This holiday is the new year. The history of the New Year holiday for children
Is there any other holiday that almost everyone loves, regardless of age and place of residence? And indeed, New Year holiday many nations celebrate when the transition from the last day of the outgoing year to the first of the next comes. This holiday was celebrated in the 3rd century. BC in Mesopotamia.
The beginning of the calendar year on January 1 was decided by the Roman emperor Julius Caesar in 46 BC. And this day was dedicated to the Roman god Janus - the god of exits and entrances, all beginnings and doors. In honor of this god, the first month of the year, January, was also named, and the god himself was depicted as two-faced - one of his faces looked forward, while the other looked back.
The history of the New Year's holiday
In Rus', until the 15th century, the new calendar year began on March 1. In 1348, it was decided by those in power to begin the new year in September. It was then (September 1) that this day began to be celebrated in a special festive way, and in the "Paris Dictionary of Muscovites" of the 16th century, the name of this New Year's holiday was even preserved - it was called the First Day of the Year. And only in 1700, Peter I decreed that Russia, like other European countries, would begin the year on January 1.
Interestingly, only since 1947, January 1 is a public holiday, and since 1992, another day has been added to it - January 2. And quite recently - in 2005 - the New Year holidays were established in our country, which, taking into account the days off and Christmas, last for 10 days.
New Year's Eve Traditions
Christmas tree
The most striking attribute of the New Year holiday, traditionally installed in every city and house, is, of course, the New Year tree. In many countries, the Christmas tree is set on the eve of Catholic Christmas on December 25, in our country until 1916 there was also such a tradition, but during the First World War, the Holy Synod banned the Christmas tree as a "German custom" alien to Russia. And she returned to our homes only in 1936 already as a New Year tree. It is customary to decorate the Christmas tree with toys and lights; garlands of lights also decorate the house and yard.
New Year's feast
Traditionally, it is customary to celebrate the New Year with family and loved ones. And these closest ones should be seated on New Year's Eve (from December 31 to January 1) at the festive table, where those gathered must first spend the old outgoing year, and at midnight, to the sound of chiming clocks and the clink of glasses, meet the coming year. By the way, making a wish while the clock strikes 12 times has also become a tradition. Now the New Year's table is full of dishes, the variety and quantity of which is limited only by the imagination of the hosts. But once in Rus', a traditional dish on the New Year and Christmas table was a baked goose.
Santa Claus and his granddaughter Snegurochka
Santa Claus, being a fairy-tale character of Russian folklore, comes on New Year's Eve to the house where children live and brings them gifts in a large red bag. Often, together with Santa Claus, his granddaughter Snegurochka travels, dressed in a long silver coat, a painted kokoshnik or a light fur hat. Santa Claus himself is dressed in a red, blue or silver fur coat embroidered with patterns, a warm hat is on his head, and a staff is in his hand. A long white beard and felt boots are also integral attributes of this fairy-tale character. Santa Claus moves on skis, on a troika of horses or on foot.
In ancient times, the Slavs imagined Santa Claus as a short, gray-bearded old man, whose breath is a fierce cold, tears are icicles, words are frost, and his hair is snow clouds. Frost's wife is Winter, assistants are Marosses (crackers). In winter, Santa Claus, running through the forests, fields and streets of cities, knocks with his staff and binds rivers, lakes, streams and puddles with ice. And if suddenly Frost strikes with his staff in the corner of the hut, then the log will certainly crack. Frost does not like the trembling and freezing, but cheerful and cheerful, he gives good health and a lively blush.
Traditions of celebrating the New Year of our time
fireworks
Modern traditions include primarily festive fireworks (fireworks), as well as a variety of firecrackers, firecrackers, sparklers, Roman candles and other pyrotechnics. Nowadays, in many countries, fabulous sums are spent on large-scale pyrotechnic shows. The most grandiose and beautiful shows are held in China, Sydney and London, from where they are broadcast all over the world.
Carols and divination
On New Year's and Christmas holidays, it has long been customary to dress up in the evenings and go from house to house with songs, poems, jokes and carols for which the owners should thank with sweets or coins. Also during the New Year and Christmas holidays, fortune-telling is accepted, when everyone can look into the future. They guess with the help of cards, candles and mirrors, wax, fire and paper and many other items.
old New Year
Some families also celebrate such a holiday as the Old New Year, which is, in fact, the New Year according to the Julian calendar (from January 13 to 14). For us, this is a way to once again gather at the festive table. Interestingly, it is celebrated in Switzerland, Serbia, as well as some other countries.
New Year's traditions of other countries
In England and Poland, in addition to the New Year tree, the house is decorated with mistletoe sprigs.
The French Santa Claus, whose name is Pere Noel, leaves gifts for children in their shoes. And if you come across a baked bean in a piece of New Year's cake, then you will become the "bean king" and on New Year's Eve everyone will obey your orders.
