Bet You Didn't Know: New Year's Eve

​Bet You Didn't Know: New Year's Eve

By Language Lab LangLab

For many people around the world, January 1st offers an opportunity to make a fresh start with a new year. But we bet you didn't know that over the last 4,000 years, New Year's wasn't always celebrated on the 1st of January. The original New Year's celebration, the massive Babylonian religious festival of Akitu, was held every year around the spring equinox.

In 46 BC, Julius Caesar introduced a new calendar that was synced to the sun instead of the moon, officially moving New Year's celebrations from March 1st to January 1st. In the Middle Ages, the Christian church did away with many of the ancient Roman festivals because of their pagan roots. As a result, New Year's was celebrated on various dates throughout medieval Europe.

Finally, in 1582, Pope Gregory XIII overhauled the calendar system again. The Gregorian calendar, which we still use today, restored January 1st as New Year's Day. Even today, some countries and cultures follow a lunar, not solar, calendar and hold their New Year's celebrations at different times of the year. Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, and the first day of Muharram, the start of the Islamic calendar year, are both celebrated in the fall.

And the Chinese New Year, which lasts for a whole month, begins in late January or early February. New Year's traditions also vary from country to country. In Spain, people eat 12 grapes in the seconds leading up to midnight. Other cultures also eat special foods for New Year's. Greeks eat ring-shaped cakes with silver or gold coins baked inside. In China, a dumpling represents hope for an auspicious New Year.

And in Japan, long buckwheat noodles symbolize long life. Since 1904, crowds have packed New York's Times Square for one of the most famous New Year's traditions of all, the dropping of the ball.

At midnight, hundreds of thousands of people enjoy the mesmerizing kaleidoscopic effect with nearly 16 million vivid colors and billions of patterns. From champagne and fireworks to resolutions and fresh starts, New Year's has always been many things to many people. And it has a long and colorful history that we bet you didn't know.

Fill in the Blanks

True or False? New Year's Day has always been on January 1st for 4,000 years.
If false, correct the sentence: New Year's Day has not always been on January 1st; the first celebration was in the

.

Fill in the Blanks

True or False? Julius Caesar's calendar used the moon.

If false, correct the sentence: Julius Caesar's calendar used the

.

Fill in the Blanks

True or False? People in Spain eat 12 apples at midnight on New Year's Eve.

If false, correct the sentence: People in Spain eat 12

at midnight.

Multiple Choice

Where was the first New Year's festival, Akitu, celebrated?

• In Rome

• In China

• In Babylon

• In Spain

Multiple Choice

Which Pope made the calendar we use today?

• Pope John Paul II

• Pope Gregory XIII

• Pope Julius Caesar

• Pope Francis

Multiple Choice

When is Chinese New Year?

• On January 1st

• In the fall

• In late January or early February

• In the summer

Multiple Choice

What do Japanese people eat for long life on New Year's?

• Grapes

• Dumplings

• Cake with a coin

• Buckwheat noodles

Match

Match the country with its New Year's tradition.

• Spain

• Greece

• Japan

• China

Eat 12 grapes at midnight

Eat a cake with a coin inside

Eat long noodles for long life

Eat dumplings for good luck

• Eat 12 grapes at midnight

• Eat a cake with a coin inside

• Eat long noodles for long life

• Eat dumplings for good luck

Fill in the Blanks

People make New Year's r _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ s to have a fresh start.

Fill in the Blanks

In the Middle Ages, New Year's was on different dates because the church did not like the p _ _ _ n festivals.

Fill in the Blanks

The ball drop in New York's T _ _ _ s S _ _ _ _ e is a very famous tradition.

Open Ended

What is the name of the Jewish New Year? (One word or two words)

Open Ended

Name one calendar that is NOT solar (sun-based). (One word)

Open Ended

How many colors can the Times Square ball show? (One number)

Multiple Choice

What does the text say New Year's has always been for many people?

• a serious time

• many things

• only one thing