The Useless Digest A Free Weekly dose of Facts, Quotes, History and more - direct to your inbox. Celebrating New Year's Day is one of the oldest and most-exciting customs around the world. Ringing church bells, tooting horns and ear-piercing shrieks echo throughout the world on this festive day. Whether visiting relatives or watching New Year's Day parades at home on the TV, welcoming the New Year is always a time of entertainment, celebration and resolution.
People worldwide resolve to act better in the year just beginning than in the year just ended.
No day has ever been observed on so many different dates or in so many different ways. All over the world, countries have their own special beliefs about what the New Year means to them. While many people in the United States observe New Year's Day on January 1st by throwing parties late into the night on the eve of December 31st, people in China celebrate this holiday for several days between January 17th and February 19th , at the time of the new moon. The Chinese called this time of feasting and celebrations Yuan Tan. The Chinese believe that evil spirits roam the earth at the New Year, so they let off firecrackers to scare off the spirits and seal their windows and doors with paper to keep the evil demons out.