In Italy, on the eve of the New Year, all unnecessary things are thrown away, and on Christmas the Christmas log is burned.
In Bulgaria, there is a custom to kiss at the New Year's table, and in order to keep the secret of these kisses, the lights go out in every house for 3 minutes, these minutes have their own name - "minutes of New Year's kisses."
In Sweden, on New Year's Eve, the queen of the world is chosen to bring sweets to children and treats to pets.
In Colombia, the main hero of the holiday is the Old Year, which walks the streets on high stilts, telling funny stories to children, and the Colombian Santa Claus - Pascual starts fireworks.
In Mexico, a mandatory attribute is festive fireworks and New Year's bells, and children are given gingerbread dolls at midnight.
Before the New Year, Cubans collect water in all kinds of containers, and at midnight they pour it out of the windows. Thus, they see off the outgoing year along a bright path. In the meantime, the clock strikes 12 times, you need to eat 12 grapes, symbolizing good luck in the coming year.
The Japanese on New Year's Eve ring the bells 108 times, symbolizing the six vices and 18 shades of each.
The New Year in Myanmar comes at the height of the hottest time of the year and is met with a “water festival”, during which people who meet each other pour water for good luck.
Even in Muslim Turkey, many celebrate the New Year according to the Gregorian (Christian) calendar, and the Turkish Santa Claus is called Noel Baba.
Whatever the traditions of celebrating the New Year in your family, you can always make this holiday even brighter and more unforgettable.
Romanchukevich Tatiana
for women's magazine site
When using and reprinting the material, an active link to the women's online magazine is required
By the way, for residents of Russian cities, the New Year is the main holiday of winter and is celebrated on January 1st. However, there are exceptions among urban residents who do not celebrate New Year. The real holiday for the believer is Christmas. And in front of him is a strict Christmas fast, which lasts 40 days. It begins on November 28 and ends only on January 6, in the evening, with the rising of the first star. There are even villages, settlements where all residents do not celebrate the New Year or celebrate it on January 13 (January 1 according to the Julian style), after Lent and Christmas.
And now back to the history of the celebration of the New Year in Rus'
The celebration of the New Year in Rus' has the same difficult fate as its history itself. First of all, all the changes in the celebration of the new year were associated with the most important historical events that affected the entire state and each person individually. There is no doubt that the folk tradition, even after the officially introduced changes in the calendar, preserved ancient customs for a long time.
Celebration of the New Year in pagan Rus'
How was it celebrated New Year in pagan ancient Rus' - one of the unresolved and controversial issues in historical science. No affirmative answer was found from what time the countdown of the year began.
The beginning of the celebration of the new year should be sought in ancient times. So among the ancient peoples, the new year usually coincided with the beginning of the revival of nature and was mainly timed to coincide with the month of March.
In Rus', there was a span for a long time, i.e. the first three months, and the summer month began in March. In honor of him, they celebrated avsen, ovsen or tusen, which later passed to the new year. Summer itself in antiquity consisted of the present three spring and three summer months - the last six months concluded winter time. The transition from autumn to winter was blurred like the transition from summer to autumn. Presumably, originally in Rus', the New Year was celebrated on the day of the vernal equinox. March 22. Maslenitsa and New Year were celebrated on the same day. Winter is over and it means the new year has arrived.
Celebration of the new year after the baptism of Rus'
Together with Christianity in Rus' (988 - the Baptism of Rus'), a new chronology appeared - from the creation of the world, and a new European calendar - Julian, with a fixed name of the months. The beginning of the new year was considered March 1.
According to one version at the end of the 15th century, and according to another in 1348, the Orthodox Church moved the beginning of the year to September 1, which corresponded to the definitions of the Council of Nicaea. The transfer must be put in connection with the growing importance of the Christian Church in the state life of ancient Rus'. The strengthening of Orthodoxy in medieval Rus', the establishment of Christianity as a religious ideology, naturally causes the use of "Holy Scripture" as a source of reform introduced into the existing calendar. The reform of the calendar system was carried out in Rus' without taking into account the working life of the people, without establishing a connection with agricultural work. The September New Year was approved by the church, which followed the word of the Holy Scriptures; having established and substantiated it with a biblical legend, the Russian Orthodox Church has preserved this New Year's date right up to the present as a church parallel to the civil new year. In the Old Testament church, the month of September was celebrated annually, in commemoration of rest from all worldly worries.
Thus, the new year began to lead from the first of September. This day became the feast of Simeon the First Stylite, which is still celebrated by our church and known to the common people under the name of Semyon the Summer Guide, because this day summer ended and the new year began. It was our solemn day of celebration, and the subject of parsing urgent conditions, collecting dues, taxes and personal courts.
