New Years Around the World

The new year signifies a time of change and a fresh start. It is a time for reflection, setting goals, and jumping headfirst into opportunities for personal growth and change. There are all sorts of celebrations and festivals around the world that signify diverse cultural traditions to ring in their version of the new year. These celebrations involve exciting rituals, delicious food, and fun festivities that bring together the community and a shared sense of optimism and excitement for the upcoming year.

LUNAR NEW YEAR

Lunar New Year, also known as Chinese New Year, is a vibrant celebration observed in most East and Southeast Asian cultures. The festival marks the beginning of the new year and is an auspicious time for family reunions, rituals, and the welcoming of lucky and positive habits and routines. The festivities begin on February 10, and they are commenced with a family reunion dinner on the eve of the new year. All sorts of traditional dishes with meanings are prepared and eaten, such as dumplings to bring in wealth and fish for abundance. Streets and homes are decorated with red decorations, as it is believed that the color red is believed to bring luck to those who wear it and ward off evil spirits. Red envelopes of cash are also given to the younger members of the family by their elders, which symbolize good wealth and abundance for the recipient. The festival spans across almost 2 weeks, or 15 days to be exact. It ends in the lantern festival, where people come together to display intricate lanterns.

EPIPHANY

Epiphany is a Christian holiday celebrated on January 6. It’s a holiday celebrating the significance of the manifestation of Jesus Christ to the Magi. This represents the story told in the Bible book of the Gospel of Matthew, about the three wise men meeting the baby Jesus with gifts of frankincense, gold, and myrrh. This event is significant because it shows the moment that people of non-Jewish faith accepted and recognized the Son of God as Jesus. In many different Christian churches and cultures around the world, this holiday is marked by a special day of church service. Past the religious aspect of the holiday, some cultures around the world celebrate through food. Some cultures in Europe bake an “Epiphany cake,” where a small trinket is placed inside the cake and the person who finds the trinket will become “king for a day.” This holiday also marks the end of the official Christmas season, marking the end of the 12 days of Christmas, when people officially begin to take down holiday decorations and lights.

PONGAL

Pongal is a South Indian holiday celebrated by the Tamil people from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is an expression of gratitude to the Sun God for a plentiful harvest. The festival usually takes place in mid-January, and this year it is celebrated from January 14-17. The main ritual that takes place is a boiling of the freshly harvested rice with fresh milk in clay pots until it overflows. This is done to symbolize prosperity and abundance that people hope to have in their upcoming year. Traditional decorations are created and hung up around the home and streets. Pongal is a time for families to come together, offer prayers, exchange greetings with one another, and eat a special dish that is also known as Pongal. It is a dish made with freshly harvested rice, lentils, jaggery, and ghee. The celebration reflects the agricultural roots of the Tamil Nadu region while emphasizing the importance of nature, community, and a prosperous new year for all.

AUSTRALIA DAY

Australia Day is a holiday celebrated in, you guessed it, Australia. It is celebrated this year on January 26, and it marks the anniversary of the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788. This is an event that led to the very first European establishment in Australia. While it is an important day to reflect on the start of the nation’s westernized history, it is also a public holiday marked by a significant amount of diverse festivities. Festivities include citizenship ceremonies for newly sworn-in Australians, barbecues, community events, and firework displays. All sorts of delicious foods are prepared in celebration of this holiday. Some desserts and meals include sausage rolls, prawns, damper, vegemite, lamb, pies, and snags!