||| January Trivia || Australia Day || Martin Luther King Day ||| ||| New Years Day || January Flowers, Signs & Stones ||| January begins (astrologically) with the sun in the sign of Capricorn and ends in the sign of Aquarius. Astronomically speaking, the sun begins in the constellation of Sagittarius and ends in the constellation of Capricornus. January is named after the old Roman God Janus, of doors and gateways. He was a two-faced God with one face looking toward the past and the other toward the future. The original Roman calendar consisted of 10 months (304 days). The Romans originally considered winter a monthless period. Circa 700 BCE Romulus' successor, King Numa Pompilius, added the months of January and February allowing the calendar to equal a standard lunar year (364 days). A Roman superstition against even numbers resulted in the addition of one day thus equalling 365 days. Although March was originally the first month, January usurped that position because that was when consuls were usually chosen. The first day of the month is known as New Year's Day. Historical names for January include its original Roman designation, Ianuarius, the Saxon term Wulf-monath (meaning wolf month) and Charlemagne's designation Wintarmanoth (winter / cold month). In old Japanese calendar, the month is called Mutsuki (??). The second day of the month is known as Hatsuyume (??) and the 7th day as Nanakusa (??). In Finnish, the month is called tammikuu, meaning "month of the oak".
The Coming of age day in Japan is the second Monday of January, for those becoming 20 years old in the new calendar year. It is a national holiday. The day has existed since 1948, but fell on January 15 until 1999, when it was moved by the Japanese government in an attempt to lift the economy by making more holidays consecutive. In the pagan wheel of the year, January ends at or near to Imbolc in the northern hemisphere and Lughnasadh in the southern hemisphere.
Here is January in some European languages. Dutch: Januari From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
The word January comes from the Roman name for this month; it was named after the god Janus, who had two faces. This deity ruled over beginnings and endings, the past and the future. Since January is reckoned as the first month of a new year, this connection the the god Janus is appropriate. It is an excellent time to work on putting aside the old and outdated in one's personal life and making plans for new and better conditions. The Chinese use this concept in celebrating their New Year, which occurs on the first day of the New Moon when the Sun is in Aquarius. They considered this celebration a time for settling debts, honoring ancestors, and having family reunions. They carry paper images of dragons through the streets and set off fireworks to chase away evil entities and misfortune. Even the people ot Tibet, whose year began about the end of January, had a celebration for expelling the Old Year. They made a dough image for the demons to inhabit, then worshiped then for seven days. At the end of that period, they took the image outside the village to a crossroad and abandoned it. The idea behind this seems to have been that the negative beings, who have accumulated during the Old Year, received recognition for their existence, but also received a firm statement, by the action of leaving their image outside the village, that they were not welcome to hang around.
Holidays for the Month of January, 2007: 1st - New Year's Day 1st - Kwanzaa - Dec 26th thru Jan 1st 5th - Twelfth Night 6th - Epiphany 7th - Orthodox Christmas 16th - Martin Luther King Jr Day- always the third Monday in January
February 2, 2007 Tu B'Shvat 26th - Australia Day Page Annies Home Page/Australia Day
In the northern half of the world, January is the coldest month. Nature is quiet and the birds travel less. The woodchucks and bears sleep day and night, in hibernation. The plants are resting, waiting for the warmer temperatures of the Spring. In the southern half of the world, January is the warmest month. Animals are very active, and plants are growing.
Ring out the old, ring in the new, Ring, happy bells, across the snow; The year is going, let him go; Ring out the false, ring in the true. Lord Tennyson Alfred
  Copyright © 2008 Pat MacMicken. All Rights Reserved. |