Innovations of Peter I in the celebration of the new year
In 1699, Peter I issued a decree according to which they began to consider the beginning of the year January 1st. This was done following the example of all Christian peoples who lived not according to the Julian, but according to the Gregorian calendar. Peter I could not completely transfer Rus' to the new Gregorian calendar, since the church lived according to the Julian. However, the tsar in Russia changed the chronology. If earlier the years were counted from the creation of the world, now the reckoning has gone from the Nativity of Christ. In a nominal decree, he announced: “Now the year one thousand six hundred and ninety-nine comes from the Nativity of Christ, and from next January, from the 1st, a new year 1700 and a new century will come.” It should be noted that the new chronology existed for a long time along with the old one - in the decree of 1699 it was allowed to write two dates in documents - from the Creation of the world and from the Nativity of Christ.
The implementation of this reform of the Great Tsar, which was of such importance, began with the fact that it was forbidden to celebrate September 1 in any way, and on December 15, 1699, the drumbeat announced something important to the people, who poured in crowds on the Red area. A high platform was arranged here, on which the tsar's clerk loudly read the decree that Pyotr Vasilyevich orders "from now on to count in orders and in all affairs and fortresses to write from January 1 from the Nativity of Christ."
The Tsar steadily saw to it that the New Year's holiday in our country was no worse and no poorer than in other European countries.
In the Petrovsky decree it was written: "... On the large and passing streets, noble people and at the houses of deliberate spiritual and worldly rank in front of the gates, make some decorations from trees and branches of pine and juniper ... and for meager people, each at least a tree or a branch on the gate or put it over your temple ... ". The decree was not specifically about the Christmas tree, but about trees in general. At first, they were decorated with nuts, sweets, fruits and even vegetables, and they began to decorate the Christmas tree much later, from the middle of the last century.
The first day of the New Year 1700 began with a parade on Red Square in Moscow. In the evening, the sky was lit up with bright lights of festive fireworks. It was from January 1, 1700 that the folk New Year's fun and fun gained their recognition, and the celebration of the New Year began to have a secular (not church) character. As a sign of the national holiday, cannons were fired, and in the evening, in the dark sky, multi-colored fireworks, never seen before, flashed. People had fun, sang, danced, congratulated each other and gave New Year's gifts.
After the October Revolution of 1917, the country's government raised the issue of reforming the calendar, since most European countries had long since switched to the Gregorian calendar, adopted by Pope Gregory XIII back in 1582, while Russia still lived according to the Julian.
On January 24, 1918, the Council of People's Commissars adopted the "Decree on the introduction of the Western European calendar in the Russian Republic." Signed V.I. The document was published by Lenin the next day and entered into force on February 1, 1918. It, in particular, said: "... The first day after January 31 of this year should be considered not February 1, but February 14, -m, etc." Thus, Russian Christmas shifted from December 25 to January 7, and the New Year holiday also shifted.
Contradictions immediately arose with Orthodox holidays, because, having changed the dates of civil holidays, the government did not touch church holidays, and Christians continued to live according to the Julian calendar. Now Christmas was celebrated not before, but after the New Year. But this did not bother the new government at all. On the contrary, it was beneficial to destroy the foundations of Christian culture. The new government introduced its own, new, socialist holidays.
In 1929, Christmas was cancelled. With it, the Christmas tree, which was called the "priestly" custom, was also canceled. New Year's Eve was cancelled. However, at the end of 1935, an article by Pavel Petrovich Postyshev appeared in the Pravda newspaper "Let's organize a good Christmas tree for the new year for children!" The society, which has not yet forgotten the beautiful and bright holiday, reacted quite quickly - Christmas trees and Christmas tree decorations appeared on sale. Pioneers and Komsomol members took upon themselves the organization and holding of New Year trees in schools, orphanages and clubs. On December 31, 1935, the Christmas tree re-entered the homes of our compatriots and became a holiday of "joyful and happy childhood in our country" - a wonderful New Year's holiday that continues to delight us today.
old New Year
I would like to once again return to the change of calendars and explain the phenomenon of the Old New Year in our country.
The very name of this holiday indicates its connection with the old style of the calendar, according to which Russia lived until 1918, and switched to a new style by decree of V.I. Lenin. The so-called Old Style is a calendar introduced by the Roman emperor Julius Caesar (Julian calendar). The new style is a reform of the Julian calendar, undertaken at the initiative of Pope Gregory XIII (Gregorian, or new style). The Julian calendar from the point of view of astronomy was not accurate and made an error that accumulated over the years, which resulted in serious deviations of the calendar from the true movement of the Sun. Therefore, the Gregorian reform was to some extent necessary.
The difference between the old and the new style in the 20th century was already plus 13 days! Accordingly, the day, which was January 1 according to the old style, became January 14 in the new calendar. And the modern night from January 13 to 14 in pre-revolutionary times was New Year's Eve. Thus, celebrating the Old New Year, we kind of join the history and pay tribute to the times.
New Year in the Orthodox Church
Surprisingly, the Orthodox Church lives according to the Julian calendar.
