DigiNepal · festivals
New Year's Day (Gregorian) (नयाँ वर्ष (अंग्रेजी), رأس السنة الميلادية (Arabic)). Region: Worldwide. Tradition: Secular. Calendar: Gregorian (1 January). Dates: Worldwide 2026: Thursday 1 January 2026 [official, source US]; Worldwide 2027: Friday 1 January 2027 [official, source US]; Worldwide 2028: Saturday 1 January 2028 [official, source US]. History and significance: New Year's Day on 1 January was set by the Roman calendar reform of Julius Caesar in 46 BCE and kept by the Gregorian calendar of 1582. Celebrations begin at midnight on 31 December with fireworks and countdowns. It is a public holiday in most countries. Key rituals and foods: Midnight countdowns, fireworks, resolutions; foods vary by country, from grapes in Spain to soba in Japan. Date basis: official = matches a government gazetted holiday list; computed = calculated from the calendar system (tithi astronomy with skyfield and JPL DE421, Hijri Umm al-Qura, Chinese, Korean and Hebrew calendar libraries, or the fixed rule); expected = Umm al-Qura projection pending moon sighting. Sources: Wikipedia and Wikidata (CC BY-SA, CC0) and government holiday lists, summarised in our own words.