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Holidays are an ancient and important facet of human culture. Every society that we know about has had holidays of some sort because they serve to give meaning and structure to the passage of time. The great age of so many of our holidays, however, means that they have acquired many customs, rituals, and symbols that we simply don't understand anymore. So what do some of our favorite holidays and holiday symbols actually mean, and why should we even care?

Summary

Title: The Book of the Year: A Brief History of Our Seasonal Holidays
Author: Anthony F. Aveni
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0195150244

Pro:
•  Very engagingly written discussion of holidays
•  Covers a large number of important dates used to mark the passage of seasons

Con:
•  None

Description:
•  Exploration of the history and meaning of holidays and holiday celebrations
•  Describes the origins and development of many ancient and unusual holiday customs
•  Discusses why holidays are important and the social functions they serve

 

Book Review

Addressing the nature and importance of holidays is a principle aim of Anthony F. Aveni's recent work The Book of the Year: A Brief History of Our Seasonal Holidays. Aveni, a professor of astronomy and anthropology at Colgate University, seeks to trace the origins and development of some of the key seasonal holidays which mark the passage of the year: New Year's, Easter, Valentine's Day, May Day, Summer Solstice, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and more.

This is done by looking closely at some of the most important symbols, stories, and rituals associated with these days. Aveni explains:

• "Like loose threads in a fabric, once tugged at, our quaint customs separate into strands that allow us to peek through the calendar we fabricate to deeper layers of meaning. Our evolving calendar becomes a kaleidoscope of the modern collective soul."

An analysis of the origins and history of our holidays is thus very much an analysis of who we are culturally. Such tugging is perhaps of even greater importance today because our holidays now are so much more metaphorical and so much less "real" than they were in the past.

Earlier in history, our holidays were a part of the direct and immediate reality of religious beliefs, the intersection between the natural and supernatural orders, of our social reality, and more. Today, however, we have lost contact with the sources of so many customs and rituals that they do not and cannot hold quite the same significance for us.

Is that such a bad thing? For those who have no interest in holidays and holiday celebrations, it probably isn't. For many others, however, holidays serve important social functions. They don't simply mark the passage of the seasons - they also serve to strengthen familial bonds and community ties by creating shared experiences that people remember for years and look forward to repeating. Holidays transform an ordinary day into a time of solidarity, friendship, and human feeling.

If such experiences are to be preserved, then holidays themselves must be preserved. This doesn't mean holding on to musty old customs that are no longer relevant, however - fortunately, our holidays have a remarkable ability to evolve to fit changing needs and circumstances.

What we need to do to preserve our connection to our holidays by understanding what their associated customs and symbols have meant in the past and what they can mean to us today.

Aveni looks at such things as the use of eggs during Easter (and the curious fact that a rabbit is supposed to bring them, along with candy, to children), resolutions on New Year's Eve, chocolate on Valentine's Day, why we wait for a Groundhog on Groundhog's Day, the importance of the harvest celebrated on Thanksgiving, and so much more. Over the course of his descriptions we learn more about Western culture, Western history, and the Western way of understanding the passage of time.

This is not a definitive history of Western holidays and holiday traditions. It is, however, a very entertaining and informative look at those topics which can be enjoyed by just about anyone with even a passing interest in holidays, customs, and cultural history. Although the book covers a lot of territory, it never feels dull or dragging and always has another interesting tidbit of history to reveal.