In 1923, at the initiative of the Patriarch of Constantinople, a meeting of the Orthodox Churches was held, at which a decision was made to correct the Julian calendar. The Russian Orthodox Church, due to historical circumstances, was unable to take part in it.
Having learned about the conference in Constantinople, Patriarch Tikhon nevertheless issued a decree on the transition to the "New Julian" calendar. But this caused protests and discord among the church people. Therefore, the decision was canceled less than a month later.
The Russian Orthodox Church states that it is not currently facing the issue of changing the calendar style to Gregorian. "The vast majority of believers are committed to preserving the existing calendar. The Julian calendar is dear to our church people and is one of the cultural features of our life," said Archpriest Nikolai Balashov, Secretary for Inter-Orthodox Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate's Department for External Church Relations.
The Orthodox New Year is celebrated on September 14 according to today's calendar or September 1 according to the Julian calendar. In honor of the Orthodox New Year, prayers are served in churches for the new year.
Celebrating the New Year began in the distant past. In ancient times, this event was celebrated in the spring, when field work began.
The history of the creation of the New Year
Scientists believe that the celebration began around 3000 BC, and this happened for the first time in Mesopotamia. In ancient times, people believed that at this time the god Madruk defeated the forces of death and destruction. And so for several months, people in Mesopotamia rejoiced at the victory of light over darkness. They organized processions, carnivals and masquerades. At this time, it was impossible to work, judge and punish.
In different countries and at different times, the New Year was celebrated in March, September, and December. But then the Roman Emperor Julius Caesar decided to move the New Year's holiday to January 1st. In Rome on this day there were sacrifices to the god Janus. Since the beginning of the new year, a favorable time has come for any major undertakings.
After Christianity was introduced in Rus', the New Year here began either in March or on the feast of Easter. Then, by a decree of the Moscow Cathedral in 1492, the celebration of the New Year in the fall, on September 1, was approved, when it was supposed to collect tribute, duties and various dues from people. To add solemnity to this day, the day before the tsar himself appeared in the Kremlin, and every person, even from commoners, could turn to the tsar for truth and mercy.
History of New Year's Eve
The history of the appearance and celebration of the New Year in winter dates back to 1699, when the king issued a decree on celebrating the New Year on January 1, at the same time as Europe. According to this decree, Peter I ordered all the inhabitants of Rus' to decorate their houses and streets with coniferous branches. Everyone had to congratulate friends and relatives on the upcoming holiday. Peter I himself went to Red Square at midnight and launched a rocket for the first time. All over Moscow, cannons began to fire, the sky was painted with never-before-seen fireworks. So the New Year holiday entered the calendar of Russians on January 1, 1700. Symbols of the New Year appeared: a Christmas tree decorated with various toys and garlands, a kind Santa Claus bringing gifts in his bag.
Old New Year - the history of the holiday
In Russian-speaking countries, there is another holiday, incomprehensible to foreigners: the Old New Year, which we celebrate from January 13 to 14. This tradition appeared after the October Socialist Revolution. According to the decree of Lenin, Russia switched in 1918 to the Gregorian calendar of the chronology. This calendar overtook the Julian by that period already by 13 days. However, the Orthodox Church did not accept such a transition, declaring that it would continue to use the Julian calendar. Since then, January 7 has been celebrated. But many Russians at that time did not understand when to celebrate the New Year. In addition, January 1 is the strictest week of church fasting. It was then that the tradition arose to celebrate the old new year according to the Julian calendar.
History of the New Year in the USSR
In Tsarist Russia, January 1 was a non-working day back in 1897. After the advent of Soviet power 
The New Year has become a family, unofficial holiday, and January 1 is an ordinary working day. In the mid-thirties of the last century, the New Year became one of the official holidays, but on January 1, people, as before, regularly went to work. And only since 1948, the holiday on January 1 became a day off. The current New Year traditions appeared already in the post-war period.
The range of Christmas decorations, compared to today's balls, was more diverse: astronauts, figurines of animals and birds, vegetables and fruits. On the New Year's table in every house there must have been traditional Olivier and mimosa, herring under a fur coat.
The history of the New Year's holiday is quite interesting. Modern celebration is rightfully considered one of the most beloved, popular. In addition, traditional feasts and obligatory weekends, which provide an opportunity not only to take a walk, but also to relax, contribute to the popularity of the holiday. Long before January 1 approaches, colorful garlands and decorations turn the familiar environment into a fairy tale that invariably brings joy to both children and adults. That's just what we know about its origin, what is the history of the New Year in Russia? This article is devoted to this issue.
How it all began
What is the origin of the holiday? The New Year has its roots in the days of the Holy Roman Empire. In particular, the Romans dated the beginning of the New Year to March and successfully celebrated it until 45 BC. It was customary to make sacrifices to Janus, as well as to give each other various gifts. Moreover, special attention was paid to presentations to the powerful of this world - officials and patricians.
