HAPPY NEW YEAR 2016
What exactly are you celebrating the ‘Happy New Year’ for?
Background
1 January 2016 is the new year from the perspective of the Gregorian calendar. Gregorian calendar was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582 to ensure a standard date for Easter. What exactly are we celebrating on new year’s day (1 January)? We celebrate the circumcision of Jesus (assuming Jesus was actually born on 25 December and not on 6 January as many Christians believe)
Fascinating to find that till late 1700s in England, New Year day was celebrated in March as protestants and other Christians resisted the calendar for nearly 200 years. In most traditions and cultures in the world new year is, was, or ought to be celebrated in or around March/April with some cultures in September/October. That is where the clustering lies. However, a sub-group of Christians called Catholics who currently are about 17% of the world population have a calendar which defines new year as the 1st of January.
Further reform of the calendar on a scientific basis (such as the proposed Holocene calendar which retains the current catholic calendar format but wants to begin about 10000 years earlier) faces great resistance. Under these circumstances the determination of the middle-eastern Arabic-Muslim countries has to be really appreciated in the sense that irrespective of the calendar they have kept their weekend around Friday (Friday being Muslim prayer day); equally appreciated is the determination of Israel who has its weekend as Friday-Saturday (Saturday being Shabbath) though the Gregorian calendar’s weekend is Saturday-Sunday (Sunday being the day of the Lord).
So there is obviously a religious dimension to this 1 January New Year celebrations, many people who celebrate seem to think of it as a secular date.
Catholics – may or may not know when really the new year is but Pope Gregory XIII decided it will be 1 January – Happy New Year
Non-Catholic Christians – this is actually a Catholic invention but it has been accepted after centuries of resistance that this will be a Happy New Year.
For non-Christians which is about 70% of the world – have a great party, because it is a holiday and so on but the 1st of January is actually not a ‘new year celebration’ for non-Christians.
Being aware of what you are doing and why you are doing it is part of intelligent living; do enjoy the 1st of January with awareness of its background.
If our specific religious or cultural backgrounds have another New Year day – how seriously do you take it and how well do you celebrate it?
Interesting socio-mathematical-statistical observation on this ‘New Year’ idea.
It is how democracy works, for instance in the UK Prime Minister won power with 17% of UK population voting for the Tories (with a little more than 30% of votes cast) and India Prime Minister Modi won power with 21% of eligible voters (14% of Indian population) voting for the BJP (again with a little more than 30% of the votes), in the USA President Obama was voted for by 20% of the American population and won the Presidency (the percentages of these personalities will increase if eligible voters are taken into account for the purpose of simplicity and illustrating socio-mathematical principles the whole population is taken into account in my calculations); similarly Christians with a little more than 30% of the population get to decide the calendar. Looking at the Gregorian calendar from a ‘Normal Curve’ as applied to the Roger’s Innovation curve template it is understandable that Catholics with about 16% world population took the lead as early adopters of the calendar and they were helped by having other Christians as a part of early majority (Roger’s threshold is 16% and that is about what falls outside of a standard deviation from the median in the normal curve). (As an aside, in my mini e-book Standardised Management Conversation I write about how these numbers can be used as a part of good management).
What is the future of the 1st of January ‘Happy New Year’?
At about 20% of the world population Islamic calendar is poised just about right to make a bid to change it; however whether it will get any traction is doubtful. At about 14% the world population the Hindu related calendars cannot make a bid for a new ‘New Year’ day as their almanacs have a variety of New Years for various regional and language groups – but would they bid for rationalisation and ask for a Holocene calendar (which interestingly maintains the Gregorian format but begins 10000 years earlier, hence only partly rational) or perhaps they will dig deep into their Vedic and Dharmic history to come up with a common date? With an Astronomic background, Hindu calendars have strong logic and ancient history to support a bid for a different date for celebrating new year, can they come up with a cogent argument?
In the meanwhile, as I already said, have a party, know why you are having a party and also aim to enjoy a number of happy new years throughout the year!
Follow me on Twitter @HemadriTweets
Reading
Gregorian calendar https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregorian_calendar
Holocene calendar https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holocene_calendar
Rogers curve https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diffusion_of_innovations
My book Standardised Management Conversation - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Standardised-Management-Conversation-Hemadri-ebook/dp/B018AWBJTU
My book has no reference to calendars, religion, new year, etc. My book is about a proposed new model on how senior people in management can interact with their junior colleagues. The book uses the innovation curve number as a logical argument on how to agree on projects.
