沙米·西瓦蘇布拉馬尼亞姆

For the most part， the world runs on the Gregorian calendar， with 365 days， or 12 months in a year， and leap years to boot. The year ends on December 31 and begins on January 1， New Year’s Day.

But there are several cultures that also celebrate New Year’s Day later in the year. These cultures follow lunar， solar， and other hybrid calendars to tell time.

Chinese New Year

Also called the Spring Festival or Lunar New Year， Chinese New Year signifies the beginning of the spring harvest season. Red envelopes filled with money are presented to family and friends， and typical sweet treats are enjoyed by all. Colourful dragons and lantern displays can be seen around the world on this day.

Seollal （South Korean New Year）

Several south-east Asian cultures celebrate New Year’s Day on the Lunar New Year. But the way each subculture commemorates the day differs. In South Korea， New Year’s marks a three-day holiday where families give thanks to a bountiful year past. Many dress up in colourful attire called hanbok， whilst others perform an ancient tea offering ritual called charye.

Nyepi （Balinese New Year）

Balinese New Year marks the first day of the lunar-based Saka Calendar， which is followed by Balinese and Javanese cultures. Unlike other cultures that welcome the new year with fanfare， Nyepi is a day of self-reflection and rest. Most of the island is closed on this day， with the exception of hospital emergency wards. New Year’s Eve， however， is celebrated with large fire rituals throughout the city.

Nowruz （Iranian New Year）

Also celebrating the commencement of Spring， Nowruz is celebrated by both Zoroastrian and Baha’i communities. The date itself coincides with the Northward Equinox， which falls in mid-March each year. The day typically celebrated with trumpets to herald the new year， coloured eggs and pots of sprouting grains to signify growth， a hearty bowl of Ash-e Reshteh noodle soup1， and most famously， with a good spring cleaning.

Ugadi （Telugu and Kannada New Year）

The southern Indian states of Karnataka， Telangana， and Andhra Pradesh celebrate Ugadhi according to their lunar-based calendar. The day is celebrated with sweets， fireworks， and new clothes. Most notable snack is the Ugadi pachadi， a mango sweet and sour chutney consumed either as a side dish or on its own. Gudi Padwa （in Maharashtra） and Cheti Chand （in Sindhi-speaking Indian communities） New Year’s festivities also fall on this day.

Aluth Avurudda （Sinhalese New Year）

Though Aluth Avurudda is a Sinhalese festival， it coincides with Tamil New Years and is celebrated by most people in Sri Lanka. Unlike other cultures， whose New Year’s Day welcomes harvest， Aluth Avurudda marks the end of the harvest season. It also coincides with one of two instances when the sun is directly above Sri Lanka. Locals celebrate the day by opening their front doors to encourage visits by family， friends， and even strangers. The preparation of small oil cakes called kavum， and several tropical plantain dishes are popular at this time， too.

Puthandu （Tamil New Year）

Puthandu celebrated annually on April 14， follows the solar calendar. The day is celebrated with new clothes， music， sweets， and rice flour kolams （street art） at the front of homes. Puthandu is celebrated predominantly in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in Sri Lanka. However other Tamil Diasporas in Malaysia and Singapore also celebrate the holiday.

Diwali （Marwari and Gujarati New Year）

Diwali， the Festival of Lights， is celebrated by Hindu， Sikhs， and Jains the world over. However for Marwari and Gujarati communities in North India， Diwali marks the start of their new year. These communities， who made up the prominent mercantile and entrepreneurial classes of Ancient India， celebrate the day by giving thanks to Lakshmi， the goddess of wealth and prosperity.

Rosh Hashanah （Jewish New Year）

Rosh Hashanah is a two-day holiday commemorating the end of the seven days of Creation from the Book of Genesis. The festival includes rituals that are both performed with fanfare and with quiet introspection. According to Jewish religion， in the days following the creation of the universe God was yet to determine the fate of mankind. Hence， through quiet observance Jewish people believe to allow God to decide their fate for the following year. Honey and apple are common additives in food around this time， with sweetness signifying positivity and all things good.

Ra?s al-Sanah al-Hijrīyah （Islamic New Year）

Islamic New Year marks the first day of Muharram， the first month of the Muslim Calendar. It celebrates emigration of Prophet Mohammed from Mecca to Medina， known as Hijra2. What makes this New Year’s Day most unique is that according to the Muslim Calendar each day begins at sunset， with the New Year itself ushered by the first sighting of the moon. The holiday is celebrated by Muslims the world over， though not with the same excitability associated with Eid.

Aboriginal Murador New Year

The Western Australian Aboriginal tribe of Murador celebrated New Year’s Day on what coincides with October 30 in the Gregorian calendar. An important day in the tribe’s calendar， it marked a time for friendship， reconciliation， and giving thanks to the year gone by. The Murador people are now an extinct tribe， though their culture lives on in artifacts and text.