With the first spring month, the countdown of the new time also began among the Jews, which can be traced in the Old Testament (the laws of Moses). Their holiday was not much different from the Roman one, apparently for the reason that the Jews were conquered by the Romans, were under their rule for a long time and gradually adopted customs.
New Year in Rus'
Rus' has its own interesting history of the holiday. The New Year was celebrated here according to folk traditions. The life cycle of the Slavs before the adoption of Christianity was directly related to nature and the change of seasons. Not surprisingly, the history of the origin of the New Year was associated with the spring equinox. When else to start counting days, if not with the arrival of spring and the awakening of all living things after a winter sleep.
At the end of the 10th century, along with Christianity, Kievan Rus adopted a new chronology - according to the Julian calendar. From now on, the year began to be divided into 12 months, which received their names according to weather conditions. And for another 4 centuries, the new year began on March 1.
From spring to autumn
The history of the New Year in Russia had another important stage. By the end of the 14th century, the decision was finally ripe to abandon the Constantinople calendar and switch to the Byzantine one, created simultaneously with the baptism of Kievan Rus. In 1492, by decree of Grand Duke John Vasilyevich III, it was ordered to start celebrating this important day from September 1. Also at this time, dues were collected, and the tsar received complainants, both nobles and peasants. Solemn events were held in the Kremlin, and the ruler without fail applied to the icons and the Gospel.
However, it is worth noting that the common people were indifferent to the innovation, and the New Year continued to coincide with the spring equinox. Thus, Christianity was bizarrely intertwined with pagan rituals and actions, creating a special picture of the holidays.
Genius of Peter I
The history of the modern New Year in Russia began with the advent of Peter I. Without a doubt, the first emperor was an outstanding personality and reformer who greatly transformed the country. Therefore, it is not surprising that European customs also influenced the celebration of the New Year. Since in England, France, Germany the year started on January 1, the new century in Russia began on the same day. Earlier, in 1699, a decree was promulgated to shift the date of the celebration. And already on the night of January 1, 1700, the empire began to live in a new way. By the way, the Russian New Year did not coincide with the European one anyway. Europe already lived according to the Gregorian chronology.
However, since the emperor ordered from now on to celebrate the New Year in January, then so be it. Disobeying a wayward ruler was more expensive, so they had to celebrate, set off fireworks and put up western-style Christmas trees. By the way, it is interesting that the forest beauties were dressed up not in toys, but in sweets, nuts, apples. After the death of Peter, they stopped putting up Christmas trees at all, leaving them only in taverns. And the symbol of the holiday continued to be pine and birch branches.
For several years, it was customary to celebrate the New Year in the old capital, Moscow. However, in 1704 the official part of the holiday moved to St. Petersburg, the city of the emperor.
However, the history of the Russian New Year was of little concern to the peasants, who for a long time continued to celebrate the holiday in September, on the day of St. Simeon the Pilot. But there was a ceremonial dinner with a traditional roasted pig.
"The Forest Raised a Christmas Tree…"
When did the tree appear on the holiday? Today we can’t even imagine New Year without her. It appeared relatively recently - some couple of centuries ago. As mentioned above, after the death of the first emperor, the tradition of putting on a fluffy beauty did not take root, and the holiday itself was largely popularized solely by the efforts of the monarchs. In particular, Catherine the Great introduced a masquerade ball, which became a kind of guarantee of a successful celebration.
When they began to decorate the Christmas tree again for the holiday, it is not known for certain. According to one version, this custom was introduced by the Prussian princess Charlotte, wife of Emperor Nicholas I, who converted to Orthodoxy under the name of Alexandra Feodorovna. With her light hand, in 1818 a Christmas tree was arranged in the Moscow palace, and a year later in St. Petersburg.
According to the second version, Russified Germans were the first to put up a Christmas tree in the 40s of the same century. There were quite a lot of them then in St. Petersburg. Soon, Christmas trees appeared in the homes of eminent and wealthy citizens.
At that time, fluffy beauties were put on Christmas Eve and decorated according to the German model - with the obligatory Bethlehem star on top. In addition, apples, nuts, ribbons, sweets, candles acted as decorations. Toys with Christmas symbols and glass balls appeared later. In addition, rich families could decorate a tree with jewelry and drape it with luxurious fabric. Well, what a holiday without gifts? Children received sweets, teenagers - books and clothes, girls - flowers, albums, shawls.
In the same 40s, the Christmas tree, personifying the New Year, appeared on sale everywhere, becoming available not only to the elite circle of those in power, but also to poor officials who also wanted to please their households. Fortunately, the time allotted for the celebration was gradually lengthened: from one day to several, and even until Baptism itself. Walk so walk! The arrival of January is still associated with the long Christmas and New Year holidays.