What exactly are you celebrating the ‘Happy New Year’ for?
Background
1 January 2016 is the new year from the perspective of the Gregorian calendar. Gregorian calendar was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582 to ensure a standard date for Easter. What exactly are we celebrating on new year’s day (1 January)? We celebrate the circumcision of Jesus (assuming Jesus was actually born on 25 December and not on 6 January as many Christians believe)
Fascinating to find that till late 1700s in England, New Year day was celebrated in March as protestants and other Christians resisted the calendar for nearly 200 years. In most traditions and cultures in the world new year is, was, or ought to be celebrated in or around March/April with some cultures in September/October. That is where the clustering lies. However, a sub-group of Christians called Catholics who currently are about 17% of the world population have a calendar which defines new year as the 1st of January.
Further reform of the calendar on a scientific basis (such as the proposed Holocene calendar which retains the current catholic calendar format but wants to begin about 10000 years earlier) faces great resistance. Under these circumstances the determination of the middle-eastern Arabic-Muslim countries has to be really appreciated in the sense that irrespective of the calendar they have kept their weekend around Friday (Friday being Muslim prayer day); equally appreciated is the determination of Israel who has its weekend as Friday-Saturday (Saturday being Shabbath) though the Gregorian calendar’s weekend is Saturday-Sunday (Sunday being the day of the Lord).
So there is obviously a religious dimension to this 1 January New Year celebrations, many people who celebrate seem to think of it as a secular date.
Catholics – may or may not know when really the new year is but Pope Gregory XIII decided it will be 1 January – Happy New Year
Non-Catholic Christians – this is actually a Catholic invention but it has been accepted after centuries of resistance that this will be a Happy New Year.
For non-Christians which is about 70% of the world – have a great party, because it is a holiday and so on but the 1st of January is actually not a ‘new year celebration’ for non-Christians.
Being aware of what you are doing and why you are doing it is part of intelligent living; do enjoy the 1st of January with awareness of its background.
If our specific religious or cultural backgrounds have another New Year day – how seriously do you take it and how well do you celebrate it?
Interesting socio-mathematical-statistical observation on this ‘New Year’ idea.
It is how democracy works, for instance in the UK Prime Minister won power with 17% of UK population voting for the Tories (with a little more than 30% of votes cast) and India Prime Minister Modi won power with 21% of eligible voters (14% of Indian population) voting for the BJP (again with a little more than 30% of the votes), in the USA President Obama was voted for by 20% of the American population and won the Presidency (the percentages of these personalities will increase if eligible voters are taken into account for the purpose of simplicity and illustrating socio-mathematical principles the whole population is taken into account in my calculations); similarly Christians with a little more than 30% of the population get to decide the calendar. Looking at the Gregorian calendar from a ‘Normal Curve’ as applied to the Roger’s Innovation curve template it is understandable that Catholics with about 16% world population took the lead as early adopters of the calendar and they were helped by having other Christians as a part of early majority (Roger’s threshold is 16% and that is about what falls outside of a standard deviation from the median in the normal curve). (As an aside, in my mini e-book Standardised Management Conversation I write about how these numbers can be used as a part of good management).
What is the future of the 1st of January ‘Happy New Year’?
At about 20% of the world population Islamic calendar is poised just about right to make a bid to change it; however whether it will get any traction is doubtful. At about 14% the world population the Hindu related calendars cannot make a bid for a new ‘New Year’ day as their almanacs have a variety of New Years for various regional and language groups – but would they bid for rationalisation and ask for a Holocene calendar (which interestingly maintains the Gregorian format but begins 10000 years earlier, hence only partly rational) or perhaps they will dig deep into their Vedic and Dharmic history to come up with a common date? With an Astronomic background, Hindu calendars have strong logic and ancient history to support a bid for a different date for celebrating new year, can they come up with a cogent argument?
In the meanwhile, as I already said, have a party, know why you are having a party and also aim to enjoy a number of happy new years throughout the year!
©M HEMADRI
Follow me on Twitter @HemadriTweets
Reading
Gregorian calendar https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregorian_calendar
Holocene calendar https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holocene_calendar
Rogers curve https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diffusion_of_innovations
My book Standardised Management Conversation - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Standardised-Management-Conversation-Hemadri-ebook/dp/B018AWBJTU
My book has no reference to calendars, religion, new year, etc. My book is about a proposed new model on how senior people in management can interact with their junior colleagues. The book uses the innovation curve number as a logical argument on how to agree on projects.
