ASPPA Connect will not appear on Friday, Dec. 31 as the ASPPA office will be closed that day. We’ll be back on Monday, Jan. 3. We wish you happy new year, and offer some little-known facts concerning New Year's Day.
New Year’s Eve is one of the oldest holidays still celebrated, but the exact date and nature of the observance has changed.
- In ancient Babylon, the new year was celebrated on the 11th day of the festival associated with the first day of spring. The new year was celebrated in ancient Mesopotamia on March 20, and was based on the vernal equinox.
- The new year we are most familiar with began with the adoption of the Gregorian calendar.
Food has significance in the observance of the beginning of a new year: eating black-eyed beans, ham, and cabbage is thought to bring good luck; in some places, consuming lobster and chicken is considered bad luck.
Firecrackers and other noisemakers are a tradition intended to scare away evil spirits and ensure a year of good luck.
“Auld Lang Syne,” a song commonly sung on New Year’s Eve, means “times have passed.”
- Log in to post comments