New Year - What are your traditions?

[Cosmic_Curiosity]

Hello everyone,

It is approaching the end of the Gregorian Calendar Year and thus it is almost the beginning of 2024. With New Year’s Eve falling tomorrow, I thought I would open a discussion about thentraditions that you or yourncountry follow. I would love to hear about the celebrations and traditions from around the world.

I’ll start. In Scotland, New Year’s Eve is called Hogmanay. The origin of the word is a bit of a mystery but there are some theories:

One theory is that itncomes from the French phrase hoguinané, which described a gift given at New Year. It may have been brought to Scotland by French-speaking soldiers during the reign of Mary, Queen of Scots.

Another theory links Hogmanay to the Old Norse phrase höggo-nótt, which means the night of the last day of the year. It may have been brought to Scotland by the Vikings.

There is also thenidea that Hogmanay has Gaelic origins. The phrase oiche na h-aimleise means the night of mischief, and it might have evolved to Hogmanay. I like this one because many Scots get drunk and get up to michief at New Year .

We have many customs and traditions linked to Hogmany. Its origins can be tracked back to the when rhe Vikings were in Scotland and the celebration of the winter solstice. The Vikings celebrated Yule. Over time, Yule traditions merged with Gaelic traditions to form what was done on Hogmanay.

This includes lighting fires and torches to ward off evil spirits and negativity. People would march through the street with torches to cleanse themselves and “burn away” evil spirits and negativity, thus purifying them for the New Year. This is still done today. Infact, the Edinburgh torch light procession was last night. It was even led by people dressed in Viking costume.

Photo from BBC

Another tradition is first-footing, where the first person to enter a home after midnight brings gifts and is believed to bring good luck for the coming year. Gifts are symbolic and represent different things:
Coal form warmth
A coin for prosperity
Whisky for health (???)
This tradition is thought to have originated from the belief that the first person to enter a home in the New Year would bring either good or bad luck, depending on their appearance:
A dark haired man brings extra luck while a blonde haired man may bring bad luck
This again links to the Vikings and as they were fair haired and therefore the invadors were associated with bad luck.

A Gaelic tradition was to hang a rowan branch above your door. This was normally a Samhain tradition but became linked with Hogmanany. This offered protection to the home and those within. Burning juniper was also a means of cleansing the home of nefarive energies.

It is also traditional to open the doors at midnight to say goodbye to the old and welcome in the new. Some people also walk out the back door and come back in the front door to symbolise this.

Now, Hogmanany is a lively celebration that involves parties, fireworks, music, and socialising with family and friends. It is traditional to eat steak pie after midnight or as a family meal on January 1st.

Photo from Scotsman Newspaper

Edinburgh has a huge street party. At a minute before midnight, a piper plays at the castle and this acts as a moment of reflection of the old year before a cannon is fired and a firework display begins to welcome the new year.

30 December 2023

I have been once “just for the experience”

I look forward to hearing about traditions in your area and wish you a wonderful 2024 when it comes.

Lang may yir lum reek

Alan

[Ostara]

Thank you Alan for sharing!

The only tradition I have is food on New Year’s Day. I always cook cabbage for money/ prosperity and black eyed peas for good luck.

I’m going to start some new traditions this year. I am going to finish up my witch ball today and make a new one every year. I may make some witch bells too. Last spring I hung some witch bells from a tree in my outdoor sacred space. I noticed the other day they have gotten rusty. I think I’m going to make some for the new year.

[peter3]

Loved seeing the Hogmanay pics, I lived in Edinburgh for about 5 years. Only went once (edit: twice now that I think about it) as well, Deborah Harry (and Primal Scream) were performing in Princes Street Gardens. I miss living there, it was great town to live in. My only family tradition is giving the first visitor to the house of the new year a dollar that we sign and date.

[Cosmic_Curiosity]

@peter3 Yes I love Edinburgh. beautiful city. Im in Glasgow so just a wee 40 minutes away on the train. I like the idea of the aigned dollar. Its almost like a contract saying I grant you prosperity.

@Ostara i have never heard of cabbage being linked to prosperity. Thats interesting. I like the idea of a new ball for the new year. I cut the end of my yule log off today and burned the year on with a pyrography pen. That might become my tradition.

[Ostara]

I love the yule log thing Alan! That’s a great tradition. I think the cabbage and black eyed pea think is a southern United States tradition.

[patricia2]

I don’t know if my tradition has any religious significance, but i live in northern New York and i have always stayed up until midnight fo watch a broadcast of the ball dropping in time square in NYC. "its a large ball made of like iron and light panels that gets lowered down a large pole as we count down the new year. I know some people here kiss their lovers when the clock strikes midnight, but I have never had anyone to kiss on New Years, so i just drink sparkling grape juice (I can’t drink alcohol so i can’t use Champagne).

One tradition i started when i was 13 and living at my first foster home is that at midnight i go outside and bang on pots and pans. I don’t know why, my foster mom at that house just said its something she’s always done so i stsrted doing it too. I know some people hear light of fireworks to ring in the new year, but i also know that’s not exacly legal or possible for everyone.

This year I am trying to find a more wiccan way of celebrating the new year, eventhough i now its not the Wiccan new year yet.

[georgia]

On New Year’s Eve in my youth, Mom watched the tv for who all died the past year. Then we had finger food like pizza rolls or meat, cheese, and crackers with sparkling cider or grape juice. We’d watch some music show on tv and go to bed early. Then sleep all day on New Year’s proper. It was pretty boring.

When I got old enough to be on my own, I started the Crest Layout. It stuck.

I wrote out resolutions once, just to try it out because everyone else was. My resolutions were forgotten too soon, so I wasn’t impressed.

The first time I was invited to a New Year’s party, they handed me a transistor radio (four years ago!) and told me I was in charge. I didn’t know what was supposed to happen. The radio cut to a commercial. When it was over, the announcer said “Happy New Year” without any emotion, so I relayed the message. Everyone looked at me funny. I didn’t know.

I still have to tell my bird that people will get noisy in the dark tonight. Don’t be afraid. Just having fun. I’ll probably sleep through it, unless the neighbors bang on the walls until 2am again, like they did on Christmas.

[Cosmic_Curiosity]

The pots and pans is something that is done here too. Its to frighten away evil spirits and negative energies to welcome in psoitive ones.

[Ostara]

Hubby picked up some fireworks. I guess we are going to start the new year off with a BANG like all of our neighbors. Lol!

[Susurrus]

Hmmm, when my children were younger we would have a kind of theme for the night & have friends & their chikdren over.

We would watch the ball drop on TV in New York.

Tonight, my husband & I are watching a movie & just taking it easy. My youngest is downstairs with my oldest & daughter-in-law having fun playing video games & talking & laughing. So that’s good for me!

My neighborhood on the other hand There have been some random fireworks & people kind of coming & going.