The History of New Years Day

New Years celebration is one of the oldest holiday celebrations that is still celebrated today.  Ancient Babylon was first to celebrate New Years about 4000 years ago in 2000 BC.  A popular Babylonian resolution was often to return borrowed farm equipment to its original owner. 

The largest celebration in the world is in Time Square, New York City.  Each year people gather by the hundreds of thousands and crowd into the streets of Time Square for the annual New Years Eve celebration.  The highlight of the Time Square celebration is the famous ball drop that begins its descent at the stroke of midnight.  This famous celebration dates back to 1906 when the owners of one Times Square held a rooftop celebration to bring in the New Year.  

New Years Eve celebrations and parties take place all over the world.  In London, England crowds of people celebrate New Years Eve in either Trafalgar Square or Piccadilly Circus where they eagerly wait for the chimes of London's, Big Ben to announce the New Year.  Sydney, Australia holds an annual midnight fireworks display in Sydney Harbor that brings thousands of tourists every year.  The Dutch celebrate New Years by burning their Christmas trees in the streets in big bonfires.  In Spain they eat twelve grapes at the stroke of midnight to ensure twelve good months for the year to come.  

A New Years Eve party is the best way to celebrate New Years Eve if you are not planning on leaving town.  The best way to have a successful party is to have a well-planned party.  You will want to send out clever New Years Eve invitations that represent the theme of your party.  New Years Eve in Time Square is a perfect theme for a New Years Eve party.  You can choose an invitation that represents New York and Time Square and put some shiny confetti in the envelope.  It is also a good idea to include in the invitation anything your guests will need to bring to participate in your party activities.  For example, you can ask your guests to each bring an item to put in a time capsule.  Decorate your party to emulate the Time Square celebration.  Select a centerpiece that clearly displays the time so your guests will always know the time.   You can use a funnel to fill balloons with glitter and confetti and hang curling ribbon from the ceiling.  A festive piñata and Christmas lights will all add excitement to the decorations.  Another great idea is to tie small bells to helium balloons so when they are bumped or popped they ring "in the New Year".  

You do not need any permission to link to any of the pages on this site.  You can use / republish any of the articles on this site as long as you reference Mrs. Party...Gail Leino as the source with a link to this site. Cloning of this site content and structure is prohibited.