Article of the Week - New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve
As celebrated in Times Square; although Kiribati
is the first country to ring in the New Year

New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the incoming year. The observance of New Year's Eve generally extends through midnight of January 1 (New Year's Day).

New Year's Eve is an occasion celebrated with elegant formal parties and family-oriented activities; New Year's Day is a public holiday in the United States. Celebrations often center upon dropping or raising an item of worth during the countdown, especially in the East coast.

Since 1907 the "ball dropping" on top of One Times Square in New York City is a major component of the New Year celebration. The 11,875-pound (5,386 kg), 12-foot (3.7 m) diameter Waterford crystal ball located high above Times Square is lowered, starting at 11:59:00 pm and reaching the bottom of its tower sixty seconds later, at the stroke of midnight. (After fifty seconds has passed, the crowd will count down the final ten seconds along with the hosts of various New Year's Eve shows. Toshiba's Times Square advertising screen will also tell the viewers when the New Year officially starts, which debuted in the 2009-10 edition.) From 1981 to 1988, the city dropped a large apple in recognition of its nickname as "the Big Apple". Similar ball drops are performed in many towns and cities across the United States. The custom derives from the time signal that used to be given at noon in harbors.

Kiritimati (UTC+14), part of Kiribati, is the first location in the world to welcome the New Year.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "New Year's Eve"