In 46 BC, the ancient Roman Emperor Julius Caesar set this day as the beginning of the new year of the Western calendar, in honor of Janus, the Roman god of doors. Janus later evolved into the English word "January." It was originally thought that the Pope set the year of Jesus' birth as the first year of the Common Era, and January 1st was also related to Jesus. However, it now appears that this is not the case. Considering the widespread Christian faith in the West, it should be December 25th, Christmas Day, that is considered the New Year. Therefore, the Western New Year is not as grand as Christmas.
The origin of Egypt's New Year
Around 50,000 years ago, the ancient Egyptians had shifted from nomadic life to agriculture, settling along the banks of the Nile River. Their agricultural harvests were closely related to whether the Nile flooded or not. From long-term observations, the ancient Egyptians found that the timing of the Nile floods was regular. They recorded this time on bamboo sticks, and thus learned that the time between two floods was approximately 365 days. They also discovered that when the initial surge of the Nile reached the area around present-day Cairo, it coincided with the time when the sun and Sirius rose together above the horizon. Thus, the ancient Egyptians set this day as the beginning of the year. This is the earliest origin of "New Year."
New Year's Day marks the beginning of the celebration of the new year, and celebrating New Year's Day is a common custom in countries and regions around the world.
Now, most countries in the world take January 1st of the Gregorian calendar as New Year's Day. Due to different longitudinal positions of countries around the world, their times are different, so the date of "New Year's Day" also varies. For example, Tonga, an island country in Oceania, located west of the International Date Line, is the first place in the world to start the new day and also the first country to celebrate New Year's Day. On the other hand, Western Samoa, located east of the International Date Line, is the last place in the world to start the new day.
Afghanistan takes the vernal equinox as New Year's Day; the Jews take the autumnal equinox as New Year's Day; while the Inuit people in the Arctic have an irregular New Year's Day, they set the first rain as New Year's Day. In 46 BC, the Roman Emperor Julius Caesar established the Julian calendar, initially setting the winter solstice as New Year's Day. However, people insisted on setting the new moon as New Year's Day, so they moved New Year's Day to ten days after the winter solstice.
According to the Gregorian calendar, China is the twelfth country in the world to celebrate the New Year. Due to differences in history, culture, religious beliefs, and ethnic customs, each country has its own unique ways of celebration. However, this diversity makes the world more colorful and highlights regional and ethnic characteristics.