January came....Llegó Enero!

January means the beginning of the new year and the time to make New Year resolutions such as giving up smoking or

practising sports.Its gemstone is the Garnet and its flower the Carnation.
January was established as the first month of the year by the Roman Calendar, and it was named after the god Janus who has two faces which allow him to look backwards into the old year and forwards into the new one at the same time.The Anglo-Saxons called it Wolf monath because wolves came into the villages in winter looking for food.MORE ▼

Customs and Traditions:
New Year's Day is the first day of the year and it is also a holiday.People welcome in the New Year on the night before, New Year's Eve. All over Britain there are parties, fireworks, singing and dancing, to ring out the old year and ring in the new. As the clock - Big Ben - strikes midnight, people link arms and sing a song called Auld Lang Syne. It reminds them of old and new friends.The Door Custom:In the old days, the New Year started with a custom called 'first footing', which was suppose to bring good luck to people for the coming year. As soon as midnight had passed and January 1st had started, people used to wait behind their doors for a dark haired person to arrive. The visitor carried a piece of coal (to make sure that the house would always be warm),some bread (to make sure everyone in the house would have enough food to eat),some money (so that they would have enough money)and some greenery to make sure that they had a long life. The visitor would then take a pan of dust or ashes out of the house with him, thus signifying the departure of the old year. St Hilary's feast day on 13th January has gained the reputation of being the coldest day of the year due to past cold events starting on or around this date.
Festivals:
On the twelfth day after Christmas, Christians celebrate the visit of the Magi or wise men to the baby Jesus (Epiphany or Twelfth Day, also known as Old Christmas Day and Twelfthtide)Plough Monday: the day on which labourers had to return to the fields.
Anniversaries:For example, the BBC began broadcasting its first programmes in 1927 and made its first world broadcast in 1930;Traffic policemen were introduced in Great Britain in 1931. The London Underground began operating in 1863;in 1807 London's Pall Mall became the first street in the world to be lit by gas lights; the Victoria Cross originated in 1856 and the medals were made from the metals of guns captured in the Crimea.

Enero es el primer mes del año y los anglosajones lo llamaron el mes de los lobos porque éstos se acercaban a los poblados en busca de comida. Su piedra preciosa es el granate y su flor el clavel. Este primer dia del año es festivo también para los ingleses que celebran su entrada la víspera al son de las campanadas del Big Ben; antiguamente se celebraba algo así como la fiesta de la puerta en la que se esperaba a un caballero moreno que les llevaba una serie de regalos para que les diesen suerte durante el año. para los ingleses el trece de enero suele ser el día más frio y se celebra la fiesta de St. Hilary, aunque este año aquí no podemos quejarnos del invierno nevado que estamos "padeciendo" como bienvenida.Días importantes son la Epifanía (nuestra fiesta de Reyes)o el día del arado en el que los labradores vuelven al trabajo. Entre los aniversarios caben destacar la emisión de programas de la BBC, la apertura del metro o la incorporación de la policía de tráfico en la vida inglesa.