For many people around the world New Year’s Eve is celebrated on December 31 and New Year’s Day on January 1, which is the first month in the Roman Julian calendar (January), the predecessor of today’s Gregorian calendar. January honors Janus, the god of beginnings.
Makahiki
In ancient Hawaii, Makahiki marked the beginning of a new year and was determined by observing the night sky. When the star cluster Na hiku o Makaliʻi* appears on the eastern horizon at sunset, it signals hoʻoilo—the wet season, a three- to four-month period between October and March accompanied by strong winds and rain.
* The star cluster Makaliʻi is named by other astronomers as Pleiades, Subaru, Seven Sisters, or M45 in the constellation Taurus.
Star cluster in the Taurus constellation known as Pleiades, Seven Sisters, Messier 45, and Makaliʻi via Depositphotos_46495507
Makahiki was essentially a harvest festival honoring the god Lono (Lono-i-ka-makahiki), who is associated with agriculture, rainfall, and peace. With harvesting completed, work and warfare were kapu (forbidden). This was a time for payment of taxes (crops and other products), putting aside differences, and rejuvenation marked by feasting, hula (dancing), moʻolelo (storytelling), and playing games.
The game of Kōnane
Kōnane is an ancient Hawaiian game of strategy. Often compared to the game of checkers, kōnane is very easy to learn but difficult to master. Some of Hawaii’s most prominent ali’i, including Kamehameha the Great, were talented kōnane players.
The game was originally played on a papamū (game board) made of rock with shallow holes chipped into it forming a playing grid. Into these holes were placed alternating black and white ʻiliʻili (pebbles) used as playing pieces. There was no set size for the grid. The grid might be 6×6 or 8×10 or some other size. Different game boards would require changes in strategy.
Purchase kōnane games or learn more about kōnane from Uncle John Kaohelaulii at Kōnane: Hawaiian checkers strategy board game.
How is New Year’s celebrated?
December 31st New Year’s Eve (NYE) celebrations include parties, drinking champagne, counting down to midnight, kissing someone at midnight, and fireworks. Many people also use the start of a New Year for reflection and to make resolutions or goals for coming year. Popular goals include those to change bad habits or improve one or more aspects of life such as lose weight, change jobs, or get organized.
The renowned NYE “ball drop” New York City is attended by a crowd of over one million people. At 11:59 PM, a mirrored ball descends from the One Times Square building reaching the base at midnight. As the ball descends, the crowd chants the countdown: “10…9…8…7…6…5…4…3…2…1” ending with a jubilant “HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!”. The festivities can be watched across the country on television, which occurs around dinner time in Hawai’i, so it a great way to introduce keiki to the New Year’s tradition.
Auld Lang Syne is often played at the stroke of midnight on NYE. It is a Scottish poem written by Robert Burns in 1788 that has been set to music. The title roughly translates to “times gone by.” The poem reminds us to keep old friendships in mind.
New Year’s Day, January 1st is celebrated in different ways. For some, it is a great day for watching college football bowl games with friends, family, and celebrating with lots of food! For others, it is a day to get outdoors and enjoy nature.
Father Time and Baby New Year are two common images of the New Year. The bearded Father Time is apparently based on the Greek God Chronos. He’s carrying a harvesting scythe and a lantern—but the stories surrounding the meaning are murky at best. Baby New Year is usually adorned with a sash bearing the date of the New Year. Nobody knows when this kid started showing up.
Two places in the central Pacific Ocean on each side of the International Dateline are the first and last to greet the New Year:
- First to ring in the new year is Kiribati (pronounced “KIRR-i-bass”), an independent island nation in the Central Pacific. The state comprises 32 atolls spreading about 2,000 miles and straddling the equator and the 180th meridian (aka International Dateline), making Kiribati the only country located simultaneously in all four hemispheres (Northern, Southern, Western, Eastern). Kiribati’s Gilbert Islands (approximately 2400 miles SW of Hawaiʻi) are in the time zone UTC+14.
- The last place to bring in the new year is Baker Island, approximately 600-700 miles E of Kiribati. (If you are keeping track, it is because the International Dateline does not follow a straight line.) However, only birds mark the occasion. The uninhabited atoll is a U.S. National Wildlife refuge.
New Year’s traditions in modern Hawaiʻi
New Year’s traditions in Hawaiʻi include fireworks on NYE, sunrise hikes on New Year’s Day, house parties (on either day) feature plenty of food and music accompanied perhaps by impromptu hula and storytelling, eating noodles (which symbolize longevity), and eating mochi (a Japanese tradition but with uniquely Hawaiian flavors such as lilikoi and peanut butter).
Hau’oli Makahiki Hou means “Happy New Year” in Hawaiian ʻolelo (language).
(Pronounced How-oh-lee Mah-kah-hee-key Hoe)
Other New Year’s celebrations
Many cultures around the world celebrate the start of a New Year at other times, based on other calendars.
- Lunar New Year begins at the first New Moon in the Chinese luni-solar calendar and marks the beginning of spring. The date shifts each year, occurring in late January or early February. Known as Spring Festival in China, Lunar New Year is celebrated elsewhere, including Tết in Vietnam and Seollal in Korea.
- Rosh Hashanah (“Jewish New Year”) is based on the Jewish luni-solar calendar, which puts the 2-day observance sometime in September or October. In Jewish tradition, a new day does not begin at midnight. Rather, each day begins at sundown and ends at sunrise. Rosh Hashanah is the first of the High Holy Days, followed a week later by the equally solemn Yom Kippur (“Day of Atonement”).
- The Islamic New Year occurs on the first day of Muharram, the first month in the lunar Hijri calendar, used by a majority of Muslims today. The Islamic calendar is not based on astronomical seasons, so the Islamic year consistently falls about 11 days short of the solar year. Therefore, the date of New Year shifts every year. Like the Jewish observance, the Islamic New Year is somber and a sacred time for prayer and reflection.
Event calendar of free and affordable things to do
Listed below are all types of free and affordable things to do in the next 30 days across the Hawaiʻi Pae ʻĀina.
Featured Events are listed first each day, highlighted by a photo. These are unique, popular, or annual events that we or our advertisers don’t want you to overlook.
You might also like: Hawaiʻi on the Cheap – affordable living and things to do (hawaiionthecheap.com)
