Happy Hogmanay!

Hogmanay began in the Scottish Highlands as a celebration of the New Year. Because of the Protestant Reformation in Scotland, it was illegal to celebrate Christmas (it was seen as a Papist - aka Catholic - holiday) until the 1950s. In fact, Christmas was a regular work day for most people. In order to get around this law, Scots began to add in their Christmas celebrations to their New Year's Eve celebration, exchanging gifts for Hogmanay.

One of the traditions at Hogmanay is known as "First Footing". The first person to cross the threshold after midnight (or more traditionally, after sunset on New Year's Eve) should be a "tall, dark stranger" bearing gifts of bread, meat and drink, bringing prosperity to the home for the coming year. It could be a little difficult finding someone to perform the First Footing - it had to be someone with no red or blond in their hair (in Scotland?!?!) - but this was for a good historical reason: if the stranger was dark-haired, it wasn't likely that they were a Viking raider, was it?

Bonfires were also a part of the Hogmanay tradition, a continuation of the bonfires that once celebrated the Winter Solstice, driving away the darkness and assisting in the rebirth of the sun as its path once again turned toward the northern hemisphere.

You won't find a traditional Hogmanay celebration in the streets of Glasgow or Edinburough. Hogmanay celebrations in the larger cities more closely resemble the parties held in New York's Times Square.

Beannacht leat!