世界上的大部分國(guó)家和地區(qū)采用公歷，一年有365天， 12個(gè)月，循環(huán)往復(fù)。每年結(jié)束于12月31日，開始于1月1日，即新年。

然而也有一些文化在一年中的其他時(shí)間慶祝新年。這些文化使用農(nóng)歷、太陽(yáng)歷或其他混合歷法來(lái)計(jì)時(shí)。

中國(guó)新年

中國(guó)新年，又稱春節(jié)或農(nóng)歷新年，意味著春天收獲季節(jié)的開始。人們向親朋好友送塞上錢的紅包，大家一起享用傳統(tǒng)甜食。這一天，在世界各地都可以看到多姿多彩的舞龍表演和燈展。

韓國(guó)春節(jié)（韓國(guó)新年）

一些東南亞文化也慶祝農(nóng)歷新年，只是采取了各自不同的節(jié)慶形式。在韓國(guó)，新年慶?；顒?dòng)持續(xù)三天，這期間，人們感恩過去一年的慷慨賜予。很多人會(huì)穿上五彩繽紛的韓服，有些人則用一種名為茶藝的傳統(tǒng)飲茶儀式來(lái)慶祝新年。

靜居節(jié)（巴厘新年）

巴厘文化和爪哇文化使用以陰歷為基礎(chǔ)的薩卡歷，歷法中的第一天即為巴厘新年。不像其他文化那樣用精彩紛呈的活動(dòng)迎接新的一年，靜居節(jié)是自我反省和靜修的日子。除了醫(yī)院急診外，島上的大多數(shù)機(jī)構(gòu)都會(huì)關(guān)閉。不過在新年前夜，全市會(huì)舉行盛大的火禮，以示慶祝。

諾魯茲節(jié)（伊朗新年）

瑣羅亞斯德教徒和巴哈伊教徒都用諾魯茲節(jié)來(lái)慶祝春天的開始。這個(gè)節(jié)日與北半球春分日重合，通常在每年3月中旬。在這一天，人們吹奏喇叭預(yù)告新年來(lái)臨，用彩蛋和一罐罐發(fā)芽的谷物代表萬(wàn)物生長(zhǎng)，并食用豐盛的阿西萊西湯面，當(dāng)然還有最著名的春季大掃除。

烏賈迪節(jié)（泰盧固人和卡納達(dá)人新年）

印度南部的卡納塔克邦、特蘭加納邦和安得拉邦根據(jù)他們特有的陰歷慶祝烏賈迪節(jié)。人們吃甜品，放煙花，穿新衣，以此慶祝這一天的到來(lái)。用芒果做的烏賈迪帕卡迪是最有名的節(jié)日甜點(diǎn);人們還會(huì)食用酸辣醬，既可以配主菜，也可以單獨(dú)吃。古迪帕得瓦節(jié)（流行于馬哈拉施特拉邦）和切蒂昌德節(jié)（流行于使用信德語(yǔ)的印度群體）也在這一天開展他們的新年慶?；顒?dòng)。

阿魯特阿布魯達(dá)節(jié)（僧伽羅人新年）

雖然阿魯特阿布魯達(dá)是僧伽羅節(jié)日，但它與泰米爾人新年重合，大多數(shù)斯里蘭卡人在這一天慶祝新年。不像其他文化那樣用新年慶祝收獲季節(jié)的開始，阿魯特阿布魯達(dá)代表的是收獲季節(jié)的結(jié)束。一年當(dāng)中太陽(yáng)有兩天直射斯里蘭卡，這個(gè)節(jié)日與其中一天重合。當(dāng)?shù)厝嗽谶@一天打開正門，歡迎親戚朋友甚至是陌生人的來(lái)訪。他們會(huì)制作一種叫作卡布姆的小油糕來(lái)慶祝這個(gè)節(jié)日，一些熱帶大蕉類菜肴也很流行。

普特漢度節(jié)（泰米爾人新年）

陽(yáng)歷每年4月14日是普特漢度節(jié)。人們穿新衣，聽音樂，吃甜點(diǎn)，并在家門口用米粉畫古拉姆（一種街頭藝術(shù)）圖案，以示慶祝。普特漢度節(jié)盛行于南印度泰米爾納德邦以及斯里蘭卡。散居在馬來(lái)西亞和新加坡的泰米爾人也會(huì)慶祝這個(gè)節(jié)日。

排燈節(jié)（馬爾瓦爾人和古吉拉特人新年）

世界各地的印度教徒、錫克教徒和耆那教徒都慶祝排燈節(jié)，又稱萬(wàn)燈節(jié)。然而，對(duì)于北印度的馬爾瓦爾人和古吉拉特人來(lái)說，排燈節(jié)標(biāo)志著新年的開始。這些群體主要來(lái)自古印度時(shí)期的商人和企業(yè)家階層，他們?cè)谶@一天感恩財(cái)富女神拉克希米的保佑。

吹角節(jié)（猶太新年）

吹角節(jié)歷時(shí)兩天，用以慶?！妒ソ?jīng)·創(chuàng)世記》所記述的創(chuàng)世七日的結(jié)束。這一節(jié)日的慶祝形式既有熱鬧的活動(dòng)，也包含靜思反省。根據(jù)猶太教義，上帝創(chuàng)造宇宙后，一時(shí)尚未決定人類的命運(yùn)。因此，猶太人認(rèn)為，安靜地慶?？梢宰屔系酆煤脹Q定他們來(lái)年的命運(yùn)。常見的節(jié)日食品有蜂蜜和蘋果，它們的甜蜜滋味代表著一切積極和美好的事物。

希吉來(lái)的拉斯撒那節(jié)（伊斯蘭新年）

伊斯蘭新年是穆斯林歷法首月穆哈拉姆月的第一天，紀(jì)念先知穆罕默德從麥加遷移到麥地那，稱為“希吉來(lái)”。這一節(jié)日最獨(dú)特之處在于，穆斯林歷法以太陽(yáng)落山作為一日之始，新年則始于當(dāng)日的第一縷月光。全世界的穆斯林都會(huì)慶祝這一節(jié)日，但其熱鬧程度不及宰牲節(jié)。

穆拉朵土著新年

西澳大利亞土著部落穆拉朵人在公歷每年10月30日慶祝新年。這一日對(duì)該部落十分重要，是傳遞友誼、和解及向過去一年感恩的時(shí)刻。穆拉朵部落現(xiàn)已滅絕，不過他們的文化還能在一些藝術(shù)品和文字記載中存續(xù)。