New Year, Old Culture
Japanese New Year
During the transition from the old year to the new, a bell is rung 108 times. In Buddhism, 108 is a spiritually significant number. Buddhists believe that there are 108 klesha (worldly passions). So ringing the bell 108 times represents the purifying of those sins and a transition into the New Year as a clean slate. Japan also has their version of the red envelopes, called otoshidama. Just like red envelopes, otoshidama contain money and are given to children by adults.
European New Year
A Spanish New Year’s Tradition is eating 12 grapes. The 12 grapes must be eaten in the last 12 seconds of the old year, eating one grape every second with each chime of the clock. Some people believe that doing this successfully will give you good luck in the coming year, others believe it will grant the eater a wish.
Many different cultures celebrate the New Year, but in
different ways.
By: Kavya Seth, Henry Xie, Nicole Stetsyuk
Chinese New Year
It’s the day that the new lunar year starts, NOT the day where you pray to the moon; that’s another day. Chinese New Year’s date is determined by both the succession of the lunar months and the solar year. Mostly when celebrating Chinese New Year, houses are decked in red for good luck. During Chinese New Year, people usually celebrate it by giving red envelopes, repaying old debts, spring cleaning, and making amends with previous failures. In Chinese, the New Year is “Spring Festival” marking the beginning of spring and the return of life.
American New Year
In the United States, many people hold parties on New Year’s Eve. People also make New Year’s resolutions, where they set goals for what they want to accomplish the new year. Even if they don’t throw or attend a party, many will stay up until midnight to wait for the new year. Another popular thing to do is “watch the ball drop”. In New York in Times Square, there is a ball on top of a long pole. During the last minutes of the year, the ball is slowly lowered down the pole, finally reaching the bottom at the exact moment the date changes.