First public tree
It has already become a tradition in our time to arrange various New Year's parties and decorate squares of settlements, private and municipal buildings with living or artificial trees. A century and a half ago things were different. The first public Christmas tree appeared only in 1852 in the building of the Ekateringof railway station (St. Petersburg). Later, the Russian New Year was enriched with charitable Christmas trees for the poor, and ladies from rich and noble families took an active part in their organization. By the way, the brothers Alfred and Ludwig Nobel, who had their own interests in the empire, also arranged holidays for the children of St. Petersburg workers.
New Year's cards
In 1897, the publishing house "Community of St. Eugenia" (St. Petersburg) issued the first illustrated postcards dedicated to the New Year holidays. Such famous artists as Vasnetsov, Repin, Benois, Bilibin, Makovsky had a hand in their creation. Moreover, Christmas cards differed from New Year's ones in their plot. The theme of the first was scenes from the Bible, associated, respectively, with the birth of Jesus. The second were exclusively secular, with images of carnivals, clocks, couples in love, dances, etc.
The most popular New Year's song "A Christmas tree was born in the forest" also came into being in Tsarist Russia - with the light hand of Raisa Kudasheva. The poem was published in the Malyutka magazine in 1903, and composer Leonid Beckman wrote the music for it.
When did Santa Claus appear?
On New Year's Eve, this fairy-tale character, representing a kind old man with a bushy beard and an invariable bag of gifts, first came in 1910. However, it finally took root only in the Land of the Soviets. This is not surprising, given that the prototype of the good grandfather was not at all the good spirit of the cold Studenets (aka Treskun, Frost). The stern old man from the mythology of the Eastern Slavs punished naughty children with a magic staff. Moreover, it was customary to appease this spirit with various gifts or sacrifices, asking not to destroy the harvest.
But the Snow Maiden is an exclusively literary character, which arose in the play of the same name by Alexander Ostrovsky in 1873. The girl fashioned from snow was the daughter of Spring and Frost.
Santa Claus for the New Year "comes" from Veliky Ustyug, where his possessions are supposedly located. The birthplace of the granddaughter of the Snow Maiden is the village of Schelkovo in the Kostroma region, where the house-museum of A. Ostrovsky is located.
Holiday at the turn of the century
The history of the New Year in Russia at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries is remarkable not for noisy celebrations, but for the skillful moves of enterprising businessmen. So, it was in 1900 that the Novy Vek magazine went out of print, the French champagne End of the Century appeared, as well as a series of perfumes from the Moscow factory named after Ostroumov.
New Year's holidays were noisily celebrated in 1901. In the Moscow Manege, three orchestras played at once, they showed the play "World Review" and dioramas depicting the most important events of the 19th century. In addition, festive prayers were held in all city churches.
Thus, the history of the emergence of the New Year's holiday in the Russian Empire went through several stages of formation. The final chord was 1914, when, in the wake of anti-German sentiment caused by the First World War, the Synod forbade the installation of a Christmas tree, calling this idea hostile and alien to the Russian, Orthodox people.
New Year and the USSR
Almost until the end of the First World War, the huge empire continued to live according to the Julian calendar, stubbornly ignoring the Gregorian adopted by all of Europe back in 1582. Therefore, the issue of transition became acute after the October Revolution of 1917 and was soon resolved. Since 1919, a new countdown began for the country.
In particular, the New Year, the date of which, according to the old style, fell on the Nativity Fast, finally began to organize the church. Previously, she was extremely unhappy with the noisy holidays during the prescribed abstinence. And with the transition, an additional holiday was added, which is so often surprised by foreigners - the old New Year. The date of celebration of the latter is the night of January 13-14.
By the way, as for foreigners, they are really very surprised at this "incomprehensible" holiday. It seems to them mysterious and mysterious, just like the Russian soul, by the way. Although in popular resorts everyone is already used to the fact that we celebrate the New Year 2 times. In Turkey, for example, hotel managers try to “make business” on this by throwing parties. Only other visitors to the resorts, in particular Europeans, are surprised.
It is noteworthy that after the February Revolution, the Provisional Government was not up to the New Year celebrations, but now the Council of People's Commissars recognized the holiday as counter-revolutionary. True, they immediately came up with a replacement in the form of the “Red Blizzard”, which symbolized the beginning of the revolution.
However, it was canceled soon after. After the death of Lenin, Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin at first simply forbade putting up Christmas trees, considering them a manifestation of anti-Soviet sentiments, and then completely left only two holidays for a large country - May 1 and November 7. By the way, the leader himself never congratulated the people on the New Year, this tradition appeared much later.
The Christmas tree was rehabilitated in the mid-30s by Postyshev. Already in 1936, a festive tree was installed in the Hall of Columns of the House of the Unions, and two years later even a special form was issued, which told how to properly decorate a spruce. In particular, the Star of Bethlehem was replaced with a five-pointed and necessarily red one. And traditional toys were generously diluted with symbols of the new era - figures of pioneers, hammer and sickle, even members of the Politburo. In 1937, the first New Year's cards appeared, all with the same five-pointed red star.
