New Year is a beautiful Christmas tree, colorful toys, bright garlands, the smell of tangerines, sparkling bubbles of champagne, gifts from relatives and wishes to the chimes. However, it turns out that the New Year in Russia was not always celebrated on January 1.
Instructions
Step 1
In Russia, until the 15th century, the winter holiday came on March 1 according to the Julian calendar, symbolizing the awakening of nature, spring and the new year of life. In XV, the date of the onset of the new year was changed to September 1, timed to coincide with the harvest.
Step 2
New Year - January 1 was introduced by the Russian reformer Tsar Peter I in 1699. The winter celebration of 1700 was celebrated by the tsar's order for as many as seven days. The owners of the houses set up Christmas trees in front of the gates, every day they lit tar barrels, fired rockets, and in front of the Kremlin they fired from two hundred cannons. All this Peter I borrowed abroad, as well as the tradition with the Christmas tree. Although before that in Russia, the spruce was a mourning symbol and did not at all evoke festive feelings in people. But by the tsarist order "Rejoice and be merry!" could not be neglected.
Step 3
By the end of the 19th century, the tree became a familiar symbol of the New Year for urban and rural residents. Decorated the Christmas tree with sweets and toys, topped the top of the head with an eight-pointed Christmas star. For the New Year, figurines of horses, cows and bulls and other domestic animals were baked from dough. When people came to the house to carol, the guests were presented with these figures, sweets and nuts. It was considered a good omen to celebrate the New Year in a new dress and shoes, pay off all debts, forgive insults and put up with those with whom they were in a quarrel.
Step 4
The October Revolution banned all holidays as remnants of the bourgeois past. The break was short, it became clear that it was boring without a holiday. And the New Year was returned along with the tree and the tradition of giving gifts.
Step 5
Another symbol of the winter holiday is the fairytale character Santa Claus. It first appeared on Christmas Day 1910, but did not become widely known. In Soviet times, a new image of Santa Claus appeared, who appeared to children and left gifts under the tree with his granddaughter Snegurochka helping him in this.
Step 6
The traditions of celebrating the New Year in Russia originate from different cultures. From Slavic paganism came folk festivities, buffoons, jesters, mummers and fortune-telling. Traditional decorated Christmas trees and Christmas carols brought Orthodox traditions. The era of the reformer Peter the Great added fireworks and a New Year's table.
