HAPPY NEW YEAR
New Year’s Traditions
In many countries, New Year's celebrations begin on the evening of December
31"New Year's Eve"and continue into the early hours of January 1. Revelers often
enjoy meals and snacks thought to bestow good luck for the coming year. In Spain
and several other Spanish-speaking countries, people bolt down a dozen
grapes-symbolizing their hopes for the months ahead-right before midnight. In
many parts of the world, traditional New Year's dishes feature legumes, which
are thought to resemble coins and herald future financial success; examples
include lentils in Italy and black-eyed peas in the southern United States.
Because pigs represent progress and prosperity in some cultures, pork appears on
the New Year’s Eve table in Cuba, Austria, Hungary, Portugal and other
countries. Ring-shaped cakes and pastries, a sign that the year has come full
circle, round out the feast in the Netherlands, Mexico, Greece and elsewhere. In Sweden and Norway,
meanwhile, rice pudding with an almond hidden inside is served on New Year's
Eve; it is said that whoever finds the nut can expect 12 months of good
fortune.
Other customs that are common worldwide include watching fireworks and
singing songs to welcome the new year, including the ever-popular "Auld Lang
Syne" in many English-speaking countries. The practice of making resolutions for
the new year is thought to have first caught on among the ancient Babylonians,
who made promises in order to earn the favor of the gods and start the year off
on the right foot. (They would reportedly vow to pay off debts and return
borrowed farm equipment.)
In the United States, the most iconic New Year's tradition is the dropping of
a giant ball in New York City's Times Square at the
stroke of midnight. Millions of people around the world watch the event, which
has taken place almost every year since 1907. Over time, the ball itself has
ballooned from a 700-pound iron-and-wood orb to a brightly patterned sphere 12
feet in diameter and weighing in at nearly 12,000 pounds. Various towns and
cities across America have developed their own versions of the Times Square
ritual, organizing public drops of items ranging from pickles (Dillsburg, Pennsylvania) to possums (Tallapoosa, Georgia) at midnight on New Year's Eve.
Other customs that are common worldwide include watching fireworks and singing songs to welcome the new year, including the ever-popular "Auld Lang Syne" in many English-speaking countries. The practice of making resolutions for the new year is thought to have first caught on among the ancient Babylonians, who made promises in order to earn the favor of the gods and start the year off on the right foot. (They would reportedly vow to pay off debts and return borrowed farm equipment.)
In the United States, the most iconic New Year's tradition is the dropping of a giant ball in New York City's Times Square at the stroke of midnight. Millions of people around the world watch the event, which has taken place almost every year since 1907. Over time, the ball itself has ballooned from a 700-pound iron-and-wood orb to a brightly patterned sphere 12 feet in diameter and weighing in at nearly 12,000 pounds. Various towns and cities across America have developed their own versions of the Times Square ritual, organizing public drops of items ranging from pickles (Dillsburg, Pennsylvania) to possums (Tallapoosa, Georgia) at midnight on New Year's Eve.