After the end of the Second World War, since 1947, the first of January finally became a day off, and the population of the vast country became addicted to the "Soviet champagne", which appeared back in 1928. During the reign of Nikita Sergeevich Khrushchev, the holiday began to be celebrated on a larger scale, and the main Christmas tree of the USSR, the Kremlin, was lit up. In 1962, The Blue Light was released for the first time.
The tradition of performing with a New Year's address from TV screens was introduced by Leonid Brezhnev in 1976, then it was successfully adopted by Mikhail Gorbachev. An interesting story about the New Year is connected with the congratulations of December 31, 1991. For the first (and so far only) time, not the head of state, but Mikhail Zadornov, the famous writer and satirist, delivered a greeting and parting word. In addition, he did not meet the allotted time, so the chimes had to wait. The satirist still often recalls this event and talks about it at his concerts.
What now
Then the honorary mission passed to the new president - Boris Yeltsin. And in 1999, he made an unexpected "gift" to the Russians, saying on the air that he was handing over the reins of power to V. Putin. Since then and to this day, Russians are congratulated by Vladimir Vladimirovich, who was replaced in the presidential chair by Medvedev only once in 4 years.
As you can see, the history of the origin of the New Year over the centuries of its existence has overcome many stages and changes. Celebration dates and traditions shifted, new symbols and characters appeared, and the old ones faded into obscurity. Such is the history of the holiday. New Year in our country remains a solemn event. And on December 31, we continue to wait for a small miracle.
Traditions changed, the holiday was celebrated on different days, but always remained an important event. Such is the history of the New Year in Russia. Today, every child hopes that kind Santa Claus will put a gift for him under the Christmas tree. And he runs early in the morning to check, sincerely rejoicing at what he discovered. Well, adults understand that only they themselves can make their loved ones happy by giving something for the holiday. However, in the depths of their souls, they also have a spark of hope that one day, on the eve of the celebration, something wonderful, special and long-awaited will happen.
Friends, let's make our loved ones happy more often! Let small, but soul-pleasing miracles visit our homes not only on New Year's Eve. Thanks to them, our life will become brighter, warmer and more pleasant. And a smile will more often illuminate our faces, play kindly on our lips and shine with sparks in our eyes. Do something nice for your loved ones right now, give them some of your time, especially those whom you see infrequently. After all, life is short, there may not be another opportunity.
Celebration of the New Year for each person has a special value. For many, this event is associated with the crunch of snow underfoot, the smell of tangerine and spruce, and a warm homely atmosphere. Children's laughter, chimes, fireworks and a richly decorated table are the main attributes of the holiday. Each of us remembers his New Year's fairy tale - a special New Year, which has remained in memory for a lifetime. But few people thought about where the tradition of celebrating the New Year came from. A short digression into history will help us figure out what, where it came from and what it eventually turned into.
Back to basics
Peter the Great invited the inhabitants of Russia to celebrate the New Year. In 1699, he issued a decree according to which on the night of January 1 of each year (according to the Julian calendar), all the inhabitants of the country celebrate the arrival of the new year. The festivities lasted 7 days - during this period, cannons thundered near the Kremlin every evening, and volleys from smaller guns were fired in private courtyards. The gates of the houses were decorated with spruce and juniper branches, and resin barrels hung on the pillars, which were set on fire and gave solemnity to the holiday. Already in those days, it was customary to decorate spruce with wooden toys, nuts and all kinds of sweets. All innovations were borrowed from European neighbors. Up to this point, the New Year was celebrated in September - during the collection of taxes and harvest.
In this way, the New Year was celebrated for several centuries, until the revolution of 1918, when New Year's festivities were completely banned. Only in 1937 the tradition was revived, and in 1947 January 1 was declared a day off. Since then, the New Year's weekend has evolved and gradually turned into a real vacation, which, at the moment, lasts up to 10 days.
Traditions of our days
For more than 300 years, Russians have been celebrating the New Year, and during this period, many traditions have joined the celebration, both European or American, as well as native, Soviet ones. The symbol of the holiday was a grandfather with a white beard, whose name is Santa Claus.
The Russian Santa Claus also appeared for a reason - this is a modified version of the American Santa Claus. Santa Claus has an assistant - a girl from the snow named Snegurochka. Every year, starting from the first days of December, this couple attends various New Year's events that are held in kindergartens, schools, and cultural centers. Children traditionally dance around a beautifully decorated Christmas tree, recite poems, sing songs and receive wonderful gifts from Grandfather Frost. The atmosphere of a real holiday reigns around - carnival costumes, confetti and tangerines delight children and are remembered for many years.
