The Ancient Origins of New Year’s Celebrations新年庆典之源起

阿普丽尔·霍洛韦

On the 1st January of every year， many countries around the world celebrate the beginning of a new year. But there is nothing new about New Year’s. In fact， festivals and celebrations marking the beginning of the calendar1 have been around for thousands of years. While some festivities were simply a chance to drink and be merry， many other New Year celebrations were linked to agricultural or astronomical events. In Egypt， for instance， the year began with the annual flooding of the Nile， which coincided with the rising of the star Sirius2. The Phoenicians and Persians began their new year with the spring equinox3， and the Greeks celebrated it on the winter solstice4. The first day of the Chinese New Year， meanwhile， occurred with the second new moon after the winter solstice.

The celebration of Akitu5 in Babylon

The earliest recorded New Year’s festivity dates back some 4，000 years to ancient Babylon， and was deeply intertwined with religion and mythology. For the Babylonians of ancient Mesopotamia， the first new moon following the vernal equinox—the day in late March with an equal amount of sunlight and darkness—heralded the start of a new year and represented the rebirth of the natural world. They marked the occasion with a massive religious festival called Akitu （derived from the Sumerian word for barley， which was cut in the spring） that involved a different ritual on each of its 11 days. During the Akitu， statues of the gods were paraded through the city streets， and rites were enacted to symbolize their victory over the forces of chaos. Through these rituals the Babylonians believed the world was symbolically cleansed and recreated by the gods in preparation for the new year and the return of spring.

In addition to the new year， Akitu celebrated the mythical victory of the Babylonian sky god Marduk6 over the evil sea goddess Tiamat7 and served an important political purpose： it was during this time that a new king was crowned or that the current ruler’s divine mandate was renewed. One fascinating aspect of the Akitu involved a kind of ritual humiliation endured by the Babylonian king. This peculiar tradition saw the king brought before a statue of the god Marduk， stripped of his royal regalia， slapped and dragged by his ears in the hope of making him cry. If royal tears were shed， it was seen as a sign that Marduk was satisfied and had symbolically extended the king’s rule.

Ancient Roman celebration of Janus8

The Roman New Year also originally corresponded with the vernal equinox. The early Roman calendar consisted of 10 months and 304 days， with each new year beginning at the vernal equinox. According to tradition， the calendar was created by Romulus9， the founder of Rome， in the eighth century B.C. However， over the centuries， the calendar fell out of sync with the sun， and in 46 B.C. the emperor Julius Caesar10 decided to solve the problem by consulting with the most prominent astronomers and mathematicians of his time. He introduced the Julian calendar， a solar-based calendar which closely resembles the more modern Gregorian calendar11 that most countries around the world use today.

As part of his reform， Caesar instituted January 1 as the first day of the year， partly to honour the month’s namesake： Janus， the Roman god of change and beginnings， whose two faces allowed him to look back into the past and forward into the future. This idea became tied to the concept of transition from one year to the next.

Romans would celebrate January 1st by offering sacrifices to Janus in the hope of gaining good fortune for the New Year， decorating their homes with laurel branches and attending raucous parties. This day was seen as setting the stage for the next twelve months， and it was common for friends and neighbours to make a positive start to the year by exchanging well wishes and gifts of figs and honey with one another.

Middle Ages： January 1st abolished

In medieval Europe， however， the celebrations accompanying the New Year were considered pagan12 and unchristian-like， and in 567 AD the Council of Tours13 abolished January 1st as the beginning of the year， replacing it with days carrying more religious significance， such as December 25th or March 25th， the Feast of the Annunciation， also called “Lady Day”.

The date of January 1st was also given Christian significance and became known as the Feast of the Circumcision， considered to be the eighth day of Christ’s life counting from December 25th and following the Jewish tradition of circumcision eight days after birth on which the child is formally given his or her name. However， the date of December 25th for the birth of Jesus is debatable.

Gregorian Calendar： January 1st restored

In 1582， after reform of the Gregorian calendar， Pope Gregory XIII re-established January 1st as New Year’s Day. Although most Catholic countries adopted the Gregorian calendar almost immediately， it was only gradually adopted among Protestant countries. The British， for example， did not adopt the reformed calendar until 1752. Until then， the British Empire， and their American colonies， still celebrated the New Year in March.

