Early New Year’s Holiday History, Traditions, And Celebrations

Everyone is curious to know how the New Year celebrations started and what was it like back then. So here we explain the “Early New Year’s Holiday History, Traditions, And Celebrations.

As can be seen the new year is one of the biggest celebrations of the year every year after Christmas and a huge amount is invested in New Year’s Eve and the parties that are celebrated after the count down to the new year ends. But New Year celebrations in different cultures of the world vary from place to place, although the main focus of party and enjoyment remains the same.

Below you will find some of the facts and traditions of the early New Year’s holiday history and celebrations.

Early New Year’s Holiday History

Most of the New Year’s festivals start to begin on 31st December, the last day of the Gregorian calendar also known as New Year’s Eve, and continue into the early hours of January which is New Year’s Day.

According to the early New Year’s holiday history, some 4,000 years ago, in ancient Babylon, the first new moon following the vernal equinox in late March signaled the new year and it is believed that the practice of making the New Year’s resolutions started with the Babylonians.

Other ancient civilizations calculated the start of the new year in accordance with the astronomical or astrological events that were common as we see the cycle of day and night.

New Year’s Holiday Traditions, And Celebrations

Early New Year’s holiday history tells us that the New Year didn’t begin on January 1st until Julius Caesar introduced the Julian calendar. January was named after Janus the Roman God of beginnings and Romans celebrated by offering sacrifices to the gods by exchanging gifts and throwing some serious parties. In recent years we’ve replaced sacrifices with some traditions of our own while fireworks are common throughout the modern world.

New Year’s Day Holiday Traditions

New Year’s Day is considered as the last holiday of the year which is associated with champagne and good food by the Americans, they believe these traditions bring luck and success in the upcoming year. In addition to delicious food, many Americans like to play card and board games with friends and family on New Year’s Eve. Popular ones include charades, UNO, catchphrase, Trivial Pursuit, and Cards Against Humanity.

New Year’s Eve

The main purpose of New Year’s Eve is to celebrate the New Year, at 11:59 PM people start counting down the seconds until 12:00 AM which marks the start of January 1st. Once midnight hits it’s customary to drink traditional drinks at midnight.

New Year’s Kiss

In the United States, it is the tradition of the New Year’s kiss, legend says that the first person you encounter in the New Year will set the tone for the rest of the year, and kissing them will bring them luck, people who are celebrating with their loved ones also kiss on the cheek of their friends and family members at midnight this shows a gesture of love and affection between them.

People vow and make resolutions about being a better person in the upcoming year by learning from the mistakes of the past year and improving one’s life.

New Year’s Holiday Start And History

New Year’s holiday is considered one the oldest and last holidays still celebrated although the timings and nature of the festivals celebrated on this holiday have changed over time.

In reference to the early New Year’s holiday history, ancient Babylon celebrated this day in the form of an eleven-day festival on the first day of spring. The sun and moon cycles were seen as a sign by different cultures to forecast the first day of the spring until Julian’s calendar implemented by Julius Caesar declared that 1st January would be the day to celebrate the New Year.

A grand feast honoring Mother Mary was organized by Roman Catholics to celebrate the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. However, in the twentieth century, most of the celebrations have changed and have separated from their religious association although many people still follow the old traditions.

Common beliefs on New Year’s Day

As the first day of the year sets a precedent for the upcoming days of the year, many people arrange circle-shaped foods in their feasts as they believe the circles symbolize cycles.

A common superstition specific to New Year’s Day is that if a tall, dark-haired stranger is the first one to walk through your door and is the first visitor then he will be considered a Lucky Bird or a sign of success for the household.

People also believe that if you are removing something you must bring back anything and replace it with any other item in the house. Many believe in clearing all their debts and unpaid bills or else it would bring them bad luck in the following year.

People open all of their doors and windows at midnight to let the old year escape through it. Babies who are born on New Year’s Day are also considered a symbol of luck and are believed to bring lots of prosperity and wealth with them.