Traditional dates and customs of New Year in various countries.

The traditional Thai New Year, namely Songkran Festival (Sanskrit transliteration), is also called Songkran Festival, and the time is from April 13 to June 16 on the Gregorian calendar every year. During the festival, people travel with huge Buddha statues in cars, followed by floats, on which stood the "Goddess Gan Song" in makeup, and groups of young men and women in colorful national costumes, drumming long drums, singing and dancing. On both sides of the road where the parade passed, good men and women walked along the street, filled with water soaked in scallops and permeated with spices in silver bowls, and sprinkled it on the Buddha statue and the "goddess Gan Song" to pray for a happy New Year and good weather. Then people splash water on each other, wishing their elders a long and healthy life, wishing friends and relatives and unmarried young men and women a happy New Year, and splashing water on each other to express their love. On the first day of the new year, Thais will put a basin of clear water on the windowsill and doorway, and every family will go to the riverside in the suburbs to take a New Year bath. In order to celebrate the New Year, Thais will hold a large-scale "Elephant Race Conference", which includes: tug-of-war between elephants, elephants jumping up to pick up things, elephants crossing people, elephant football matches, ancient elephant array performances and so on. It's wonderful and touching.

Edge

Egypt is an ancient civilization. In 40 BC, Egyptians were able to observe the stars. They found that Sirius rose with the sun and the Nile rose immediately. Egypt takes the day when the Nile rises as the beginning of the New Year. Croute people in Egypt are famous for the "Rising Water New Year". They put a table at the door to welcome the New Year. There are seven or eight plates on the table, with grains such as soybeans, lentils, alfalfa and wheat, and many green plants, which symbolize abundance. The more you give to God, the more you will get in the new year. The New Year in Egypt is in autumn, because agricultural production in Egypt begins in autumn.

Germany

There is a week before and after the German New Year celebration. During this period, every household should put a fir tree and a cypress tree, and the leaves are covered with silk flower, indicating that the flowers are in full bloom and the spring is full. Just before midnight New Year's Eve, the Germans climbed into the chair. As soon as the bell rang, they jumped up from their chairs and threw a heavy object behind the back of the chair to show that they had abandoned the disaster and entered the new year. The children formed a band, put on new clothes and lined up to play in the street with harmonicas and accordions. The adults held colorful flags and shouted and sang behind them to celebrate the New Year. German women will improvise comedy sketches with the theme of family in the New Year. In rural Germany, there is a custom to celebrate the New Year-"Tree Climbing Competition". Boys climb along bare trees, and the first place is called "New Year Hero" to show their promotion step by step. .

Yindu

In India, the New Year lasts for five days from June 10 to1October 3 1 every year, and the fourth day is New Year's Day. On the first day of the new year, no one is allowed to be angry with others, let alone lose his temper. In some parts of India, on the morning of New Year's Day, every household kept crying, and everyone's face was covered with tears. They greet the New Year with tears, because time flies and life is short, which is a lament for life. In some areas, people welcome the New Year by fasting for one day and one night, from the early morning of New Year's Day to midnight. Because of this weird custom, New Year's Day in India is called "Crying New Year's Day" and "Fasting New Year's Day". In the first five days of the Lunar New Year, Indians will perform the Indian epic Ramayana (Ramayana, meaning Ramayana Parade) everywhere, playing the role of the hero in the epic "fighting" with the paper giant. The "hero" will light an arrow and the paper giant will catch fire in the cheers of the audience. Before New Year's Eve, all kinds of beautiful pictures will be posted in front of every household. On the morning of New Year's Day, people go out to pay New Year greetings to the elderly, relatives and friends with elaborate lanterns and red envelopes. After meeting and congratulating each other, sprinkle red powder on each other's foreheads to show good luck and look up at each other. Young people put red ink into a water gun and shoot it at relatives and friends, which is called "sprinkling red", indicating good luck. Indian youth like to meet and fight with their bare hands during the New Year, whether they are familiar with it or not. Watching and cheering is often the object of girls' pursuit. To celebrate the New Year, Boxler, an indigenous people in central India, erected a smooth and thick wooden pole on the playground, with a small bag full of gifts at the top of the pole. Girls hold bamboo poles and try their best to prevent boys from climbing the pole, while boys form a circle under the pole, trying to defend girls from attacking the pole climber until the pole climber takes the small bag.

Iran

Iran has an Islamic calendar, and the seasons and months are not fixed. In Iran, celebrating the New Year means celebrating the arrival of spring, usually in the late March of the solar calendar. It takes a week to celebrate the New Year. People flocked to the street to light a "bonfire"-"night fire", and then the whole family jumped down from the night fire in turn, indicating that they would burn "bad luck", usher in the light, drive away evil spirits and diseases, and enjoy happiness forever. We should eat "seven dishes" on New Year's Eve, and the name of each dish should start with the letter "S" to show good luck. From grade one to grade three, people visit relatives and friends and wish each other a happy Spring Festival. On the last day of the new year, the whole family went out for an outing to ward off evil spirits.

