Appalachian History

Ring out the old
Ring in the new
Ring out the false
Ring in the true.

New calendar today; get out your Farmer's Almanac and check the heavens for a preview of the year ahead. Once in a blue moon there is one on New Year's Eve. Revelers ringing in 2010 last night were treated to a so-called blue moon. The next ones will not appear until Aug. 2, 2010 and Aug. 31 2010.

As to where the phrase 'Once in a blue moon' comes from, one explanation connects it with the word "belewe" from the Old English, meaning, "to betray." Perhaps, then, the moon was "belewe" because it betrayed the usual perception of one full moon per month. "Yf they saye the mone is belewe, We must beleve that it is true," says William Barlow, the Bishop of Chichester [England], in the Treatyse of the Buryall of the Masse, 1528. There are twelve full moons in most years, which means that three full moons occur during most seasons. One season in ten contains four full moons; hence the third moon that occurs in such a season would be the 'belewe,' or 'blue,' moon.

Meantime, the full moon this month is actually called the 'Old Moon,''Moon After Yule,' or 'Wolf Moon.' The Cherokee called it 'The Cold Moon--Unolvtani.' They usually hold a Cold Moon Dance in the community, marking the passing or ending of one cycle of seasons and welcoming the beginning of the new cycle. The Shawnee called it the 'Severe Moon--Ha'kwi kiishthwa.'For these Native Americans, Pepoonwi rules this half of the year. This grandfather sits in the north at ice mountain. He carries the cold weather, but flees before the mild warm winds of Shawaki.

sources: www.starsandscopes.net/glossary.php?class=MoonName
www.farmersalmanac.com/what-is-a-blue-moon
www.shawnee-traditions.com/ShawneeMoons.html

Ringing out the old, ringing in the new. Everyone's doing it tonight. One New Year tradition in Appalachia is the New Year baby. The custom of using a baby to signify the New Year originated in ancient Greece, the baby symbolizing in this case not birth, but re-birth. The Germans added the twist of a baby with a New Year's banner, bringing the idea with them to early America.

The traditional New Year's meal throughout the region generally centers around black-eyed peas. They might be accompanied by rice and stewed tomatoes, or ham and cabbage, or whipped into a Hoppin' John (or Hop'n John) stew. But wherever they turn up, they symbolize luck, friends, and money in the coming year.

Some folks in Appalachia open every door and window at the stroke of midnight to let out any residual bad luck. They make a loud ruckus banging on pots and pans, setting off fireworks and taking part in other noisy activities to chase it far away.

The Scots-Irish community often observes 'first-footing' on Hogmanay (Scottish word for the last day of the year) -- the first person to set foot over a neighbor's threshold on the New Year brings that household luck for the year. First footer greeters hope for a fair-haired man and that he will be carrying a lump of coal for the fire, a loaf for the table and whiskey for the man or men of the house.

source: www.wilsonsalmanac.com/book/jan1a.html


New+Years+Eve Hoppin+John appalachian+food Hogmanay Scots-Irish appalachia appalachian+culture appalachian+mountains+history

Lang may your lum reek.
May the fire on your hearth burn on.
---Scottish New Year toast

Dropping a possum at the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve is most definitely NOT a traditional Appalachian custom. Please note that the folks in Brasstown, NC, self-proclaimed "Opossum Capital of the World," have only been dropping---well, ok, gently lowering in a plexiglas pyramid---possums in front of Clay's Corner for the last decade and a half or so.

Some of the more historically rooted New Year traditions found in Appalachia include the New Year baby. This tradition, a symbol of rebirth, originated in ancient Greece and made its way into the region via German immigrants, who added the twist of baby with a New Year's banner.

Spending the New Years day with some combination of black-eyed peas and rice---They symbolize luck, friends, and money---is customary in many parts of Appalachia.

Does your family give gifts on New Year's Eve? The Celtic-Teutonic Druids used to present branches of their holy mistletoe plant as an auspicious New Year gift. And among the English people gloves, a clove-stuck orange, and flavored wine were popular New Year gifts.

These days the World Anvil Shooting Society holds its annual anvil shooting competition over at Laurel, Mississippi's Wood Expo every April, but informal backyard anvil shootings as an Appalachian holiday season event can be traced back to the Civil War.

Some folks in Appalachia open every door and window at the stroke of midnight to let out any residual bad luck. They make a loud ruckus banging on pots and pans, setting off fireworks and taking part in other noisy activities to chase it far away.

The Scots-Irish community often observes 'first-footing' on Hogmanay (Scottish word for the last day of the year) -- the first person to set foot over a neighbor's threshold on the New Year brings that household luck for the year. First footer greeters hope for a fair-haired man and that he will be carrying a lump of coal for the fire, a loaf for the table and whiskey for the man or men of the house.


source: www.wilsonsalmanac.com/book/jan1a.html



appalachia appalachia+history appalachian+history New+Years+Eve