New Year's Eve
During this yearly holiday, people gather around the world to count down the final moments of the year, culminating in a 12 a.m. celebration on January 1 (New Year’s Day).
Names: New Year's Eve, New Year’s
During this yearly holiday, people gather around the world to count down the final moments of the year, culminating in a 12 a.m. celebration on January 1 (New Year’s Day).
Origin
The new year has been celebrated since ancient times, but our current new year (January 1) was celebrated for the first time in 45 B.C. when Julius Caesar implemented the Julian calendar. After the fall of the Roman empire, celebration of December 31/January 1 as the mark of the new year waned.
In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII created the Gregorian calendar. This calendar, which refined the Julian calendar, reestablished January 1 as New Year's Day. However, this change was adopted only by Catholic countries. England, for example, as a Protestant nation, stayed on the Julian calendar until 1752. Saudi Arabia only adopted the Gregorian calendar in 2016. Some countries, like Ethiopia, never adopted it at all.
Many countries now celebrate December 31st and January 1 as the New Year. Some countries, like China, celebrate both the traditional Chinese new year and the Gregorian calendar date.
Traditions
Throughout the world, New Year's Eve is celebrated with fireworks, parties and large public gatherings where people countdown to midnight. Since 1907, New Yorkers have gathered in Times Square for the famed "ball drop." Most festivities continue into New Year's Day.
What to say
"Happy New Year" or "Happy New Year's" is a proper greeting for both December 31st and January 1. December 31st is New Year's Eve. January 1 is New Year's Day.