Die Ancoram

Die Ancoram is the day that commemorates the founding of the Ancoran Empire and marks the start of the new year. It falls one fortnight after the winter solstice, and though the Empire itself has long since fallen, the the kingdoms that succeeded it have maintained the tradition, though some extend the celebrations several days before or after the main event.

Execution

Depending on who you ask, the main event of Die Ancoram is either the service held in honour of Narundi, the founder of the Empire and Goddess of Love and Intrigue, or the lavish feasts thrown in the evening. A number of other events are held during the event. Footraces and horseraces are widely popular, as are a variety of displays of skill or physical prowess, and many realms hold culturally specific events. In Kinilan, for example, wine tasting events are held in most cities.
Large services to Narundi are not particularly common in the current day, as both intrigue and love (be it familial, fraternal, or romantic) are deeply personal matters for many. The service usually focuses primarily on tolerance and understanding, exhorting attendees to celebrate the differences in their community - a message that was a major concern in the early days of the Empire when the various peoples uniting under the shelter of the first Anchors looked upon each other with suspicion, but has long since become a moral standard throughout the region. These days, it is not uncommon for people to find these services a bit stuffy and stale, especially among the youngsters, but a sizable majority grow to appreciate it as they grow older.
The feasts held on Die Ancoram are put together by entire neighbourhoods and communities, with each person expected to contribute one dish to the feast, regardless of age. Parents typically assist their children with preparing their favourite desserts, or make dishes on their behalf if they are too young to take part at all. Travellers are sometimes given an exception, though if they are wealthy enough they are often asked to buy a cask or two of wine, ale, cordial, or the like. Everyone is welcome to eat and drink to their hearts content (though parents generally impose restrictions on how much their children may drink), and leftovers are often magically preserved and left out for anyone in the community to enjoy until they have been depleted. Communities often come alive with gossip in the weeks following the feast, as it is an unofficial tradition for people to eat with those who they have a romantic interest in, in hopes that Narund will bless their union. This has no formally recognized significance, allowing even those who are married to enjoy time spent with someone other than their spouse. In some communities, this formal disconnect extends until noon of the following day, making it the one night of the year that one may spend with someone other than their spouse. Most attendees stay up until midnight to welcome the official start of the new year.
The various events and competitions of the day are held between the services in the morning and the feast that starts after nightfall, and include demonstrations of an enormous range of skills, depending on the type of community. Logging communities, for example, often include a variety of woodcutting events where the burliest loggers compete to see who can make a variety of cuts the fastest, while mining communities often hold mineral identification competitions, seeing who can correctly identify a set of samples taken from throughout the mine the fastest. Races are popular everywhere, as are baking competitions, the judging of which is often set to coincide with the midday meal. Combat competitions are generally not held on Die Ancoram itself: they are not really in the spirit of the holiday, and nobody wants to miss the feast due to a sparring accident or muddle through it while recovering from too many rounds of fisticuffs. Instead, those interested in taking part in such a competition as part of the holiday typically hold it a few days before or after - close enough to be associated with the holiday, but separate enough that it isn't seen as interfering. Even so, these competitions are often less intense than similar ones held at other times of the year - anyone involved in a combat competition that is held as part of Die Ancoram celebrations that results in serious injury won't see many friendly faces in the community for a month or two afterwards.