What does ‘Auld Lang Syne’ mean anyway?

PETER BUFFA

Hey kids, what time is it? If you know what Postum is, you probably

said “It’s Howdy Doody time!” But that’s not what we’re talking

about.

We’re talking about New Year’s, midnight, Times Square, champagne,

kiss-kiss, that time. And if it’s time for one year to go and the

next to arrive, it’s time for the annual Peter “How-the-

Heck-Does-He-Know-That?” Buffa predictions.

But this year, there is a problem, a snag, a wrinkle, a fly in the

ointment, a monkey wrench in the works. Last week, as you may recall,

we looked at loopy Christmas traditions around the world. The number

of responses was overwhelming, and one of the three wondered why we

do the things we do on that other great December ritual -- New Year’s

Eve.

Because my grasp of useless information is nothing short of

encyclopedic (a Greek word for “one-eyed pediatrician”) we now

examine the meaningless, the mundane and the downright weird stuff we

do when the clock strikes 12 at the last instant of the old year and

the first of the new.

Because of that, there will be very little time for predictions

this year. Wait. I am getting a vague image about some sort of

astronomical event that completely rearranges everything below Santa

Barbara, but not to worry. That’s not until May. April maybe. I don’t

know, somewhere in there.

Let’s start with the song -- the official New Year’s Eve song to

be exact -- “Auld Lang Syne.” What is that all about? It’s sung in

every English-speaking country in the world when the clock strikes

12, and nobody has a clue what it means. Actually, Robert Burns does,

but he rarely turns up at New Year’s Eve parties anymore due to the

fact that he is, in a word, dead.

Robert Burns was the 18th Century Scottish poet who wrote those

now strange-sounding words in the late 1700’s, updating a popular

Scottish drinking song that had been kicking around for at least 100

years before that.

Most of us have figured out by now that “auld” means “old,” but

who was “lang” and what exactly is a “syne?” In the Scottish dialect,

“auld lang syne” literally means “old long ago,” but it’s an idiom

for “the good old days.”

Alrighty then. Now this thing starts to make some sense. It may be

“Should auld acquaintance be forgot and days of auld lang syne” to

Robbie Burns, but it’s “Should old friends and the good old days be

forgotten” to us. At least you’ll know what you’re singing this year.

The idea of whooping it up at the start of a new year is actually

the oldest holiday known to man, or woman. The first traces of

drinking, carrying on and generally being silly for New Year’s pop up

around 2,000 B.C., which was long ago, in Babylon, which was far

away, thus the term “long ago and far away.”

There are even references to New Year’s resolutions in ancient

Babylon, the most common being to return borrowed farm equipment.

Strange, no? Why was everyone borrowing farm equipment? Couldn’t they

get their own? No wonder they disappeared.

If you think the Babylonians were loopy, try the Pasadenians. The

Tournament of Roses Parade started in 1886, and the first Rose Bowl

game was played in 1902 -- Michigan 49, Stanford 0. Yikes. But the

next Rose Bowl game didn’t take place until 1916, 14 years later.

You know what they did after the Rose Parade between 1903 and

1915? Wacky animal races. Honest. Ostrich races, chariot races and

one year, a race between a camel and an elephant. The elephant won.

See? Now you feel bad you made fun of the Babylonians.

In the old days people didn’t know New Year’s Day from their beast

of burden because every civilization, and we use the term loosely,

used a different calendar. Usually, people considered spring to be

the start of the new year. In 46 B.C., Julius Caesar climbed to the

top of the Coliseum and said in a really loud voice, “Listen up, all

of youse. Until further notice, the first month of the year is called

“January,” and the year starts on the first day of that month. Thank

you for your attention. That’s all for now.”

Using a baby as the symbol of a new year started in Greece, around

600 B.C. The rites of spring centered on Dionysus, the god of wine,

and always included a baby who was paraded around in a basket as a

symbol of the annual rebirth.

In the 14th century, the Germans put the image of a pennant with

the incoming year on it in the baby’s hands. Until the Renaissance,

the church said no way, no how to New Year’s celebrations because of

the long association with pagan rituals. People never paid much

attention to that, and by the 17th Century, major ragers for the new

year were everywhere, in every way.

A number of cultures believe that the first visitor to your house

on New Year’s Day can bring very good, or very bad luck, for the rest

of the year. There is no agreement on what kind of visitor brings

which kind of luck, so just don’t open the door until Friday until I

can sort this out.

Finally, “lucky food” is a big deal on New Year’s Day, most of it

having to do with champagne wishes and caviar dreams. The Dutch

believe eating doughnuts on New Year’s brings good fortune, and in

the South, it’s black-eyed peas and ham or hog jowls if you want to

hit the lottery. Cabbage is also a big deal in some places, being a

symbol of cold, hard cash.

So that’s it -- New Year’s around the world. Happy New Year, Buon

Capo d’Anno, Feliz Ano Nuevo, Gluckliches Neues Jahr, Akemashite

Omedetou Gozaimasu, whatever. Just be safe, return the rake, and

don’t open the door. I gotta go.

* PETER BUFFA is a former Costa Mesa mayor. His column runs

Sundays. He may be reached by e-mail at [email protected].