A new year’s resolution is a commitment that an individual makes to a project or habit, often a lifestyle change that is interpreted as advantageous.  A new year gives people a second chance to make improvements in their lives that can be beneficial to them not only to them but to others as well.  Most goals people make every year are things such as health related goals including weight loss, kicking the smoking habit, and to exercise more.  Other examples of resolutions are increasing savings to get out of debt, develop a new skill or talent, and to spend more time with family and friends.  Ashley Wyers said that her new year’s resolution was to “Stop spending money on things that I don’t need!”

People make resolutions such as these every year, but does anyone know what exactly the origin behind this tradition is?

The New Year’s resolution dates all the way back to the time of the early Babylonians.  In their time, the most common resolution that they would make was to return borrowed farm equipment, a drastic difference from resolutions made in today’s world.  The Babylonians first began this tradition in 153 B.C., when Janus, a mythical king of early Rome was placed at the head of the calendar.  With two faces, Janus could look back on past events and forward to the future.  Janus became the ancient symbol for resolutions and many Romans looked for forgiveness from their enemies and also exchanged gifts before the beginning of each New Year.  The Romans named the first month after Janus, the god of beginnings and guardian of doors and entrances.  Since he was depicted as having two faces, at midnight, the Romans imagined Janus looking back at the old year and forward to the new.  The Romans also began the tradition of exchanging gifts on New Year’s Eve, by giving one another branches from sacred trees for good fortune.  In the middle ages, Christians changed New Year’s Day to December 25, the birth of Jesus.  Then, they changed it to March 25, a holiday called Annunciation.  In the 16th century, Pope Gregory XIII revised the Julian calendar, and the celebration of the New Year was returned to January 1.  This information was used from the website http://goalsguy.com/Events/n_facts.html.

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