In ancient times, the life of any nation was strictly subject to cycles. What mattered was not so much specific dates as the change of seasons and the annual recurring events that marked the end of a certain period and the beginning of the next. Therefore, speaking about when and how the New Year was celebrated in Russia, it does not make much sense to mention specific dates. Researchers do not know for certain how it was customary to celebrate this event in pre-Christian times (separate references to this are found only in the sources of foreign authors), but, since pagan traditions did not disappear with the reign of the church, individual customs were recorded in chronicles and other documents..
How the New Year was celebrated in Russia before Christianity
There is an opinion that the Slavs celebrated the arrival of the New Year on March 22, that is, on the day of the spring equinox. This holiday was dedicated to the end of winter and the awakening of nature. On this day they baked pancakes (they symbolized the sun) and burned an effigyMaslenitsa, arranged folk festivals and various ritual games, went to visit each other.
Later, holidays such as Maslenitsa and New Year were separated. This happened because of the adoption of Christianity.
Kolyada: Traditions
But all the peoples of Europe (including the Eastern Slavs) had another holiday, from which the modern New Year holidays originated. It began on the twentieth of December (at the solstice) and lasted 12 days. In Scandinavia it was called Yule, and in Russia - Kolyada. This holiday marked not the change of seasons, but the birth of a new Sun (since just from that moment the daylight hours began to lengthen). The symbol of the god Kolyada was a star, which the mummers carried with them.
In honor of Kolyada, they danced round dances (which symbolized the movement of the sun across the sky), burned fires (it was believed that these days the dead ancestors come to them to warm themselves). The traditions of the New Year in Russia are closely connected with the traditions of Kolyada. Subsequently, Christmas customs were added to them, and they all got along quite peacefully.
Ritual dishes
The concept of a new sun was associated with new life and fertility. Among the Eastern Slavs, the god of fertility (and hence livestock) was Veles. It was in his honor that on Kolyada it was customary to cook a loaf (originally - cow, ritual bread that replaces the sacrificial calf) and kozuli - cookies in the form of goats, sheep and poultry.
New Year in Ancient Russia was celebrated on a grand scale: the main dish on the table was a pig. On its insides, they wondered what the winter would be like and what to expect from the new year. It could not do without kutya - combined porridge, the main component of which was wheat grain - and uzvara (vzvara) - compote from dried berries. Of course, not every family could afford a pig, but kutya was considered an indispensable attribute of a meal (the Slavs were primarily farmers). On the eve of Kolyada, they also brewed beer, baked pies with various fillings. A plentiful joint meal was considered a guarantee of fertility and prosperity in the coming year.
Rites
The history of the New Year holiday has always been closely connected with miracles - both joyful and terrible. After the baptism of Russia, Kolyada was replaced by Svyatki. The concept of Christmas and St. Basil's Day (January 1) appeared, but the traditions themselves remained the same.
The first six days of the holiday were considered holy, and the next six - terrible. People believed that after St. Basil's Day, all evil spirits come from the lower world and roam the earth unhindered. It must either be appeased or driven away. They cajoled evil spirits with porridge, pots with which they put under the door, and drove them out with bonfires and noisy festivities with ritual songs - carols. Children and adults put on birch bark masks and fur coats with fur outside and went from house to house, wishing the owners happiness and we alth and scattering grain. The hosts were supposed to treat the mummers with pies or cookies - goats.
Divination
"Winter" New Year inAncient Russia was the holiday of the rebirth of the sun, so it was necessary to meet it in everything new and clean. People put on unworn clothes, swept huts, performed cleansing rituals, and spoke to cattle. Fortune-telling was an obligatory component of the holiday. They have survived to this day, although the church fought them with all its might. Women divined on wax, mirrors, threads, animal entrails, dreams, shadows, cards, onions and rings. At all times they were interested in the same things: we alth, happiness, harvest, prospects for marriage next year. As a rule, fortune-telling was arranged in a bathhouse, which since the times of paganism was considered a sacred place.
How the New Year was celebrated in Russia during the period of early Christianity
Thus, by the time the new faith was adopted in 988, the Eastern Slavs celebrated two large-scale celebrations - Maslenitsa and Kolyada, each of which could be identified with the New Year. But in the first case, the New Year was associated with the end of winter and the beginning of agricultural work, and in the second, with the return of the sun to the earth and victory over evil forces. It's hard to say which holiday was more important.
Since the 10th century, the history of the New Year holiday has been constantly influenced by the church. With the advent of Christianity, it began to be celebrated on March 1, as was customary in the Roman Empire. From there, the names of the months and the chronology (from the creation of the world) were borrowed. The date shift was not so strong, and the innovation was accepted without resistance. Shrovetide traditions, such as visiting pancakes,funny fights and various competitions, burning the effigy of Winter, were preserved.
Church New Year: September 1st
Years passed, Kievan Rus collapsed. The New Year was still celebrated on March 1st. But the Nicene Council changed everything: in the 14th century, the celebration of the New Year (New Year) was moved to September 1. In the 15th century, John III ordered that this day be considered the beginning of both the civil and the church year. The change in date was due to the strengthening of the position of the Russian state and the increase in the prestige of the local Orthodox Church. According to biblical legend, God created the world in September. In countries with a milder climate, agricultural work ended this month, and a period of “rest from worldly worries” began, but in Russia the situation was different. However, church hierarchs did not care much. On September 1, on the day of Simeon the Stylite, taxes were collected and dues were paid. It was possible to submit petitions to the king. Festive services were held in churches, in the capital the tsar addressed the people. In the evening, families gathered for a meal, treated themselves to mead and beer. Autumn New Year in pre-Petrine Russia was celebrated just as willingly as Christmas time and Maslenitsa.
Peter's transformations
By the way, the church New Year is still celebrated on September 1, although not all believers know about it. But the civil date changed again thanks to Peter, who in his reforms focused not only on Western Europe, but also on the Balkan Slavs. They all celebrated the New Year in winter.
Peter also introduced a "progressive" chronology - from the Nativity of Christ, and not fromcreation of the world. The offensive of January 1, 1700 was already celebrated in the cities in a European way - with the installation of a festive coniferous tree, decoration of houses, fireworks and firing from cannons, gifts and parades. The holiday has become secular.
About the same as the New Year was celebrated in Russia, they celebrate it now. Of course, many rituals and the meaning of certain actions were forgotten, but in general, traditions turned out to be very tenacious, and it is not surprising, because during the dark and long winter people experience an increased need for a fun and noisy holiday.
