Happy New Year! Jan. 1, 2025

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year"s Day! Humans have celebrated the new year since at least 2000 BCE, but various cultures have chosen different days coinciding with equinoxes or lunar cycles. The Romans established January 1 as the beginning of the year in 153 BCE, but this fell out of favour throughout Europe during the medieval era. Since 1582 and the widespread adoption of the Gregorian calendar, however, much of the world now celebrates the new year today. In addition to watching fireworks, drinking champagne and making resolutions in the wee hours of the morning, other global traditions include making noise, eating lucky foods and giving gifts.

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Today in History

Napping near the North Pole
Jan. 1, 2024Happy New Year!
Jan. 1, 2026Happy New Year!

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Apr. 21, 2024Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee, USA
Sep. 12, 2024World Dolphin Day
Apr. 12, 2024Arches National Park, Utah, USA
Tis the season for travel
Nov. 13, 2024Sea lion in a kelp forest, Baja California, Mexico
Platinum Jubilee celebrations
Jan. 12, 2025Crescent-tail bigeye fish, Great Barrier Reef, Australia
Nov. 8, 2025Bandon Beach in Bandon, Oregon, United States
May 9, 2024Misool, Raja Ampat Islands, Indonesia
Stretching out in the Everglades
Jul 8, 2026Sunrise at Lake Atitlán, Guatemala
Nov. 10, 2023Badlands National Park anniversary
Piecing together a better tomorrow
Jul. 23, 2025Vatican City, Rome, Italy
Jan. 16, 2026Leopard at Etosha National Park, Namibia
Jun 12, 2026European bee-eater, Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park, Cádiz, Spain
Nov. 15, 2024Yi Peng lantern festival, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Dec. 1, 2024Antarctica Day
Jan. 13, 2025Happy Welsh New Year!
Aug. 24, 2023Shark Fin Cove, California
Kings of the north
Jun. 2, 2025Fogo Island, Newfoundland and Labrador
Oct. 12, 2023Old barn and canola field, Palouse region, Idaho
Wind-powered ice racing
Oct. 7, 2024World Architecture Day
Sep. 28, 2024Gulf Islands National Seashore, Florida, USA
Dec. 26, 2023Happy Boxing Day!
Jan. 27, 2026Dalmatian pelicans, Lake Kerkini, Greece
What returned to this city 500 years ago?
Jan. 28, 2025Short-eared owl