Winter is the last of the four temperate seasons. It is the coldest season of the year, and its name comes from an old Germanic word that means “time of water.” This refers to the rain and snow that fall during winter. Occurring between Autumn and Spring, winter is a season of celebration and is enjoyed by millions around the world. Winter offers many opportunities for different cultures around the world to showcase their traditional events. Below are four exciting traditions from around the world.

Chinese New Year- China

The Chinese New Year, also called the Lunar New Year, is an annual 15-day festival in China and Chinese communities around the world. The festival begins with the new moon that occurs sometime between January 21 and February 20 according to Western calendars. Festivities last until the following full moon. The holiday is sometimes called the Lunar New Year because the dates of celebration follow the phases of the moon. Since the mid-1990s people in China have been given seven consecutive days off work during the Chinese New Year. This week of relaxation has been designated Spring Festival, a term that is sometimes used to refer to the Chinese New Year in general.

The origins of the Chinese New Year stem from ancient tales and legends. Chinese New Year started with a mythical beast called the Nian, a beast that lives under the sea or in the mountains during the annual Spring Festival. The Nian would eat villagers, especially children in the middle of the night. One year, all the villagers decided to hide from the beast. An older man appeared as the villagers went into hiding and said that he would stay the night and get revenge on the Nian. The old man put red papers up and set off firecrackers. The day after, the villagers came back to their town and saw that nothing had been destroyed. They assumed that the old man was a deity who came to save them. Soon after, the villagers figured that the Nian was afraid of the color red and loud noises. The tradition grew when New Year was approaching, and the villagers would wear red clothes, hang red lanterns and red spring scrolls on windows and doors, and use firecrackers and drums to frighten away the Nian. From then on, Nian never came to the village again. The Nian was eventually captured and relocated to a nearby mountain.

The Chinese New Year was traditionally a time to honor deities as well as ancestors. Within China, regional customs and traditions concerning the celebration of the New Year vary widely, and the evening preceding New Year’s Day is frequently regarded as an occasion for Chinese families to gather for the annual reunion dinner. Families around China will prepare different gourmet dishes for their families and guests. Among the foods, the most well-known are dumplings and Tangyuan, or sweet rice balls. Dumplings and spring rolls symbolize wealth, whereas sweet rice balls symbolize family togetherness. 

Celebrations are also held to usher out the old year and bring forth luck and prosperity in the new one. These celebrations often include firecrackers, fireworks, red clothes, and red decorations. Young people are given money in colorful red envelopes. This stems from another legend where a demon named Sui would pat a child on the head three times on New Year’s Eve, and the child would have a fever. To prevent this, parents wrap coins in red paper and place them next to their children’s pillows. When Sui comes, the flash of the coins scares him away. 

It is also a tradition for every family to thoroughly clean their house, to sweep away any ill fortune, and to make way for incoming good luck. Another custom is the decoration of windows and doors with red paper-cuts and couplets. Popular themes among these paper-cuts and couplets include good fortune or happiness, wealth, and longevity.

The last event held during the Chinese New Year is called the Lantern Festival, during which people hang glowing lanterns in temples or carry them during a nighttime parade. Since the dragon is a Chinese symbol of good fortune, a dragon dance highlights the festival celebrations in many areas. This procession involves a long, colorful dragon being carried through the streets by numerous dancers.

Krampus- Germany and Austria

Krampus is a horned, anthropomorphic figure in the Central and Eastern Alpine folklore of Europe. This tradition is popular in the Bavarian state of Germany, which is Germany’s southeast corner. During the Advent season, Krampus scares children who have misbehaved. Assisting Saint Nicholas, the pair visit children on the night of December 5th. Saint Nicholas rewards well-behaved children with gifts such as oranges, dried fruit, walnuts, and chocolate. Badly behaved children receive no presents and instead receive punishment from Krampus with long birch branches.

Although Krampus appears in many variations, most share the same common physical characteristics. Krampus is hairy, brown or black, and has the hooves and horns of a goat. He has a long, pointed tongue and fangs. Krampus carries chains, to symbolize the binding of the Devil by the Christian Church. The chains are occasionally accompanied by bells. Krampus also carries the Rute, a bundle of birch branches, with which he swats children. Sometimes the Rute may be replaced with a whip. Krampus can also appear with a sack or a basket strapped to his back. This is used to cart off evil children for drowning, eating, or transport to Hell. Some versions make mention of naughty children being put in the bag and taken away.

In traditional Alpine parades, Krampuslauf occurs. Krampuslauf translates to “Krampus run”. In these events, participating young men dress as Krampus and attempt to scare the audience with their antics. These events occur annually mostly in small Alpine towns but have gained popularity all over Bavaria in recent times. During the Krampuslauf, the young men chase the townsfolk down the main street with whips or birch sticks. They thrash chains and bells around as well to appear more intimidating and to add dramatic effect.

The origin of the Krampus is not fully known, but it is believed by many folklorists and anthropologists that Krampus originates from pre-Christian times. Some celebrations involving Krampus date back to the 6th or 7th century CE, though there are no written sources before the end of the 16th century. Krampus is a very popular traditional figure in Germany and is just one of many great examples of the German people’s amazing ability to come up with the most nightmare-fueling stories to keep their children from misbehaving.

