Ringing in the New Year'

By By Penny Randall / staff writer
Dec. 28, 2003
The countdown begins 10, nine, eight as the oversized ball covered by Waterford crystals in New York's Times Square slowly begins to descend.
Everyone holds their breath for the last few seconds seven, six, five, four. We're about to jump that seemingly large but invisible gap that separates the years.
Then the countdown ends: Three, two, one. Millions scream "Happy New Year!" We've made it. The old year, for better or worse, is gone for good. The new year has begun with fresh hopes.
New Year's origins
We can trace the origins of a New Year's celebration back to the ancient Egyptians and Babylonians about 4,000 years ago.
In Egypt, the Nile river signaled a new beginning for the farmers as it flooded their land and enriched it with the silt needed to grow crops for the next year. This happened near the end of September.
The Babylonians held their festival in the spring, on March 23, to kick off the next cycle of planting and harvest.
Symbolically, the king was stripped of his robes and sent away for a few days while the people celebrated. He returned in all his finery for a grand parade, and the normal activities of life would return for the new year.
The Romans
There must be something inside of us that needs to unload the accumulated results of fate and our own decisions and start anew.
The Romans knew this. The month of January was named for their God, Janus, who is pictured with two heads. One looks forward, the other back, symbolizing a break between the old and new.
The Greeks paraded a baby in a basket to represent the spirit of fertility.
Christians adopted this symbol as the birth of the baby Jesus and continued what started as a pagan ritual. Today our New Year's symbols are a newborn baby starting the next year and an old man winding up the last year.
Modern traditions
Did you know that one of our favorite modern American traditions, the Rose Bowl football game on New Year's Day, dates back more than 100 years?
The festivities began in 1897, when a zoologist suggested that the Valley Hunt Club of Pasadena, Calif., sponsor "an artistic celebration of the ripening of the oranges" at the beginning of the new year similar to a parade he saw in France.
They started with a parade of decorated horse-drawn carriages, followed by athletic events in the afternoon and an evening ball to announce the event winners and the most beautiful float of the parade.
In 1916, college football games replaced all the events. Today we enjoy the elaborate Tournament of Roses Parade through Pasadena followed by the Rose Bowl game.
Since then, other states have adopted similar celebrations. Among the more historic college football bowl competitions are the Orange Bowl in Miami, the Cotton Bowl in Dallas and the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.
Different cultures
Around the world, different cultures have their own traditions for welcoming the new year.
The Japanese hang a rope of straw across the front of their houses to keep out evil spirits and bring happiness and good luck. They also have a good laugh as the year begins to get things started on a lucky note.
In Northern India, people like to wear pink, red, purple and white flowers. Women favor yellow, the color of spring. Hindus also leave shrines next to their beds so they can see beautiful objects when they wake up to the new year.
In Vancouver, British Columbia, Canadians enjoy the traditional polar bear swim. People of all ages don their swim suits and take the plunge, an event that is sure to get you started in the New Year with eyes wide open.
And then there are the New Year's resolutions. You might be interested in knowing that we also inherited this tradition from the ancient Babylonians, whose most popular resolution was to return borrowed farm equipment.