New Year's Day

1 January
Tomorrow is Another Year - please add your thoughts here

The first day of the year in the Gregorian (Western) calendar

Happy New Year

New Year's Day is the first day of the year, 1 January, and is a public holiday in many countries. On New Year's Day many people make resolutions, such as saying that they will stop smoking or lose weight this year.

The day before New Year's Day, 31 December, is New Year's Eve. Midnight on New Year's Eve is when the New Year "comes in". People gather in urban centres or friends' homes in the last few hours and minutes of New Year's Eve to celebrate the New Year coming in. In the last few seconds of the year they "count down" to midnight together. As the clock strikes midnight there may be firework displays and the singing of the very popular Auld Lang Syne. New Year's Eve parties often include dancing and listening to rock bands.

During the New Year period, any time from late-December to mid-January, people say "Happy New Year" to family, friends and colleagues, perhaps directly or by sending an email or New Year's card.

Example sentences:
eve (noun): the day before, and specifically the evening before
resolution (noun): from the verb "resolve" meaning "to decide" (to do)
auld lang syne (phrase): long ago; the distant past

Quick Quiz

New Year's Day is 1 January. New Year's Eve is

a. 31 December

b. 1 January

c. 2 January
a) 31 December b) 1 January c) 2 January

Contributor: Josef Essberger