Scotland’s traditional New Year celebration is called Hogmanay. The word refers broadly to Scottish New Year customs and festivities, including watchnight gatherings, singing, visiting, first-footing and public events.
Hogmanay celebrations vary by location. Edinburgh is famous for a large organized program, while communities elsewhere hold local parties, concerts, bonfires or processions. The term does not identify one single ceremony or venue; it is the Scottish name for the season’s New Year observance.
A major custom is first-footing: the first person to enter a home after midnight is traditionally expected to bring symbolic gifts such as coal, shortbread, salt or whisky. Older beliefs sometimes treated a tall, dark-haired first-footer as especially fortunate, though modern practice is much less uniform.
“Auld Lang Syne,” a song associated with Robert Burns, is widely sung at midnight in Scotland and internationally. Hogmanay and the song are closely connected in popular culture, but Hogmanay is the celebration’s name, not the title or translation of the song.