Tjerk12
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Maybe you consider this post as a bit strange for this forum, but I want to tell you about the New Year traditions in the region where I live. Traditions are so different all over the world that it may interest you.
I live in Twente, that’s the eastern part of The Netherlands, near the German border. In origin it was a desolate area, sparsely populated and they gathered their food by hunting and farming.
December was a very important period, because of the Solstice. The shortening of the day came to an end and a new period of sowing and reaping was on the horizon. Therefore it was important to propitiate the good spirits and to drive out evil spirits. They sacrificed to the good spirits, mainly food and alcoholic drinks (that people also ate and drank themselves, they were smart) and they used also rituals. The Christmas tree is such a ritual. They wanted to please the tree spirits. They used a pine, because it is green also in the wintertime as a humble hint that the other trees may be green again. Often they knocked on the trunk of the tree to show the spirit that they wanted to please him. This is the origin of the expression “knock on wood”.
To drive out evil spirits needed joint effort. The people lived rather lonely, so they used means to unite people. In Twente they use the “Midwinterhoorn”. It is a kind of Didgeridoo, a long wooden horn, which was kept in the well so that the seams of the wood went pretty close. In the dark it was blown. A mysterious low and plaintive sound crossed the fields. And it was answered by the neighbors, so the evil spirits knew that there were a lot of opponents.
In addition they made noise to drive out the evil spirits. In Twente they use still milk barrels filled with carbid for this tradition. The explosions are as loud as bombs. Sometimes they use ten or twenty of them in a row. Tough time for our window glass!
The Solstice was mentioned here as “Joelfeest”. Thirteen nights, starting with the night from 24 to 25 December.
It is said that the West Roman Empire has chosen Christmas at the beginning of this period instead of January 6th, what is Christmas Eve for the East Roman Empire (the date of Solemnitas Epiphaniae Domini; Epiphany). For the same reason they have chosen for the Christmas tree as a Christian symbol. So it was easier for the Northern people to become a Christian. They didn’t have to give up all their old traditions (it could have been an action of Pope Leo III, but this is a guess).
A typical symbol for Twente is to serve “kniepertjes” for New Year. These are thin crispy waffles, served with powdered sugar, but sometimes rolled and filled with cream.
So, that’s it friends, now you know a bit more about the traditions of the place where I live.
I live in Twente, that’s the eastern part of The Netherlands, near the German border. In origin it was a desolate area, sparsely populated and they gathered their food by hunting and farming.
December was a very important period, because of the Solstice. The shortening of the day came to an end and a new period of sowing and reaping was on the horizon. Therefore it was important to propitiate the good spirits and to drive out evil spirits. They sacrificed to the good spirits, mainly food and alcoholic drinks (that people also ate and drank themselves, they were smart) and they used also rituals. The Christmas tree is such a ritual. They wanted to please the tree spirits. They used a pine, because it is green also in the wintertime as a humble hint that the other trees may be green again. Often they knocked on the trunk of the tree to show the spirit that they wanted to please him. This is the origin of the expression “knock on wood”.
To drive out evil spirits needed joint effort. The people lived rather lonely, so they used means to unite people. In Twente they use the “Midwinterhoorn”. It is a kind of Didgeridoo, a long wooden horn, which was kept in the well so that the seams of the wood went pretty close. In the dark it was blown. A mysterious low and plaintive sound crossed the fields. And it was answered by the neighbors, so the evil spirits knew that there were a lot of opponents.
In addition they made noise to drive out the evil spirits. In Twente they use still milk barrels filled with carbid for this tradition. The explosions are as loud as bombs. Sometimes they use ten or twenty of them in a row. Tough time for our window glass!
The Solstice was mentioned here as “Joelfeest”. Thirteen nights, starting with the night from 24 to 25 December.
It is said that the West Roman Empire has chosen Christmas at the beginning of this period instead of January 6th, what is Christmas Eve for the East Roman Empire (the date of Solemnitas Epiphaniae Domini; Epiphany). For the same reason they have chosen for the Christmas tree as a Christian symbol. So it was easier for the Northern people to become a Christian. They didn’t have to give up all their old traditions (it could have been an action of Pope Leo III, but this is a guess).
A typical symbol for Twente is to serve “kniepertjes” for New Year. These are thin crispy waffles, served with powdered sugar, but sometimes rolled and filled with cream.
So, that’s it friends, now you know a bit more about the traditions of the place where I live.
