Russian Blog
This is a blog by JustRussian about learning Russian. You will find useful tips for learning Russian, Russian courses available in London, information about Russian culture and links to websites with information for students of Russian.
Russian New Year Superstitions
By Vlada 31 December 10
More stories from a Russian teacher in London, or something that you might find interesting to know, but won’t be mentioned in your Russian lessons!
The New Year is the most beloved public holiday in Russia, and Russian people take New Year celebrations very seriously. We have developed a whole bunch of New Year traditions, customs and superstitions, passed down from generation to generation. On New Year’s Eve, even people who are not superstitious start making secret wishes when the clock is striking twelve, or wear a certain colour that is believed to bring you good luck in the New Year!
As I have mentioned in my blogs before, Russians are superstitious, and the old adage “You will spend the new year in the same way as you see it in” is universally recognised in Russia. So let me tell you about some other New Year superstitions that many Russians believe in. It will not contribute much to your progress in a Russian course, but will hopefully make you smile, and will add to your understanding of the Russian character. So here they are:
• The mother of all New Year superstitions is that you will spend your year the way you will see it in. As a result, on New Year’s Eve you must not have rows, weep or go to bed early.
• While the clock is striking twelve, make a wish and keep it secret. It will come true in the New Year. There is a more complicated version of the same ritual: before the clock strikes 12, prepare a piece of paper and a pencil. When the clock strikes, quickly write down your wish, burn the paper, put the ashes into a glass of champagne and drink it while the clock is chiming. Then the wish will definitely come true! (with a bit of a health and safety risk!)
• You should not give away money on New Year’s Eve, otherwise you will be parting with money all through the year.
• Do not lend or borrow money on New Year’s Eve if you don’t want to do it all through the year.
• You should wear something new on New Year’s Eve, and the year will be prosperous. You will be getting new things all year!
• Bread and salt on the festive table will bring you prosperity.
• Those who have empty purses and pockets on New Year’s Eve will spend the whole year penniless.
• On New Year’s Eve there should be abundance of food and drink on the table. This will ensure prosperity in the house in the New year.
• You should not take out rubbish from the house, otherwise you will have no domestic happiness.
• If you have a good time on the 1st day of the New Year, the whole year will be good. If you work hard on the first day of the year, your whole year will be full of hard work.
• You must not wash clothes on New Year’s Eve if you don’t want bad luck for your family.
• If your first visitor in the New Year is a man, it will bring you good luck. A woman is for bad luck.
• In the old days it was considered lucky if a cat slept in your bed on New Year’s Eve. For single girls it would mean getting married in the New Year. This superstition is even mentioned by Pushkin in Eugene Onegin.
• The last glass of drink at the New Year’s celebration will bring good luck to the person who drinks it.
• Sneezing on New Year’s Eve is for good luck and well being. This sounds like a consolation invented for people with bad colds!
In the old days, young girls used to do a bit of fortune telling on New Year’s Eve. For example, if the weather is very frosty outside, freeze some water in a spoon and look at the ice. Bubbly ice is for good health and longevity. A whole in the middle is for illness or death. A slightly more cheerful option is for a young girl to put the first piece of the festive meal under her pillow (hopefully, not Russian salad!), and before falling asleep to invite the future husband to taste her food. He would then come to her in her dream, to get her treat.
But whatever we do, by New Year’s Eve, we all try to finish things we are working on, sum up the old year and meet the new one with new hopes and plans. So may all your dreams come true in the New Year – but do take it easy on the first day of the year!
Happy Holidays!