Traditions, traditions

By on December 29, 2009

There’s something powerful about New Year’s. Every time the first of January rolls around, it’s never seen as just a flick of the calendar. Many cultures have built traditions around the start of the year, as it signifies transition, change, and a hope for an all-around better life.

 

Here are some ways in which the world celebrates:

 

ON FIRE

The streets in Netherlands are aflame with post-countdown bonfires of Christmas trees, while the skies are lit up with fireworks. This practice is supposed to ward off the spirits of yesteryear, making room for new ones.

 

Please keep in mind, though, that most Japanese Christmas trees are plastic and should not be burned. If you must dispose of them, contact your apartment’s resident gomi no obaasan and follow her directions.

 

IN FULL CIRCLE

The round shape is a fashionable one this time of year. A Filipino superstition has it that wearing clothing imprinted with circular patterns like polka dots (symbols for coins) increases financial prosperity in the year ahead. It doesn’t mean the ’50s are back!

 

MUNCHING AWAY

Food has a far greater purpose than filling tummies around this time. Black-eyed peas are a part of the diet in the American south, following a Creole belief that eating them on New Year’s gives the consumer "plenty of everything" throughout the year. 

 

Meanwhile, in Spain and Portugal, eating twelve grapes means twelve fruitful (sorry) months ahead. In China, locals slurp on noodles, which symbolize long life (and yumminess). And in Greece, where New Year’s coincides with the Festival of St. Basil, a Vasilopita cake is baked with a coin inside it. He who finds the coin is granted exceptional luck (given that he doesn’t eat it).

 

STOMPING

An English tradition still popular in Scotland has men lending their services to households in a practice known as "first footing." It is believed that a household amasses good luck if the first person to enter it past midnight is a tall and dark (and I’m sure some prioritize "handsome") male carrying whiskey, shortbread, salt, and black bun. The latter two are optional these days.

 

MAKING PAYMENTS

January 1st is payday for Japanese children, who receive monetary gifts called otoshidama from the grown ups in their family, school, and among their friends. But where does that leave the foreign kids? "When in Rome…"

 

If you’re hoping to make the most out of the New Year festivities, then why not try out some of these traditions?

About TF Tribe