The traditional name of Scotland’s New Year celebration, known for fire festivals and songs, is Hogmanay.
Hogmanay is the Scottish celebration of the last day of the year and the customs surrounding the arrival of the new year. Celebrations can include parties, public concerts, torch processions, fire ceremonies, first-footing, and singing “Auld Lang Syne” at midnight.
Its origins are debated. Historians connect Hogmanay customs with a mixture of pre-Christian winter observances, Norse influences, and Scottish or wider European New Year traditions. The word itself has several proposed linguistic explanations, and no single origin is universally accepted.
Edinburgh hosts one of the world’s most famous large-scale Hogmanay programs, but Hogmanay is a national Scottish tradition rather than the name of Edinburgh alone. “Burns Night,” held on 25 January, honors poet Robert Burns and is a separate celebration, while Up Helly Aa is a distinct Shetland fire festival.