Old but still New

Millions of Russians are preparing to celebrate the Old New Year tonight. Although it’s not a public holiday, the tradition of ushering in the New Year on the night of January 13 according to the Julian calendar Russia had followed prior to 1918, is still amazingly alive.  A poll held by the Yuri Levada public opinion research center just recently shows that half of Russians will be celebrating the Old New Year.

In 1918, the Soviet government introduced the Gregorian calendar to put the country in synch with the rest of Europe. But the Russian Orthodox Church retained the Julian calendar. Orthodox Christmas is celebrated on January 7, as it has been for centuries. The difference between the Julian and Gregorian calendars is 13 days.

A spokesman for the Moscow Patriarchate, Father Georgy Roshchin explains:

"According to the church calendar, the year begins on September 1. So it doesn’t really matter much to an Orthodox Christian whether it’s January 1st or 14th . On the other hand, the Old New Year has become a truly popular holiday devoid of any political or ideological aspect, and also one of the favorite ones because it’s a real family event."

Another reason why the Old New Year is so popular goes back centuries ago. In Old Russia, this day was known as Basil’s Day – a day when farmers prayed for a good harvest. 

Maria is a Muscovite. She never misses the Old New year. "Of course, the Christmas tree is still there. Normally, we get together with our family and friends, have a glass of champagne and make New Year wishes. Our traditional Old New Year dish is baked pork. It’s also customary in our family to prepare buckwheat porridge for the Old New Year: if the porridge is crispy, rich-flavored and puffy, it will be a happy year. But if the porridge spills over the saucepan and has a loose texture, the year might not be so good. This rite goes back to Pagan times," Maria said.

For Ulyana in the Ukrainian capital Kiev, the Old New Year is the anticipation of joy and surprises.

"We always celebrate it, invite guests and prepare vareniki and pelmeni dumplings with surprises inside. We don’t put coins into a dumpling like our ancestors did, but a bean, or a pepper seed, or a  sugar cube. Of course, it melts. But it tastes good. And also we make wishes. If you are lucky to get a dumpling with a surprise, you will have luck on your side throughout the year."

People in Belarus, Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia and other Slav countries and also in German-speaking cantons in Switzerland will also be celebrating the Old, yet still New Year holiday.