Japan

Japanese people pay special attention to the New Year, and every year 65438+February 29th-65438+1October 3rd is a national holiday. The Japanese call 65438+February 3 1 "Great Dark Day", that is, New Year's Eve. On New Year's Eve, the Japanese call it "New Year's Eve". At night, they pray for the gods to send away the troubled old year and usher in a beautiful new year. This is the so-called "first day". At midnight on New Year's Eve, temples in urban and rural areas rang bells 108 to exorcise evil spirits, while the Japanese sat quietly listening to the "Night Bell". When the bell stops, it means the arrival of a new year. People leave their seats and go to bed, hoping to have a good dream. On New Year's morning, families sit around and tell each other about their dreams on New Year's Eve to test good luck or bad luck. The Japanese call the first day of New Year's Day "Zhengri". 1-3 is "Three Congratulations Day": On the right day, the younger generation should go to their parents' home to pay New Year greetings first, and then pay New Year greetings to relatives and friends. The New Year is still a "eating" festival, and people all over the world pray for good luck by eating their own food. On "Zhengri" day, the Japanese will have a big breakfast, including sugar, soba noodles and Tu Su wine. After that, they went vegetarian for three days in a row to show their piety and pray for good luck in the coming year. At present, most urban people in Japan give up vegetarian food in the New Year and eat a hollow noodle at the "night show" to wish them health and longevity in the new year.

North Korea; South Korea

Like China, North Korea has the custom of stick grilles and Fu Tao in the New Year. Koreans put up couplets and New Year pictures in every household during the New Year. Some people stick portraits of birthday girls or fairies on their doors, praying for God's blessing, driving away ghosts and giving people happiness. At the dawn of New Year's Day, people put some money into the scarecrow tied in advance on New Year's Eve and throw it at the crossroads to ward off evil spirits and welcome lucky stars. At dusk, people burn the hair that the whole family has lost for a year and wish their families peace in the four seasons. During the Spring Festival, women in North Korea wear new clothes. On New Year's Day, girls wear a kind of hemp hat called "blessing towel" and colorful and patterned clothes to have a swing competition. They aimed at a tree flower to see who could kick it or bite it first. Others hang bronze bells on high places. Whoever touches the bell first will win. During the New Year, Koreans must cook glutinous rice with pine nuts, chestnut powder, jujube paste and honey, which is similar to China's eight-treasure rice to show that the family is prosperous and sweet as honey.

British state

In Britain, New Year's Day on the Gregorian calendar is not as grand as Christmas, but on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, people will carry out various celebrations according to local customs to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new. On New Year's Eve, English people often go out to visit with cakes and wine. They went straight to their relatives and friends' houses without knocking. According to British custom, after the 1001 night of New Year's Eve, the first person who steps into the house indicates the luck of the new year. If the first guest is a man with dark hair, or a happy, happy and rich person, the host will be very lucky all the year round. If the first guest is a woman with light yellow hair, or a sad, poor and unfortunate person, then the host will be unlucky and will encounter difficulties and disasters in the new year. People who visit relatives and friends' homes on New Year's Eve should first stir the fire in the fireplace and wish the host "open the door" before speaking. Most New Year celebrations in Britain are held on the bonfire night on New Year's Eve, and the "welcome banquet" is one of them. This kind of banquet is divided into "family banquet" and "group banquet", which usually starts at 8 pm on New Year's Eve and ends in the early morning of New Year's Eve. There are all kinds of wine, food and snacks at the banquet for people to drink all night. At midnight, people turn on the radio and listen to the New Year bell of the church clock. When the bell rang, people were jubilant, raised their glasses and cheered, and sang "Sunlight in the Past". The "New Year's Eve Dance" is another celebration. Local hotels and dances, night arrival. People dressed in festive costumes came to these brightly decorated dance halls from all directions, dancing to the beautiful music, and thousands of people gathered in various squares, singing and dancing around the fountain and the statue of Cupid in the center of the square, and reveling endlessly. The TV station also broadcast live on the square, so that people who "keep the age" can share the joy.

Customs in different places

Zang (ZA)

Every nation has its own unique culture and living habits. Tibetans are an ancient and enthusiastic people. In the long history, they also formed their own living habits and taboos.

1. When two friends meet after a long separation, greet each other or chat, you can't put your hand on each other's shoulder.

2. You can't step on or step on other people's clothes, and you can't put your own clothes on other people's clothes, let alone cross people.

3. Women should not hang up their clothes, especially the pants and underwear that people pass by.

Don't whistle or cry loudly in the house.

