Brief history

The last day of the year is December 31. Before the Gregorian calendar, people used different calendars to count time. The Gregorian calendar was made by the Vatican in 1582. It is based on the sun. It replaced the old Roman calendar, which was based on the moon. The Gregorian was changed from the Julian calendar. The Julian calendar was made by Caesar. He asked Sosigenes to help him.

On October 4, 1582, they changed the calendar. They took away some days. The next day after October 4 was October 15. People whose birthdays were between October 5 and 14 had problems.

Also, the new year started on January 1, not April 1. This was because of Janus. He was the god of beginnings. January 1 seemed like a good start.

How It’s Celebrated

New Year’s Eve is celebrated in various ways around the world. In some countries, people gather at midnight to watch the clock strike twelve and make wishes. In others, they go to parties and concerts. Some people prefer to spend the night at home with their loved ones.

The New Year's Eve

Interesting facts

• In Scotland, it is customary to burn logs on New Year's Eve to ensure that the fire burns for the entire night and brings good luck to the house.
• In Japan, people write their wishes on small pieces of paper and place them in envelopes. On New Year's Eve, they throw these envelopes into wells, believing that this will help their wishes come true.
• In Italy, on New Year's Eve, people throw old things out of the windows to get rid of the old and welcome the new.
• In Mexico, people eat 12 grapes at midnight to ensure good luck for the coming year.
• In some countries, such as China and Vietnam, New Year's Eve is celebrated on a different day than in the West. In China, it is celebrated on February 1st, and in Vietnam, it is celebrated on the lunar New Year, which falls on different dates every year.