman Catholic general calendar provided the initial basis for the calendars for the liturgically oriented Protestants, including theAnglican andLutheran Churches, who inherited this observation of the liturgical new year.[citation needed]
The present-day Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar is the virtual culmination of the ancient eastern development cycle, though it includes later additions based on subsequent history and lives of saints. It still begins on September 1, proceeding annually into theNativity of the Theotokos (September 8) andExaltation of the Cross (September 14) to the celebration ofNativity of Christ (Christmas), through his death and resurrection (Pascha/Easter), to his Ascension and theDormition of the Theotokos ("falling asleep" of theVirgin Mary, August 15). This last feast is known in the Roman Catholic church as the Assumption. The dating of "September 1" is according to the "new" (revised) Julian calendar or the "old" (standard) Julian calendar, depending on which is used by a particular Orthodox Church. Hence, it may fall on September 1 on the civil calendar, or on September 14 (between 1900 and 2099 inclusive).
During theRoman Republic and theRoman Empire, years began on the date on which each consul first entered the office. This was probably May 1 before 222 BC, March 15 from 222 BC to 154 BC,[15] and January 1 from 153 BC.[16] In 45 BC, whenJulius Caesar's newJulian calendar took effect, the Senate fixed January 1 as the first day of the year. At that time, this was the date on which those who were to hold civil office assumed their official position, and it was also the traditional annual date for the convening of the Roman Senate. This civil new year remained in effect throughout the Roman Empire, east and west, during its lifetime and well after, wherever the Julian calendar continued in use.
InAnnunciation Style orLady Day Style dating the new year started on March 25,[17] the feast of theAnnunciation (traditionally nicknamedLady Day). This date was used in many parts of Europe during the Middle Ages and beyond.[18]
InEaster Style dating, the new year started onHoly Saturday (the day beforeEaster),[19] or sometimes onGood Friday. This was used all over Europe, but especially in France, from the eleventh to the sixteenth century. A disadvantage of this system was that because Easter was amovable feast the same date could occur twice in a year; the two occurrences were distinguished as "before Easter" and "after Easter".
InChristmas Style orNativity Style dating the new year started on December 25. This was used in Germany and England until the eleventh century,[20] and in Spain from the fourteenth to the sixteenth century.
Over the centuries, countries changed between styles until the Modern Style (January 1) prevailed. For example,
InEngland, eitherAnnunciation Style (March 25) orNativity Style (December 25th) was used until theNorman Conquest in 1066, when Modern Style (January 1) was adopted; but Annunciation Style was used again from 1155until 1752.[20]
Scotland changed from Annunciation Style (March 25) to Modern Style with effect from January 1, 1600 (by Order of the King'sPrivy Council on December 17, 1599).[21]
Despite the unification of the Scottish and English royal crowns with the accession of King James VI and I in 1603, and even theunion of the kingdoms themselves in 1707, England continued using Annunciation Style while Scotland used Modern Style. This led to the act being recorded at the time in England as 6 March 1706 (rather than 1707), because in England (unlike Scotland) it fell before the new year began (on 25 March).
The final change came when Parliament passed theCalendar (New Style) Act 1750. This act had two major elements: it converted all parts of the British Empire to use of the Gregorian calendar and simultaneously it declared the civil new year in England, Wales, Ireland and the Colonies to be January 1 (as was already the case in Scotland). It went into effect on 3 September (Old Style) or 14September (New Style) 1752.[17]
A more unusual case is France, which observed theNorthern autumn equinox day (usually September 22) as "New Year's Day" in theFrench Republican Calendar, which was in use from 1793 to 1805. This wasprimidi Vendémiaire, the first day of the first month.
It took quite a long time before January 1 again became the universal or standard start of the civil year. The years of adoption of January 1 as the new year are as follows:
March 1 was the first day of the numbered year in theRepublic of Venice until its destruction in 1797,[31] and inRussia from 988 until 1492 (Anno Mundi 7000 in theByzantine calendar).[31] September 1 was used in Russia from 1492 (A.M. 7000) until the adoption of both theAnno Domini notation and 1 January as New Year's Day, with effect from 1700, via December 1699 decrees (1735, 1736) of TsarPeter I.[32][26]
See also
Assyrian New Year, also known as Kha b-Nisan – Spring festival of indigenous Assyrians, celebrated on the first day of April
Aztec New Year – New year celebration per the Aztec calendar
^A 1725 date given in some sources probably originates from Bond (1875) (p. 101) but is not correct, as the 1699Ukase № 1736 (20 December 1699[O.S.] (30 December[N.S.]) promulgating it attests.[26]
^Anthony Aveni, "Happy New Year! But Why Now?" inThe Book of the Year: A Brief History of Our Seasonal Holidays (Oxford:Oxford University Press, 2003), 11–28.
^abcRitter, R. M. (2005),New Hart's Rules:The Handbook of Style for Writers and Editors: The Handbook of Style for Writers and Editors, Oxford University Press, p. 194,ISBN9780191650499
^Matheeussen, Constant; Fantazzi, Charles; George, Edward V., eds. (1987)."General Introduction, §IV. The date of theOpuscula varia".Early Writings I. Selected Works of Juan Luis Vives. Vol. 1. Leiden: E. J. Brill. p. xvii.ISBN9789004077829. RetrievedMarch 17, 2014.Thetown of Louvain, belonging to the duchy of Brabant, used the Easter Style, beginning the year at Holy Saturday.
^Denmark named 1 January as the New Year in the early 14th century according to R.W. Bauer (Calender for Aarene fra 601 til 2200, 1868/1993ISBN87-7423-083-2) although the number of the year did not begin on 1 January until 1559.
^ab"Ukase No. 1736".Полное собрание законов Российской империи. Том III [Complete Collection of Laws of the Russian Empire. Volume III.]. December 20, 1699. p. 683.Archived from the original on June 26, 2023. RetrievedJune 26, 2023.
^Xu, Guoqi (2005).China and the Great War: China's Pursuit of a New National Identity and Internationalization. Cambridge University Press. p. 34.ISBN9780521842129.Archived from the original on October 18, 2023. RetrievedMarch 19, 2023.Indeed the adoption of the Gregorian calendar was the very first law passed by the new Republic of China. On December 31, 1911, the national senate passed a resolution to adopt the solar calendar immediately, regarding the next day as the first day of the first month of the first year of the Republic of China.
^"Ukase No. 1735".Полное собрание законов Российской империи. Том III [Complete Collection of Laws of the Russian Empire. Volume III.]. December 10, 1699. p. 682.Archived from the original on June 27, 2023. RetrievedJune 27, 2023.
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