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Question 19. Why do they take the month of January
for the beginning of the new year?
Solution. Anciently March was reckoned the first, as
is plain by many other marks and especially by this, that
the fifth month from March was called Quintilis, and the
sixth Sextilis, and so forward to the last. December was
so called, being reckoned the tenth from March; hence it
came to pass that some are of opinion and do affirm that
the Romans formerly did not complete the year with twelve
months, but with ten only, allotting to some of the months
above thirty days. But others give us an account that, as
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December is the tenth from March, January is the eleventh
and February the twelfth; in which month they use purifications, and perform funeral rites for the deceased upon the
finishing of the year; but this order of the months being
changed, they now make January the first, because on the
first day of this month (which day they call the Kalends of
January) the first consuls were constituted, the kings being
deposed. But some speak with a greater probability, which
say that Romulus, being a warlike and martial man and reputing himself the son of Mars, set March in the front of
all the months, and named it from Mars; but Numa again,
being a peaceable prince and ambitious to bring off the citizens from warlike achievements, set them upon husbandry,
gave the pre-eminence to January, and brought Janus into
a great reputation, as he was more addicted to civil government and husbandry than to warlike affairs. Now consider whether Numa hath not pitched upon a beginning of
the year most suitable to our natural disposition. For there
is nothing at all in the whole circumvolution of things naturally first or last, but by law or custom some appoint one
beginning of time, some another; but they do best who
take this beginning from after the winter solstice, when the
sun, ceasing to make any further progress, returns and converts his course again to us. For there is then a kind of
tropic in nature itself, which verily increaseth the time of
light to us and shortens the time of darkness, and makes
the Lord and Ruler of the. whole current of nature to
approach nearer to us.
Plutarch. Plutarch's Morals. Translated from the Greek by several hands. Corrected and revised by. William W. Goodwin, PH. D. Boston. Little, Brown, and Company. Cambridge. Press Of John Wilson and son. 1874. 2.
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