These countries do not celebrate New Year on January 1, you will be shocked to see the list!

New Year Celebration: Celebrating New Year on January 1 every year has become a global tradition which is mainly based on the Gregorian calendar. However, the diversity of the world is so great that even today many countries and cultures prefer their traditional or lunar calendar. For these countries, New Year is not just a date but a symbol of harvest, weather and religious beliefs.

China

The beginning of the New Year in China is celebrated in late January or early February. It is also called Spring Festival. This festival lasts for 15 days.

Thailand

Welcome with water: In Thailand, New Year is not celebrated on January 1 but Songkran is celebrated between April 13 and 15. It is the New Year in the Thai Buddhist calendar in which people pour water on each other to wash away the impurities of the old year and celebrate.

India

New Year is officially celebrated in India on 1 January. But culturally, the New Year starts at different times in different parts of the country. According to the Hindu calendar, the new year of Vikram Samvat starts from Chaitra month. New Year is welcomed as Baisakhi in Punjab, Gudi Padwa in Maharashtra and Ugadi in South India.

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islamic country

In Islamic countries like Saudi Arabia and Iran, the new year is celebrated on the first date of Muharram according to the Hijri calendar. Whereas in Iran, Nowruz is celebrated which falls on the day of spring equinox. This tradition is thousands of years old.

Ethiopia and Sri Lanka

Ethiopia’s calendar lags behind the world by 7 years and the New Year is celebrated here on 11 or 12 September. Whereas in Sri Lanka, Sinhala and Tamil New Year is celebrated in mid-April which marks the entry of the Sun from Pisces to Aries.

These traditions of these countries remind us that every culture has its own unique way of looking at time. The world may be going digital but these countries are still strongly connected to their roots and ancient calendars.