NEW YEAR'S DAY - the first day of a calendar year, usually celebrated as a legal holiday

Celebrating the end of one year and the start of a new one is an age-old religious, social, and cultural observance in all parts of the world. In Western nations the New Year festivities take place on December 31, but in other cultures they take place on different dates.

1582: Gregorian calendar adopted. Using the plan of Egyptian astronomer Sosigenes, Julius Caesar adjusted slight errors in the existing calendar and thus developed the Julian calendar in the 1st century BC. In the late 16th century Pope Gregory XIII announced that the Julian calendar was slightly incorrect: it was 11 minutes and 14 seconds too long each year. While this difference may appear trivial, the error had set back the precise dates of the seasonal equinoxes by approximately one day every century.

In a dramatic step, Pope Gregory eliminated ten days from the year 1582. Calculating the proper date of the vernal equinox from the year of the Council of Nicaea (AD 325), he removed approximately one day for each intervening century. In 1582 October 4 was followed by October 15. To correct the problem in the future, it was declared that years ending in two zeros that were not divisible by 400 would not be leap years contrary to the Julian calendar.

Another change was that January 1 was officially recognized as the beginning of the New Year, whereas most countries had recognized Christmas or Easter as the start of the year. The new system was known as the New Style, and dates before 1582 were thereafter marked in official records with O.S. for Old Style.

Only the predominantly Catholic countries recognized Pope Gregory's changes at first. England did not make the correction until more than 150 years later, and many other countries, such as the Soviet Union, did not adjust their calendars until the early 20th century.

Mesopotamia, region in Asia between Tigris and Euphrates rivers (now included in Iraq).

The earliest known record of a New Year festival dates from 2000 BC in Mesopotamia. In Babylonia the New Year began with the new moon closest to the spring equinox, usually mid-March. In Assyria it was near the autumnal equinox in September. For the Egyptians, Phoenician, and Persians the day was celebrated on the autumnal equinox, which now falls on about September 23. For the Greeks it was the winter solstice, which now falls on about December 21 or 22. During the early Roman republic March 1 began a new year, but after 153 BC the date was January 1. This date was kept by the Julian calendar of 46 BC.

During the early Middle Ages March 25 (the feast of the Annunciation) was celebrated as New Year's Day. January 1 was restored as New Year's Day by the Gregorian calendar, which was adopted by the Roman Catholic church in 1582. Over the next 350 years other countries followed. Russia, in 1918, was the last major nation to adopt the practice. In countries that use the Julian calendar, New Year's Day is on January 14 of the Gregorian calendar.

Rosh Hashanah, Jewish New Year's Day festival celebrated on the first or first and second days of Tishri (September or October).

The Jewish New Year, called Rosh Hashana, is sometimes called the "feast of the trumpets." It starts on the first day of the month of Tishri, which may begin any time from September 6 to October 5. The celebration lasts for 48 hours but ushers in a ten-day period of penitence. The Chinese New Year is celebrated wherever there are sizeable Chinese communities. The official celebration lasts one month and begins in late January or early February. There are outdoor parades and fireworks to mark the occasion.

In Japan the New Year festivities take place on January 1 to 3. In some rural areas the time of celebration corresponds more closely to the Chinese New Year, and the dates vary between January 20 and February 19. The house entrance is hung with a rope made of rice straw to keep out evil spirits. Decorations of ferns, bitter orange, and lobster promise good fortune, prosperity, and long life. In South India the Tamil New Year is a religious celebration that takes place on the winter solstice. It is marked by pilgrimages to holy places and the boiling of new rice.

The American celebration of the New Year marks the end of the Christmas holiday period. Many people go to church on New Year's Eve, and many attend parties. Street celebrations in large cities are televised. New Year's Day itself is often a time for receiving guests at home.