Signs for the Old New Year

Old New Year is a special holiday that comes after the noisy New Year holidays and Christmas. To a greater extent, this is an unofficial, folk holiday. Often it is associated with something unusual, mysterious, which makes it possible to plunge into the old days, perform some rituals, feel one’s kinship with nature. We will tell you more about the signs and what you can and cannot do on the Old New Year.

The history of folk signs for the Old New Year

Many signs associated with the celebration of the Old New Year have become entrenched in the minds of people. Some of them were invested with practical meaning, the experience of the people, and some had an exclusively mystical meaning. Observing the phenomena of nature, people tried to establish some patterns related to the weather and crops. Signs helped determine when to sow and harvest, what the weather would be like in the near future. Household signs related to the household, way of life, regulated the norms of behavior in the house, warned of danger and protected from diseases. What are these signs that people continue to believe in?

The main signs for the Old New Year

On this day, it was customary to generously cover the festive table with various dishes. They said: “What a table – such is the year.” On the table, the hosts put all kinds of pastries, pancakes, hearty kutya (wheat porridge seasoned with meat, bacon or nuts and fruits), meat dishes (jelly, sausage, boiled pork), wine, vodka. Since Basil the Great, whose memorial day falls on January 14, was considered the patron saint of pig breeding, a pig in its own juice was an integral part of the festive table. It symbolized prosperity and prosperity for the whole coming year. The head of the pig must have been eaten by the owner of the house.

It was believed that if livestock is well watered and fed, then the animals will be full for the next year. For the holiday, they baked gingerbread in the form of animals and treated them to guests. They believed that this could protect livestock from all sorts of misfortunes, diseases and pestilence.

In the evening they usually had fun, caroling. They gathered in companies and went from house to house with benevolent carol songs and various sentences for the owners, thereby driving away all evil spirits from the houses. For this, carolers were thanked with treats – sweets, pies, fruits, but it was impossible to give money, otherwise, according to popular beliefs, it was believed that you could lose your wealth. January 13 was also called Generous Evening. It was also customary to “drive Malanka” – a beautiful, smart girl – from house to house, wishing well-being and good luck in the household and on the field.

From midnight until dawn, the sowers began to walk and sow the house with grain. Seed grains could not be swept and thrown away. They were collected and carefully stored until the next harvest.

Before generous and sowing it was impossible to close the doors, otherwise the doors would be closed for the well-being of the whole family.

On the morning of January 14, young people kindled fires to scare away evil spirits, and jumped over them, demonstrating their fearlessness.

What not to do on the Old New Year

• On the eve of the old New Year, you can not borrow or lend money.
• You can’t count a trifle, it predicts tears and sadness for the whole year.
• It is forbidden to clean up and take out the garbage from the house.
• Women and girls should not look in the mirror, you can convey to him all the beauty.
• You can’t start the day with conversations before you wash your face, otherwise you will spend the whole year in empty chatter.
• You can’t swear, swear, conceal and offend your family and friends and in general everyone who is close to you, otherwise you won’t expect good luck next year.
• At the festive table, you can’t say toasts with a “NOT” particle.
• You can’t say the number “13” or count to 13 – this is a bad sign.
• Seven days before the Old New Year, you can not wear new things.
• You can not sit at the festive table in dark clothes.

What can you do on the Old New Year

• For the holiday, you need to decorate the house with garlands, candles, spruce or pine branches. Hang a new decoration, banknotes on the spruce.
• After the celebration of the Old New Year, the Christmas tree must be removed, the toys should be carefully placed in boxes for storage so as not to attract evil spirits into the house.
• If you didn’t have time to make a wish on the night of January 1, then you can do it on the Old New Year. All the wishes will certainly come true.
• Buy gifts for everyone, do not be stingy when choosing.
• Have fun, sing and dance to loud music.
• Go to visit friends, relatives.
• Set a festive table for the whole family.
• Bake a happiness pie.
• Prepare a hearty festive kutya.
• Ask for forgiveness for all grievances, wish happiness, health and prosperity at the festive table.
• Buy a new thing – then the whole year will be happy.
• Burn old clothes and put on new, clean and tidy.
• Women and girls can change outfits three times during the day so that good luck accompanies the whole year.
• If you accidentally wear clothes inside out, this portends a change in life for the better.
• To attract good luck and prosperity, you need to throw away broken and chipped dishes and buy new ones.
• Buy a new broom – this amulet will bring wealth.
• Today is a good day to start something new. Success in all endeavors is guaranteed.

Weather and harvest notes

• If on the night of the Old New Year the wind blows from the south, the summer will be hot and long, the wind from the east portends a harvest of fruits, from the west – a lot of milk and fish, from the north – a harvest of nuts.
• If the trees are silvered with frost, the summer will be rich in honey.
• Shake the garden trees – there will be no pests in the new year.
• If snow is shaken off the apple trees at midnight, this promises a good offspring.
• Fallen snow – by late spring and snowy winter.
• If the weather is cold that day, mushroom pickers may not hope for a good mushroom harvest.
• There are many stars in the sky – in the summer, wait for a full basket of berries.
• A thaw for the Old New Year means waiting for a cold, lean summer.
• The dog barks – to the snowfall, rolls on the ground – to the wind.
• If the bright sun shines all day, then the whole year will be successful and prosperous.
• Cumulus clouds in the sky can indicate the direction of happiness.

Health and wellness tips

• If you wash your face with cold water early in the morning, preferably from a river, well or spring, you will be healthy all year round. You can also put a coin in water when washing, it will add miraculous power to it: copper will make it even stronger and stronger, gold will help you become more beautiful, silver will cleanse your face of freckles, warts and moles.
• They say that a child born on the night of St. Basil’s Day will be happy and healthy in life.
• It was considered a good omen if a young fair-haired guy from a good, large family came to the house first. This promised a bountiful harvest and success in business. The arrival of a woman is in trouble.

Notes on marriage

• A girl in anticipation of her betrothed on New Year’s Eve should wear beautiful jewelry.
• If falling in love was unsuccessful last year, you need to burn the old calendar so that all sad memories are a thing of the past and your heart opens up to all the brightest, kindest.
• The girl must cook delicious food for the festive table herself.
• Consent to marriage, given on this day, makes the family union strong and happy.
• And it is customary to guess under the Old New Year. This creates a special atmosphere for the holiday, filling it with magic and magic. Most often, young girls and women guess, wanting to know their fate (who will be the spouse, when the children are born, how things will go, what road lies ahead).

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