5. The family is not at home, the guests have just left, noon and sunset, and on the first day of the Tibetan New Year, you can't sweep the floor or take out the garbage.

6, outsiders can't mention the name of the deceased in front of the relatives of the deceased.

7. What should be done this year can't be done next year, such as knitting wool, sweaters and carpets.

8. At dusk, you can't just go to other people's homes, especially pregnant women who have given birth and women who have just given birth or seriously ill patients. Strangers can't go.

9. After noon, you can't take out any belongings at home.

10, a stranger who has never been to mountains and cliffs and canyons, can't talk loudly.

1 1, tableware, pots, plates, etc. Can not be crossed or trampled.

12. Two people at home go out at the same time and go in the opposite direction. They can't go out at the same time. They must go out before and after, and the time to go out should be separated.

13, women can't comb their hair and wash their hair at night and can't go out with their hair covered.

14. When using brooms and dustpans, you can't pass them directly by hand. You must put them on the ground first, and then another person will pick them up from the ground.

15. Whenever relatives and friends visit your home or visit you, they will send you some butter tea or highland barley wine as a gift. When guests leave, they can't leave everything empty. Be sure to leave some in it or change something for themselves.

16. A chipped or cracked bowl cannot be used for eating or pouring tea for guests.

Yi ethnic group

Torch Festival of Yi people, that is, the Year of Yi people. In the eyes of Yi people, fire symbolizes light, justice and prosperity, and a powerful force that can destroy all evil. Torch Festival is a festival of joy, love and happiness for Yi people.

There are many beautiful and moving stories about the origin of the Torch Festival among the people in the Yi areas of various provinces. One of them said: Long ago, heaven and earth were connected. One year, the god Stiguge sent Sigaby to collect taxes on earth. Due to crop failures caused by various disasters in the world, people can't afford to pay rent. A strongman who can eat copper and iron in the world, Rabbah, Russia, killed the tax collector Sylvia Abby. The gods were furious. The first flood tried to drown people on the ground, but the flood was defeated. The gods released all kinds of pests into the world to eat people's crops. Russian Rabbah and everyone gathered around the fireplace to discuss ways to control pests. Unexpectedly, a bug fell into the fireplace and was quickly burned to death. As a result, the Russian Laba organization set everyone on fire, finally defeated the pests and achieved a bumper harvest. Over time, the Yi Torch Festival was formed. Generally speaking, the Torch Festival of Yi people is celebrated for three days. On the first day, the whole family got together and drank congratulations. People cooked the meat of livestock, cut it into pieces, offered it to gods and ancestors, and then used it to drink. At night, torches burn everywhere, usually for three nights. People are very enthusiastic. Taking the village as a unit, people hold high torches and burn around the village and fields, just like a thousand fire dragons flying. On the second and third day, the Torch Festival reached its climax, and the whole Liangshan was boiling. The young man put on national costume and wrapped in headdress with hero knot; Women wear pleated skirts and gather on the vast grass dam for various traditional sports competitions. Boys take part in wrestling, horse racing and archery competitions, while women sing, dance and play harpsichord.

In some areas, pigs and sheep should be beaten to sacrifice to the gods during festivals; In some areas, a chicken will be slaughtered to the edge of the field to sacrifice to "Mother Earth". People think that torches can ward off evil spirits, so after lighting torches, people have to take pictures from house to house and sprinkle rosin on the fire while walking. People call it "giving gifts". There is no doubt that this is a relic of the ancient concept of worshipping fire.

During the Torch Festival, the most lively place is the bullring. Bullfighting is not only a recreational activity, but also a good way to choose improved cattle, which is of great positive significance to the production of agriculture and animal husbandry. Whose cow wins in the competition means that the young cattle breeder is an industrious animal husbandry expert and is often a good target for girls to choose a spouse. Wrestling is another activity that attracts audiences during the Torch Festival. The two wrestled together, people gathered together, and relatives and friends came to cheer. Before and after the game, onlookers played harpsichord, and young people played Qin Yue to show their love.

The beauty contest is unique. The beauty contest was judged by a venerable old man. After the referee announced the beginning of the "beauty contest", the Yi girls who participated in the election formed a circle, and the latter took the handkerchief in the former's hand and sang beautiful and moving folk songs as they walked. The young people here are the most generous and generous. The boy thinks which girl is the most suitable, so he gives the already prepared gift to the referee and asks him to give it to that girl. The judge declared that the girl who received the most gifts was a beauty. Dangdang was chosen as a beautiful girl with many gifts on her back and Xia Hong on her face. When she walked out of the venue, relatives and friends gathered around to congratulate her. The boys went back and forth around the girl, tinkling Qin Yue to express their feelings.

On the fourth day, several people swept up the ashes of the torch and offered sacrifices with wine and meat, praying for good luck.