每年1月1日，全球多国会庆祝新一年的开始。不过，新年这个节日并不新。事实上，为庆祝挂历上新的一年的开始而举办典礼和庆祝活动已有上千年的历史。有些新年庆祝活动仅仅是为了畅饮寻开心，但也有许多与农事或天文事件相关。譬如说，在埃及，尼罗河每年涨水标志新年到来，其时恰逢天狼星升起。腓尼基人和波斯人以春分日作为新年之始，希腊人则把冬至日当作一年的起点，而中国农历新年的第一天则是冬至日后第二轮新月升起的日子。

巴比伦的阿基圖节

最早有记载的新年节庆可以追溯到约4000年前的古巴比伦，那时的新年庆祝活动与宗教和神学密不可分。对美索不达米亚平原上的古巴比伦人来说，春分日——即3月末白昼与黑夜等长之日后出现第一轮新月，预示新年伊始，代表自然界迎来新生。为纪念这一特殊的日子，古巴比伦人举行盛大的宗教节日，称为“阿基图庆典”。“阿基图”源于苏美尔语中的“大麦”一词，因为大麦于春季收割。这一庆典历时11天，每天都会举行不同的仪式。庆典期间，会举行诸神雕像全城游行活动，并举办仪式纪念诸神战胜混沌之力。古巴比伦人相信，经过这些仪式，世界象征性地为诸神所净化和重塑，以迎接新年到来和春回大地。

除了庆祝新年，阿基图庆典也庆祝巴比伦天神马杜克战胜邪恶的海洋女神提亚玛特，此举也带有一个重要的政治目的：慶典期间也是新王加冕或现任统治者圣命续期之时。阿基图庆典有趣的一点在于一项“羞辱”巴比伦国王的仪式。根据这项独特的传统，国王会被带到天神马杜克的雕像前，摘去王冠，脱掉衣袍，被人揪着耳朵扇耳光，目的是让国王痛哭。国王流出眼泪则标志马杜克对他很满意，他的统治也象征性的得到延期。

古罗马人纪念雅努斯神

古罗马的新年起初也是在春分日。早期的罗马历法中，一年包括10个月，共304天，每年春分日为新年的第一天。传说，罗马城的创建者罗慕路斯在公元前8世纪发明了该历法。然而，几百年过后，这个历法与太阳的运行周期脱了节。公元前46年，朱利乌斯·恺撒决定听取当时最优秀的天文学家和数学家的建议来解决这个问题。他开始采用基于太阳运行的儒略历，该历法接近目前大部分国家使用的现代格里高利历。

恺撒大帝在改革中规定1月1日为一年的第一天，部分是为了纪念罗马掌管变化和开始的神灵雅努斯——罗马历法的1月即源自他的名字Janus。雅努斯神有两张面孔，一个可以向后看到过去，一个可以朝前看到未来。人们将这种设想与新年辞旧迎新的概念联系了起来。

每年1月1日，罗马人都会祭祀雅努斯神，用月桂树枝装饰屋子，举办热闹的聚会，期盼来年交上好运。人们还把这一天看作为未来12个月打基础，亲朋好友往往在这一天互相祝福，互赠无花果和蜂蜜，希望新年开个好头。

中世纪一度废除1月1日为新年的第一天

然而，在中世纪的欧洲，新年庆祝活动被视为非基督教的异教活动。公元567年，图尔理事会废除了1月1日作为新年伊始的规定，取而代之以更具宗教意义的日子，比如12月25日或者3月25日，后者即天使报喜节，又称“圣母领报日”。

1月1日也被赋予了基督教意义，成了“耶稣圣名节”，即12月25日耶稣诞生后的第8天。根据犹太人传统，婴儿出生后第8天举行割礼时正式起名。然而，12月25日是否为耶稣诞生日仍存争议。

公历恢复1月1日作为新年第一天

1582年，教皇格里高利十三世改革了公历历法，重新将1月1日定为新年第一天。大部分天主教国家几乎立即采用了公历历法，但新教国家逐渐才予接受。譬如说，英国直到1752年才采用这套改革后的历法，在那之前，大英帝国及其美洲殖民地仍在3月庆祝新年。

（译者单位：对外经济贸易大学）