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 Once
this wisdom is passed on, Father Time leaves, never to return. As
the year progresses, Baby New Year ages, and by the end of the year,
has found he is now Father Time. At the dawn of the next year, he
passes his sage wisdom and advice on to the new Baby New Year just
before leaving for good himself. This cycle repeats every year.
That story may be familiar to you as it is an allegory for the
passage of time, and how we as humans can learn from our past and
the past of those who came before us. Have you ever wondered where
this story comes from? As often is the case with widely known tales
such as this one, many people may be familiar with the story, but
not its origins.
Beginning with Father Time, he has often been portrayed as an old
man with a large white beard and a scythe. This image of Father Time
is often thought to have been inspired by the Greek god Cronus and
the Roman god Saturn. Cronus is the god of time, so it’s easy to see
how he may have inspired the creation of Father Time. Cronus has a
large white beard, not unlike the one Father Time is shown to have.
Saturn is also the Roman god of time, but he is also the god of
agriculture. As such, he is oftentimes depicted wielding a scythe,
much like Father Time’s. While Saturn’s scythe is a farming tool,
the one Father Time wields has more somber meaning behind it. The
scythe represents the cycle of birth, growth, and death. Father
Time’s scythe represents the flow of time that cannot be stopped and
that will eventually cut down all living things. Together, the gods
Cronus and Saturn likely inspired the visual depiction of Father
Time.
Having been inspired by ancient Greek and Roman gods
thousands of years ago, it is difficult to narrow down an exact
moment when Father Time was first introduced into the public
consciousness. This is also partly due to the fact that the
depiction of Father Time as we know it today has evolved over time.
Father Time has appeared in several works of art, some dating back
to as far as the 16th century. The more modern version of the figure
has appeared in countless books, movies, and television shows.
Father Time has even appeared in several comics and graphic novels.
Father Time also made an appearance in the 1976 Rankin and Bass film
Ruldoph’s Shiny New Year, touting his famous scythe and large beard.
Baby New Year also made an appearance in this film wearing his top
hat.
The history of Baby New Year is a bit more well-documented.
According to Country Living, Baby New Year has been around since
approximately 600 BC. Like Father Time, Baby New Year was inspired
by a Greek god, this one being Dionysus, the god of wine and
fertility. Each year, when the Greeks would celebrate Dionysus, they
would also parade around a baby in a basket. This baby would
represent the birth of Dionysus, which coincided with the new year.
These cultural practices eventually led to the creation of the idea
of Baby New Year. This figure, like Father Time, continued to evolve
over time. One of the most popular modern interpretations of Baby
New Year comes from illustrator J. C. Leyendecker and a series of
New Year covers he created for the Saturday Evening Post between
1907 and 1943. These covers show Baby New Year interacting with
things from that period in time. A few covers depict Baby New Year
touting a top hat, something that has become largely associated with
the modern interpretation of the character. The 1911 cover
specifically shows Baby New Year interacting with Father Time. Click
here to view these covers for yourself.
When did the figures Father Time and Baby New Year begin being
depicted together? Both have a common origin in Greek mythology, but
many may not realize that Cronus is the grandfather of Dionysus.
Cronus was the father of Zues, who fathered Dionysus.
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This could have lent some inspiration to the idea
that Baby New Year becomes Father Time over the twelve month
calendar year. The earliest depiction of these two figures together
seems to be the aforementioned Saturday Evening Post cover published
at the end of 1910. While there are a few instances of Father Time
and Baby New Year being depicted together before this, Leyendecker
seems to be the first to pair up the more modern interpretations of
these figures.
Regardless of whenever the two figures were first
depicted together, one thing is true: the passing of wisdom on to
the next generation is incredibly important. Just as Father Time
passes knowledge and wisdom on to Baby New Year, it is the
responsibility of older generations to pass on their knowledge and
wisdom to the next. Human life is one that is filled with countless
experiences, and all those unique experiences cause people to change
over time, becoming even wiser with each passing year. The more life
experience one has, the more wisdom they acquire. Everyone acquires
different types of wisdom depending on what they’ve experienced in
life. When one shares their stories and experiences with someone
else, it can help guide a younger, more inexperienced person away
from mistakes that have already been made by those that have come
before them. While it is the responsibility of older generations to
share this knowledge, it is just as much the responsibility of
younger generations to recognize this wisdom and knowledge. They
must have enough humility to accept that there are others who know
more than them and understand that they can learn from these people.
When these two things are true, we are able to ensure the
generations that come after us are equipped with the knowledge and
wisdom to become even wiser than those that came before.
[Matt Boutcher]
Resources
https://www.cnn.com/2015/12/29/living/
baby-new-year-origin-feat/index.html
https://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/
2014/12/new-years-babies/
https://www.grammarphobia.com/blog/
2006/10/a-brief-history-of-father-time.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=19&v=qibbqzjRTjs&embeds
_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google
.com%2Fsearch%3Fsca_esv%3D581345929%26rlz%3D1C1UEAD_enUS1074US1074%26q%3
Drudolph%2527s%2Bshiny%2Bnew%2Byear%2
Bfather%2Btime%26tbm%3Dvid%26sour&source_ve_path=MjM4NTE&
feature=emb_title
https://www.countryliving.com/life/
entertainment/a34824937/baby-new-year-history/
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