by Hla Min
Updated : Aug 2025
Video Broadcast on December 17, 2020
Traditional
- New Year’s Eve on December 31
Bringing in the New Year (with celebration)
Dropping the Ball in Times Square in New York - New Year on January 1
Holiday in some countries - January is named as after Janus (Two faced God)
Symbolically, one face looks back at the outgoing year and another face looks at the incoming year - In the early days, Burma celebrated January 1 as “Peasants’ Day“
- Later, Peasants’ Day was moved to March 2
Others
- Old Roman Calendar starts with March.
- Persian New Year falls on or around March 21
“First Day of Spring” celebrations - Myanmar celebrate Thingyan on or around April 13 for three (or four) days. Myanmar New Year follows Thingyan.
- Thailand celebrate Songkram (equivalent of Thingyan)
- Both words derive from Pali and Sanskrit words meaning “Change”.
- Cula Thingyan (Small Change) occurs every month when the Sun in the Geocentric model moves to another Zodiac Sign.
- Maha Thingyan (Big Change) occurs every year when the Sun has moved through all twelve signs.
- Chinese celebrate Chinese New Year (or Lunar New Year) around the end of January or the start of February.
- Vietnamese celebrate Tet (equivalent of Chinese New Year)
- Festivities may last a week (or more)
- Karen New Year (ကရင် နှစ်သစ်ကူး)
- Special events
New Year in 2000 (to usher the New Millennium)
Updates
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