Hearkening the old days...
Ahh, new year's in Armenia... It seems I'm one of the few loggers to still be in the Homeland to ring in 2007. You know, it seems odd, if you think about it, celebrating a "new year" in the dead of winter, that too, in the middle of the night. I'd imagine a nice spring dawn would be more appropriate. Anyway, this is the way it is now, and I suppose it enlivens what would otherwise be a dreary season. At least for the Northern Hemisphere...
Hayastantsis are very much into the night of the 31st of the December, as well as the morning of the 1st of January, followed quickly by the 2nd, 3rd, 4th... There's plenty of eating and drinking, followed by more eating and drinking at someone else's place, with a third banquet within the same day not uncommon. Things don't quiet down until about the 14th or 15th, I'd say. See, we have the 6th of January - Armenian Christmas - and "old" "new" "year" on the 13th. Don't ask me to explain that one, but there are various theories.
We do have an old pagan Armenian new year, however - Navasard, the 11th of August. This was the day, tradition has it, in 2492 BC, that the battle took place between our progenitor, Hayk, and Bel. We won, of course, and the Armenian nation was thus founded. There are some neo-pagan/heathen Armenian groups, and they try to get something going on that day at the Temple of Garni (ironically, reconstructed during atheist Soviet times), but there is no serious mass movement in that regard. I, for one, wouldn't mind if there were some official celebrations of Navasrd, especially as that time of year is quite pleasant. The 11th of August, 2008, will mark the beginning of the year 4500 according to the old Armenian calendar ("Boun Tomar Hayots", or something like that). A celebration then would be nice and touristy, too...
Something else happened with me today that was reminiscent of some old days, not long past. I went to an upscale supermarket, and there was no bread...! Well, it did finally arrive, plenty for all, without much of a line or a wait, but still, Yerevan never ceases to amaze sometimes...
Have a great 2007, everyone.
Hayastantsis are very much into the night of the 31st of the December, as well as the morning of the 1st of January, followed quickly by the 2nd, 3rd, 4th... There's plenty of eating and drinking, followed by more eating and drinking at someone else's place, with a third banquet within the same day not uncommon. Things don't quiet down until about the 14th or 15th, I'd say. See, we have the 6th of January - Armenian Christmas - and "old" "new" "year" on the 13th. Don't ask me to explain that one, but there are various theories.
We do have an old pagan Armenian new year, however - Navasard, the 11th of August. This was the day, tradition has it, in 2492 BC, that the battle took place between our progenitor, Hayk, and Bel. We won, of course, and the Armenian nation was thus founded. There are some neo-pagan/heathen Armenian groups, and they try to get something going on that day at the Temple of Garni (ironically, reconstructed during atheist Soviet times), but there is no serious mass movement in that regard. I, for one, wouldn't mind if there were some official celebrations of Navasrd, especially as that time of year is quite pleasant. The 11th of August, 2008, will mark the beginning of the year 4500 according to the old Armenian calendar ("Boun Tomar Hayots", or something like that). A celebration then would be nice and touristy, too...
Something else happened with me today that was reminiscent of some old days, not long past. I went to an upscale supermarket, and there was no bread...! Well, it did finally arrive, plenty for all, without much of a line or a wait, but still, Yerevan never ceases to amaze sometimes...
Have a great 2007, everyone.
posted by Nareg at 5:14 PM
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