New Year’s Eve/ Day

New Year's Day ♥ Also called simply New Year's or New Year, is observed on January 1♥ the first day of the year on the modern Gregorian calendar as well as the Julian calendar.

 In  pre-Christian  Rome  under  the Julian calendar,  he day was dedicated to Janus, god of gateways and beginnings, for whom January is also named. As  a  date  in  the  Gregorian calendar  of Christendom,  New  Year's  Day liturgically marked  the Feast of  the Naming and  Circumcision  of  Jesus,  which  is  still observed  as  such  in  the Anglican Church and Lutheran Church.

In present day, with most countries now using the Gregorian calendar as their de facto calendar, New Year's Day is probably the most celebrated public holiday, often observed with fireworks at the stroke of midnight as the new year starts in each time zone. Other global New Years' Day traditions include making New Year's resolutions and calling one's friends and family.

HistoryThe first time the new year was celebrated on January 1 was in Rome in 153 BC (In fact, the month of January did not even exist until around 700 BC, when the second king of Rome, Numa Pontilius, added the months of January and February.)

The new year was moved from March to January because that was the beginning of the civil year, the month that the two newly elected Roman consuls - the highest officials in the Roman republic - began their one-year tenure. But this new year date was not always strictly and widely observed, and the new year was still sometimes celebrated on March 1.

New Year's Day in Philippines

Many Filipinos consider New Year’s Day as an important holiday in the Philippines. This sets the start of a new year in the Gregorian calendar, which is used in many countries including the Philippines.

New Years PhilippinesIn the Philippines, celebrations are very loud, believing that the noise will scare away evil beings. There is often a midnight feast featuring twelve different round fruits to symbolize good luck for the twelve months of the year. Other traditional foods include sticky rice and noodles, but not chicken or fish because these animals are food foragers, which can be seen as bad luck for the next year’s food supply.

What Do People Do?Many  Filipino  people  unite  on  New  Year’s  Eve, which  is  on  December  31,  to  celebrate  a midnight meal known as  the Media Noche.  It  is also common to stay awake to greet the coming of  the  New  Year.  New  Year’s  Day  is  also characterized by Filipinos  lighting fireworks and making  a  lot  of  noise  to drive  away evil  spirits. This belief originated from the Chinese.

• The elderly encourage children to jump at the stroke of midnight so that they would grow up tall. Many people display 12 circular fruits and wear clothing with polka dots to symbolize money. It is also popular practice to open all the doors and windows at the stroke of midnight to let in the good luck. Many Filipino families also read the Christian bible and attend a church midnight mass. It is common for many Filipinos to blend religion and superstition in celebrating New Year’s Day.

Public Life• New  Year’s  Day  is  a  public  holiday  in  the Philippines on January 1. Government offices, schools and most businesses are closed. Public transport  is  limited  to  reduced  bus  and  jeep services operating during New Year’s Day.

Background• The New Year’s Day/New Year’s Eve celebrations start on December 31 and continue through to January 1. New Year’s Day in the Philippines is short but uniquely celebrated throughout the country. This is also the time of the year when many Filipino families get together and strengthen their family ties. New Year’s Day in the Philippines is a joyful holiday that is characterized with the intermarriage of religion and paganism which are the attributes of a once Hispanic Philippine Society.

Symbols• Filipinos  symbolize New Year’s Day with  their visions of how the start of the New Year opens opportunities  for  a  bountiful  life.  This  is  the reason why  the  Filipino  dining  table which  is the focal point of this holiday in that the table is abundant with food that comes in round or circular shapes to represent money. Fireworks also  symbolize  driving  away  bad  luck  during New Year’s Day.

Traditional and Modern Celebrations and Customs• January 1 represents the fresh start of a new year after a period of remembrance of the passing year, including on radio, television, and in newspapers, which starts in early December in countries around the world. Publications have year-end articles that review the changes during the previous year. In some cases publications may set their entire year work alight in hope that the smoke emitted from the flame brings new life to the company. There are also articles on planned or expected changes in the coming year.

• This day is traditionally a religious feast, but since the 1900s has also become an occasion to celebrate the night of December 31, called New Year's Eve. There are fireworks at midnight at the moment the new year arrives (a major one is in Sydney, Australia). Watch night services are also still observed by many.

New Year's Eve/ Day Pictures

Happy New Year

Everyone♥

Thank you