Since 1998, the Russian Santa Claus has settled in a city called. There is his residence, souvenir shop and post office. A large number of letters from Russian children come to Veliky Ustyug from all over the country, and not a single letter remains unanswered. In letters, children ask for what they lack. These are mostly toys, but there are also touching letters that make not only Santa Claus, but also all his assistants shed tears.
What is customary to do on New Year's Eve today?
It is customary to celebrate the New Year with family, among relatives and close friends. Preparation for the celebration lasts all December. During this period, shop windows are full of New Year's cards, gifts, bright signs. The main squares of almost all cities in Russia are decorated with huge fir trees, under which Father Frost with the Snow Maiden and various cartoon characters roam.
People are in pre-holiday euphoria and for days on end they paint a plan for celebrating New Year's Eve. Gifts are bought, a festive menu is compiled, and on December 31, almost all alcohol and delicacies disappear from the shelves of all stores in the country.
Recently, the New Year has been "repainted" in two main colors - red and green. Deer in teams appeared, an abundance of bells and New Year's wreaths, which were also borrowed abroad. There are also traditions that have been firmly rooted since the times of the USSR and are rightfully considered Russian - this is drinking champagne to the chiming clock, the well-known Olivier salad on the table and sparklers, without which it is difficult to imagine a New Year's festivities.
December 31 is the main day of preparation. On this day, people strive to complete all unfinished business, pay off debts, put the house in order, and decorate the New Year tree. It is believed that entering the new year without closing the tails of the old, outgoing year is a bad omen. “As you meet the New Year, so you will spend it,” is the most common saying that walks among the people. In many homes, it is the decoration of the Christmas tree that becomes an annual tradition, and this is usually done by the whole family.
The spirit of the holiday is already in the air, pickled aromas are heard from the kitchen, and the children sing the song “A Christmas tree was born in the forest” and hook colorful balls and cones, sweets, silvery “rain” on green branches. New Year's films are on TV all day long, which many Russians have already parsed into quotes and learned by heart. The good old "Irony of Fate, or Enjoy Your Bath!", "Gentlemen of Fortune", "Girls", "Diamond Hand", "Carnival Night" - this is not a complete list of cult films, without which no New Year in Russia.
Culmination of New Year's Eve
The meeting of the New Year begins with the farewell to the Old. Usually by 22-00 the table is already laid, the guests are dressed in festive clothes, and on TV on all TV channels the Blue Lights are broadcast in full swing. Those gathered at the table discuss the events of the outgoing year, sum up the results and wish each other to multiply what has been achieved and conquer new heights. On the table, as a rule, there is salad "Olivier", "Herring under a fur coat", jelly and cabbage rolls. Recently, having had enough of the above dishes, the Russians began to cook more sophisticated dishes, using either their imagination or drawing ideas from their foreign neighbors. The New Year's table must certainly be rich, this is another popular belief. In order not to starve in the coming year, you need to meet him well and richly.
The climax of the holiday is approaching - the New Year's speech of the head of state and the chiming clock. Usually a speech addressed to the citizens of the Russian Federation begins at 23-55 and is broadcast by the media. The head of state sums up the results, gives a brief report on the work done over the year and wishes everyone good luck and prosperity in the New Year.
The tradition of such an appeal was introduced by the speech of L. I. Brezhnev in 1976. During this time, not without incidents. So, in 1991, the President entrusted his speech duties to the famous satirist Mikhail Zadornov, and in 2000, viewers received double congratulations. At noon the citizens were congratulated by President B. N. Yeltsin, who announced his resignation, and at midnight the Russians celebrated the New Year with the new President - V. V. Putin.
Exactly at 00-00 the chiming clock is heard. These sounds encourage opening champagne and making wishes. It is customary to believe that a wish made at this moment will surely come true. Some manage to write it on a piece of paper during the chiming clock, burn it, and dissolve the ashes in a glass of champagne. According to some people, this ritual multiplies the likelihood that a wish will come true. Fireworks are massively launched from all windows, joyful cries and congratulations are heard in every house. Many people go out into the street and start fireworks, in the squares people sing songs and congratulate each other. Those who oversleep the New Year will be lethargic and sleepy in the coming year, for this reason people have fun until they drop, wandering home only in the morning.
As you can see, the celebration of the New Year in Russia has its own unique history. The Russians borrowed a lot, but there are also traditions that are unique to the citizens of the Russian Federation. For example, what could be more beautiful than a Russian bath on December 31st? With pure thoughts in a pure body, any holiday becomes brighter!
Celebrate with a light soul and heart, leave all the grievances in the outgoing year, celebrating the New Year with a positive attitude and fresh energy. Give your loved ones a holiday, at least once a year, but it's worth it. Gathering the whole family at one table is what is valuable, saying the main words of love to loved ones and relatives is irreplaceable, seeing tears of happiness in children's eyes is what you cannot buy for any money! Be generous in words and deeds, this will bring you good luck in the New Year!