Feast of Yule- Germanic and Scandinavian countries

Yule is a festival observed historically by Germanic populations and in modern times primarily by Neo-Pagans. It coincides with the winter solstice, December 21–22 in the Northern Hemisphere, where it is mainly celebrated. The pre-Christian festival originated in Scandinavia and was later subsumed, along with other pagan celebrations, into the Christian holiday of Christmas. Some modern celebrations of Yule attempt to re-create ancient traditions, while others have been adapted or reimagined to suit modern religious practices.

Yule is one of the oldest winter solstice festivals, with origins dating to the ancient Norse thousands of years ago. Its beginnings are complicated to trace, though there exist several theories about how and why the festival was celebrated. It is generally agreed that Yule celebrations began as a Norse festival called jol. As in most winter solstice festivals, themes of light, fire, and feasting are prominent. Some historians think that sacrifices were an important part of the observance, either to the gods or other supernatural beings. In the harsh winter climate of northern Europe, most cattle were slaughtered because they could not be fed during the winter. Meat, therefore, was plentiful for a midwinter feast or to leave out as an offering. Some historians believe that the original festival was a sort of Norse Day of the Dead, with the god Odin being a major player. One of Odin’s many duties was acting as a god of the dead.

Yule became a name for Christmas about the 9th century, and in many languages, yule and its cognates are still used to describe that holiday—Jul in Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish; Joulud in Estonian; Joulu in Finnish; and Jol in Icelandic. The Christmas holiday is still referred to as Yule in the Scots language. According to the saga of King Haakon Haraldsson of Norway, who ruled in the 10th century, the Norse Yule celebration and Christian Christmas celebration were merged during his reign. Haakon became Christian after a visit to England, and after his return to Norway, he put into law that Yule should be celebrated at the same time as Christmas.

From then on, Christmas continued to overtake Yule, although some remnants of the original celebration remain. One of these is the Yule log, still popular today though usually altered from its original form. The original Yule log was a large log that burned throughout the entire multiday festival, for as many as 12 days. The popular modern take on the Yule log is a cake decorated to look like a log. Another remaining tradition is that of the Yule goat. In towns and cities throughout Sweden during the Christmas season, large goats are constructed out of straw. It is thought that the tradition originated as a tribute to the god Thor, who rode in a chariot pulled by goats. In Sweden, the goat came to be associated with the Christmas celebration, and the Yule goat is now considered to be a companion or counterpart to Santa Claus.

In modern times the Yule celebration is observed by many Neo-Pagans, both as individuals and as groups. Some mark the holiday with reenactments of the battle between the Holly King (representing darkness) and the Oak King (representing light) of Celtic legend. Some re-create traditions of the ancient Norse by burning yule logs or holding feasts. Some simply stay awake until dawn to observe the cycles of nature.

The Bear Dance- Romania

One interesting tradition that takes place during winter is the Bear Dance. This tradition takes place in the historic Western Moldovia region of Romania. Dating back to pre-Christian times, this tradition has been celebrated by many but seen by few. Due to the mountains that run down the center of Romania, this region is separated from the rest of the country. The Bear Dance takes advantage of the rich forests that Romania has, which offer plentiful wildlife. These forests are home to bears, which villagers in the region frequently hunt. The townsfolk then use the bear’s hides to make costumes for the Bear Dance. 

For Geto–Dacians, ancestors of present-day Romanians, the bear was a sacred animal with healing powers. The life cycle of the bear was responsible for regulating seasons, entering hibernation before winter, and waking up in spring. The Dance of the Bear symbolizes the death and rebirth of time, and it is performed between Christmas and New Year’s Eve. This ancient ritual brings together the whole community, who gather to watch the performance. During the Dance of the Bear, men and women dress in real bear skins and dance to the rhythm of pan flutes and drums, to ward off evil spirits and ring in the new year. Traditionally the procession would visit every household in the village. While this traditional approach is still observed in many villages, it usually takes the form of a parade that culminates in a major performance in the center within cities and larger towns.

The Bear Dance includes 6-24 bears, up to three singing bear tamers, several women, and musicians. The Bear costumes are made with a complete bear pelt, teeth, and all. They are also decorated with two huge red tassels pinned to each shoulder. The bear tamers wear red military-style costumes, with studded belts and high leather boots. The musicians wear traditional folk attire. The parade is announced by several carolers, usually young girls or boys, called “irozi”. The irozi blow whistles to a rhythm set by the head bear tamer who is chosen for his leadership skills. The bears dance to the beat set by the pan flutes and the drums.

During the ceremony, several acts are played out. In one of them, the bear tamers hit the bears with whips made of horse tails, while the characters dressed as women do so with sticks. In the central act of the Bear Dance ritual, the bears die and then are resurrected, to symbolize renewal, the end of the new year, and the beginning of the new one. Upon resurrecting, in the final act, one of the bears is lifted on a stick by two of the women and he or she continues to dance, lifting a round, braided bread, named “Colac”.

The tradition of the Bear Dance, preserved since ancient times, is still alive and is gaining in popularity among young Romanians. However, the tradition is still confined to the mountainous and hilly regions of Moldova and Bucovina where it is most practiced.

Sources:

https://theculturetrip.com/europe/romania/articles/romanias-bear-dancers-where-villagers-don-animal-hides-in-ritual/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krampus

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Chinese-New-Year

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Yule-festival