Season: Winter (northern hemisphere)
Zodiac Signs: Capricorn & Aquarius
Birthstone: Garnet
Flowers of the Month: Clove Pink Carnation, Snowdrop
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Moon Names: Old Moon, Storm Moon, Moon After Yule
Events, Holidays, Observances, Celebrations, etc. in January:
1 New Year's Day
1 Japanese Imperial New Year Celebrations
1 New Year's Court Receptions begin in Denmark
1 Feast of the Circumcision of Jesus (Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Lutheran & pre-1960 Roman Catholic)
1 Feast of Saint Basil (Eastern Orthodox, Greek Orthodox "Saint Basil's Day")
1 Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God (Roman Catholic post-1974)
1 Eighth Day of Christmas
1 Global Family Day
1 Independence Day in Haiti (1804)
1 Independence Day in Cameroon
1 Independence Day in the Czech Republic (1993)
1 Independence Day in Sudan (1956)
2 Handsel Monday in Scotland & northern England
2 Feast of Saint Basil (Roman Catholic & Anglican)
2 Tournament of Roses Parade 2012 (Pasadena, CA, USA)
2 Ninth Day of Christmas
2 Ancestry Day in Haiti
3 Feast/Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus (Roman Catholic)
3 Tenth Day of Christmas
4 Feast of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton (Roman Catholic & Episcopal)
4 Eleventh Day of Christmas
4 Independence Day in Burma/Myanmar (1948)
5 Twelfth Night / Twelfth Day of Christmas
6 Epiphany / Dia de los Reyes / Three Kings Day / Little Christmas / Three Wise Men Day / Carnival season begins (Western Christianity: Roman Catholic, Anglican, some Lutheran & Methodist, etc.; Eastern Orthodox following the Gregorian Calendar: Greece)
6 Pascua Militar in Spain
6 Orthodox Christmas Eve (some Eastern Orthodox national churches using the Julian calendar- Russia, Georgia, Ukraine, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Greek Patriarchate of Jerusalem, and some Oriental Orthodox churches)
6 Armenian Apostolic Christmas Day (those using the Gregorian Calendar)
7 Orthodox Christmas Day (some Eastern Orthodox national churches using the Julian calendar- Russia, Georgia, Ukraine, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Greek Patriarchate of Jerusalem, and some Oriental Orthodox churches)
8 Feast of the Baptism of the Lord [or Feast of the Baptism of Christ] (Roman Catholic, Episcopal & some Anglican)
8 Plough Sunday in Scotland & northern England
9 Coming of Age Day in Japan
11 People's Choice Awards Ceremony (USA)
11 Independence Day in Morocco
11 National Human Trafficking Awareness Day (USA)
12 VH1 Critics' Choice Movie Awards Ceremony (USA)
13 Russian New Year's Eve
13 Baptism of Jesus (Roman Catholic traditional/1955-1969)
14 Russian New Year's Day
14-15 Makar Sankranti /Sankranti/ Pongal etc. in India & South Asia (Nepal, Thailand, Laos, Myanmar & Cambodia)
15 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Birthday (USA)
15 Golden Globe Awards Ceremony (USA)
15 Feast of Saint Basil (Coptic Orthodox, Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo)
16 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (USA)
17 Feast of Saint Anthony the Abbot [aka "the Great/of Egypt/of the Desert"/etc.] (Roman Catholic, Coptic Catholic)
17 Blessing of the Animals (Hispanic Roman Catholic Christian)
18 Armenian Apostolic Christmas Eve (those using the Julian Calendar)
19 Armenian Apostolic Christmas Day & Epiphany/Theophany (those using the Julian Calendar)
19 London Film Critics Circle Awards Ceremony
19 Eastern Orthodox Epiphany / Theophany (those following the Julian Calendar; Russia, Georgia, Macedonia, etc)
20 Oriental Orthodox Epiphany / Timkat
20 St. Agnes Eve (Roman Catholic)
21 Feast of Saint Agnes (Roman Catholic)
21 Producers Guild Awards Ceremony (USA)
21 Feast of Our Lady of Altagracia (Roman Catholic/Dominican Republic)
22 Feast of Saint Vincent [of Saragossa] (Roman Catholic, Anglican)
22 Ukrainian Day / Unification of Ukraine (1919)
23 Chinese New Year / Lunar New Year in China (& Hong Kong, Indonesia, Tibet, Macau, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, and Chinatowns across the world) / Vietnamese New Year
23 Feast of Blessed Mother Marianne Cope [aka Marianne of Moloka'i] (Roman Catholic)
24 Feast of Saint Francis de Sales (Roman Catholic, new/post-1969)
25 Burns Night (Scotland, Northern Ireland)
25 Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul the Apostle (Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Anglican, Lutheran)
26 Australia Day in Australia
26 Republic Day in India (1950)
27 International Holocaust Remembrance Day
28 Directors Guild Awards Ceremony (USA)
28 Feast of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Roman Catholic, new/post-1969)
29 Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards Ceremony (USA)
29 Feast of Saint Francis de Sales (Roman Catholic, traditional/pre-1969 & Episcopal)
30 Feast of Saint Anthony the Great [aka "the Abbot/of Egypt/of the Desert"/etc.] (Eastern Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox
31 Feast of Saint John Bosco (Roman Catholic)
31 Independence Day in Nauru (1968)
January is National Thank You Month, March of Dimes Birth Defects Prevention Month, National Glaucoma Awareness Month, Eye Care Month, Human Resource Month, Thyroid Disease Awareness Month, Volunteer Blood Donor Month, Tuberous Sclerosis Awareness Month, National Radon Action Month, Adopt a Rescued Bird Month, Cervical Health Month, National Bath Safety Month, National Braille Literacy Month, National Mentoring Month, and National Physiotherapy Month.
In January, it is popular to make New Year's Resolutions, and try to stick to them. A lot of times these involve diet and fitness, or organizing your life/home/wardrobe/etc. We put away all the Christmas decorations in January, and it's a good time to give the home a good cleaning as well. Sometimes Christmas & New Years festivities stretch into this month, or some choose to send their annual greeting cards as a New Year message. For some parts of the world (including mine), January is usually a month filled with cold, snowy, icy weather. Schools and some work places end up having to cancel, and all children love snow days! We have fun snowmobiling, skiing, snowshoeing, ice skating, ice fishing, sledding, building snowmen + snow forts, and having snowball fights. We use those fireplaces and enjoy lots of warm comfort foods & beverages. Some of us enjoy getting away from the dark winter weather and head South, to a beach house, or maybe on a cruise vacation. It's back to school for students & teachers after the holiday break, but sometimes they get a little time off again (well, some older students that is) during mid-year exams in January.
Some of us look forward to the return of new episodes of our favorite television programs, or shopping for those after-Christmas sales. In certain areas (like New Orleans, Louisiana or other parts of the world that celebrate Carnival) Epiphany kicks off the Carnival season of parades + parties. In the sports world, whether it may be high school, college, or right up to the 'Pros', we enjoy many basketball games, as well as a few more football games (Pro.), high school wrestling matches, and hockey games.
This is also the time of year for 'awards season', with January hosting many awards ceremonies for film, television, and music.
I wish everyone a happy + prosperous New Year 2012!
You're very welcome!
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