Cultures all over the world celebrate Spring and the New Year... but some do it a little more adventurously than others. Take a look at...
1) Burning DollsNew Year’s Eve in Ecuador includes the burning of “los años viejos” or “the old years.” Humanoid effigies (often made to look like unpopular politicians, locals or even cartoon characters) are filled with sawdust and newspaper, before being burned on New Year’s Eve. Tradition states that this will help banish any lingering bad luck, allowing you to start the next year unburdened.
Simultaneously, “viudas” or "widows" may make an appearance. These are usually men dressed as women who dance and beg for beer money, making a nuisance of themselves in traffic until they get what they want!
So how did this come about? Tallapoosa was once known as Possum Snout by settlers, so when the townsfolk decided to organize a New Year festival, a possum theme seemed obvious. It just so happened that one of the residents had found and subsequently stuffed a dead opossum, which subsequently became the mascot and celebrity-star of the event. It was even named Spencer in honor of a town founder.
3) The 108 Bell Tolls
The Böögg traditionally meets its fate atop a pyre in Zurich. Urban legend suggests that the time taken for the flames to reach the head will predict the weather for the following season. To make the event more dramatic, the head is stuffed with fireworks that cause it to explode as the flames consume it!
When the monsoon season ends, the boys of the village build a 30-meter-high tower of branches cut from the nearby forest.. which they leap from, protected only by a vine tied around their ankles. There's no safety nets - a single miscalculation can mean a crushing impact with the ground below.
Legend has it that the first jumper was a woman looking to escape an unwanted marriage. She climbed a tree (pursued by her husband) and jumped after attaching herself to a vine. She landed unscathed and escaped after her husband (who had failed to attach a vine) slammed into the ground.
There is a strong suspicion amongst the islanders that the "bungee jump" is a stolen and warped version of the land dive - the ceremony is now being enshrined in Vanuatu law.
The festival is organized by the priests of Kanayama-Jinja, a shrine dedicated to Kanayamahiko and Kanayamahime, male and female gods of the forge. One could travel to the shrine in hopes of being granted marital fortune and fertility... but in the Edo period, sex workers were allowed to visit and pray for protection (or healing) from sexually transmitted diseases. The current festival is a revived version of the celebration, brought back to life by chief priest Hirohiko Nakamura in the 1970s.
The centerpiece of the festival is a parade of three 'mikoshi' idols, large phalluses that are carried through the streets. Inclusivity is a big theme of the event... and onlookers can join in with colorful phallus-themed souvenirs and confectionary!
11) Gobbling Twelve Grapes
- Burning Dolls
- The Possum Drop
- The 108 Bell Tolls
- The Magic Underwear
- Metal-Pouring Divination
- First Footing
- The Drowning of Marzanna
- Sechseläuten and the Burning of the Böögg
- Nagol: The Origin of the Bungee Jump?
- Kanamara Matsuri, the Festival of the Steel Phallus
- Gobbling Twelve Grapes
- Wheels of Glory: Cheese Rolling
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| Would you go to Tallapoosa's "Possum Drop?" (Nature-Inspires) |
1) Burning DollsNew Year’s Eve in Ecuador includes the burning of “los años viejos” or “the old years.” Humanoid effigies (often made to look like unpopular politicians, locals or even cartoon characters) are filled with sawdust and newspaper, before being burned on New Year’s Eve. Tradition states that this will help banish any lingering bad luck, allowing you to start the next year unburdened.
Simultaneously, “viudas” or "widows" may make an appearance. These are usually men dressed as women who dance and beg for beer money, making a nuisance of themselves in traffic until they get what they want!
2) The Possum Drop
This regional variant of the American “Ball Drop” tradition is celebrated in Tallapoosa, Georgia... and it replaces the ball with a taxidermized possum (actually an opossum) lowered over a gathered crowd to the accompaniment of singing and fireworks!So how did this come about? Tallapoosa was once known as Possum Snout by settlers, so when the townsfolk decided to organize a New Year festival, a possum theme seemed obvious. It just so happened that one of the residents had found and subsequently stuffed a dead opossum, which subsequently became the mascot and celebrity-star of the event. It was even named Spencer in honor of a town founder.
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| Talk about ringing in the New Year... (CMLT) |
3) The 108 Bell Tolls
Rather than the simple chimes of a clock hitting midnight, Japan marks the changing of the years with 108 tolls from the temple bells.
This isn't just some affectation - the ringing is part of a ritual known as joya no kane,with each peal representing a worldly temptation that a Buddhist should strive to overcome. The final peal is accompanied by a wish that listeners will not be plagued by those temptations in the year ahead!
4) The Magic Underwear
In South America, the color of the underwear you don for New Year's Eve is said to influence your fortunes throughout the coming year.Tradition suggests that you should wear red for love, yellow for riches and white for peace. The custom is fairly popular, with street-vendors peddling colored underwear to passers-by between Christmas and New Year. Italy has a similar superstition, with red being the colour of choice.
5) Metal-Pouring DivinationThis Finnish (uudenvuodentina) and German (bleigiessen) ritual sees a small amount of lead (or something else that will melt easily, such as tin or sugar) being melted over a candle flame then poured into cold water.
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| It doesn't take much to melt lead... (David Tomaseti) |
5) Metal-Pouring DivinationThis Finnish (uudenvuodentina) and German (bleigiessen) ritual sees a small amount of lead (or something else that will melt easily, such as tin or sugar) being melted over a candle flame then poured into cold water.
