New Year's day?

Question

When is new year really? Most of us celebrate New year on Jan 1st becuase this is the first day of the new callender... but why then? In relation to life and the life cycle January is a very random time of year to celebrate the new year is it not as it is bang in the middle of winter? .... so, i propose that new year is instead celebrated on the 21st of March... this being the official beginning of spring (which is all to do with begining, birth, re-birth, new starts etc...) and this also means that SEPTember is back as month number seven, OCTober is officially back in its place as 8th month, NOVember in nineth and DECember in 10th...

I just wondered who agrees with me and if anyone would care to propose a different date for unofficial "New Years" celebration.... in all honesty its just another excuse to go out and get drunk anyways! ^_^

xCat

Answer 1

Good question, Xcat...

You are aware, of course, that it's only winter in the Northern Hemisphere. They are in T-shirts and cheap sunglasses in the southern hemisphere for New Years.

And you say "its just another excuse to go out and get drunk" as if it were a "Bad Thing"...

I conjecture... that once you get older and saddled with 2.5 screaming kids, credit card debt, a car loan and mortgage payments, that you won't be going out anywhere!

Maybe the timing of the New Year's holidays seems ill-timed to you because of your particular background?

In that respect, it would be best to be a Chinese born Iranian living in the U.S. Such a person would then get to celebrate continuously from American Thanksgiving in November until the Persian New Year's on March 21. And don't forget that the Chinese just celebrated their own New Year's last month. If you include all the other countries that also celebrate New Year's with the Chinese, that's almost 20% of the earth's population!

I think that New Year's is fine just where it's at. Besides, almost every small Western hemisphere business is closed tight from Christmas until New Year's. Most workers get that time off to be with their families. I doubt that moving New Year's to Easter would compel those bosses to give the same amount of time off. Somehow getting a week off for a horribly persecuted fellow nailed up to a cross just doesn't have the same commercial appeal as the birth of a cute Supreme Being next to fuzzy (and Cute) stable animals.

Check out the first link that I have to another Yahoo Answer thread. Jtrusnik did an incredible job of explaining WHY January ended up being considered the start of the new year. As usual, the reason is more to do with politics than with practicality.

Answer 2

Christmas day is fantastic to spend with relatives, yet i respect New Years eve because thats at the same time as each of the superb nights out and clubbing activities that i bypass to are! do not get me incorrect inspite of the actuality that, I for sure love spending time with my relatives! i imagine christmas is more beneficial for human beings with little ones and little ones themselves! i'm neither a figure or a baby! :) x

Answer 3

Read:

"Calendar. Humanity's Epic Struggle to Determine a True and Accurate Year"
by David Ewing Duncan

Answer 4

You make a good point. For students, including myself when on a traditional uni schedule, as well as those at all levels, and teachers-administrators, the school year starts in fall.
Back to your question, if we do it on March 22, then it would line up with the start of spring, and ultimately does make more sense.
And the school year wouldn't start until sometime in November when it is too cold to do much fun anyway!!

--That Cheeky Lad

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Answer 5

You won't get it through. It took yonks for them to agree on Jan 1 being where it is. Although I agree with you

Answer 6

Oh my, I tried to follow eveyone's thinking but I am so confused, now. I need some tea and a lie-down. Whew.

Answer 7

Whew!! Im gonna research this on just for the heck of it. Ill get back to you soon.