Scotland’s New Year’s Eve celebration is called Hogmanay. The word refers to the Scottish celebration of the last day of the year and, more broadly, to the associated customs and festivities that continue into New Year’s Day.
Edinburgh hosts one of the world’s best-known Hogmanay celebrations, featuring concerts, a large street party, and a torchlight procession. Other Scottish communities have their own versions, so Hogmanay is not the name of only one event or city. Fire, music, visiting, and singing “Auld Lang Syne” are strongly associated with the celebration.
First-footing is a traditional custom in which the first person to enter a home after midnight is thought to influence the household’s luck. Historically, the identity of the “first footer” and the gifts brought could vary by region. Hogmanay is sometimes confused with Burns Night, but Burns Night commemorates poet Robert Burns on 25 January rather than marking the new year.