The shapes formed by the cooling metal are supposed to hold hints about the coming year... though arguably tipping molten metal into cold water with a hissing pop has an attraction all of its own. Interestingly, divining with molten lead actually has a name - molybdomancy.
6) First Footing
In Scotland, the first person to cross the threshold of a dwelling after New Year's midnight is said to influence your fortune for the rest of the year.Ideally you wanted a dark-haired man (preferably bearing some kind of gift) for the best results. Other visitors could be bad omens - a doctor or priest could be associated with sickness or death.
You might be wondering what's so special about dark hair. It's thought that this bit of superstition dates back to the Viking invasion of Britain, where most fair-haired strangers were marauding sea-reavers.
7) The Drowning of Marzanna
What better way to kickstart the spring than drowning the representation of winter?
This medieval Polish tradition involves creating an effigy of “Marzanna” (a Slavic goddess of winter, plague and death) from straw and fabric.
The effigy is paraded through town, set aflame and hurled into a river. As if that wasn't enough, the burnt “corpse” is taken back out and paraded through town again!
8) Sechseläuten and the Burning of the BööggSwitzerland celebrates spring by burning an effigy known as the “Böögg.” It's thought that this snowman-like creature may originally have been intended to represent an evil spirit (like the British bogeyman).
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| The Böögg (Anonymous) |
The Böögg traditionally meets its fate atop a pyre in Zurich. Urban legend suggests that the time taken for the flames to reach the head will predict the weather for the following season. To make the event more dramatic, the head is stuffed with fireworks that cause it to explode as the flames consume it!
9) Nagol: The Origin of the Bungee Jump?
The archipelago of Vanuatu features Nagol, an extreme spring festival that revolves around "land diving."When the monsoon season ends, the boys of the village build a 30-meter-high tower of branches cut from the nearby forest.. which they leap from, protected only by a vine tied around their ankles. There's no safety nets - a single miscalculation can mean a crushing impact with the ground below.
Legend has it that the first jumper was a woman looking to escape an unwanted marriage. She climbed a tree (pursued by her husband) and jumped after attaching herself to a vine. She landed unscathed and escaped after her husband (who had failed to attach a vine) slammed into the ground.
There is a strong suspicion amongst the islanders that the "bungee jump" is a stolen and warped version of the land dive - the ceremony is now being enshrined in Vanuatu law.
10) Kanamara Matsuri, the Festival of the Steel Phallus
Japan has a reputation for reserved stoicism, so Kanamara Matsuri would come as quite the surprise to an unsuspecting tourist... the 'Festival of the Steel Phallus' is held on the first Sunday of April in Kawasaki, south of Tokyo.The festival is organized by the priests of Kanayama-Jinja, a shrine dedicated to Kanayamahiko and Kanayamahime, male and female gods of the forge. One could travel to the shrine in hopes of being granted marital fortune and fertility... but in the Edo period, sex workers were allowed to visit and pray for protection (or healing) from sexually transmitted diseases. The current festival is a revived version of the celebration, brought back to life by chief priest Hirohiko Nakamura in the 1970s.
The centerpiece of the festival is a parade of three 'mikoshi' idols, large phalluses that are carried through the streets. Inclusivity is a big theme of the event... and onlookers can join in with colorful phallus-themed souvenirs and confectionary!
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| Cotswold Double Gloucester - would you risk broken bones for some? (PDPhotos) |
11) Gobbling Twelve Grapes
Spain has an alternative to the typical champagne and greetings that accompany the New Year - trying to gobble twelve grapes before the bells end!
It's not clear where the tradition comes from - though one story suggests that it was started by a group of quick-witted farmers after a large harvest in 1900s Alicante.
Tradition demands that celebrants consume a grape each time the Madrid bells strike to announce 12pm, the beginning of the New Year. Success is thought to bring good luck, but failing to finish in time will bring misfortune (or possibly a trip to the hospital, given that you may have just choked!)
The cheese is released onto the slope by the master of ceremonies and is pursued moments after by the competitors. They build up so much momentum chasing the cheese that people have to tackle the competitors at the base of the hill!
The origins of the custom are unclear, but other events from "Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake" may offer a few clues. The "sweet scramble" involves treats being scattered on the ground, and it's been suggested that it's a throwback to offerings being scattered on fields in the hope of a bountiful harvest.
Though the competition seems a bit insane to outsiders, the locals (and many foreign visitors) are willing to risk bodily harm to compete. These days a fake cheese wheel is used, since police warned local cheesemakers that they could be liable for any injuries if they knowingly supplied cheese for the event!
Thanks for reading - for more festive facts, try...
12) Wheels of Glory: Cheese Rolling
The quiet countryside of Cooper's Hill near Gloucester, England, finds itself disturbed on the spring bank holiday. Crowds of spectators cheer competitors hurling themselves down a muddy slope in a frantic pursuit. The object of their desire? A wheel of Double Gloucester cheese.The cheese is released onto the slope by the master of ceremonies and is pursued moments after by the competitors. They build up so much momentum chasing the cheese that people have to tackle the competitors at the base of the hill!
The origins of the custom are unclear, but other events from "Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake" may offer a few clues. The "sweet scramble" involves treats being scattered on the ground, and it's been suggested that it's a throwback to offerings being scattered on fields in the hope of a bountiful harvest.
Though the competition seems a bit insane to outsiders, the locals (and many foreign visitors) are willing to risk bodily harm to compete. These days a fake cheese wheel is used, since police warned local cheesemakers that they could be liable for any injuries if they knowingly supplied cheese for the event!
Thanks for reading - for more festive facts, try...