Edinburgh hosts the New Year’s Eve street festival called Edinburgh’s Hogmanay.
Hogmanay is the Scottish celebration of the last day of the year and the arrival of the new one. Edinburgh’s modern festival includes a large street party, concerts, processions, and a midnight fireworks display, with events extending over several days around December 31 and January 1.
The word “Hogmanay” is specifically Scottish, but its exact linguistic origin remains debated. Scotland’s New Year customs also include first-footing, in which the first person to enter a home after midnight is traditionally expected to bring symbolic gifts such as coal, shortbread, or whisky.
Edinburgh’s festival is distinct from all Scottish Hogmanay celebrations. It became particularly prominent as a major organized public event in the late twentieth century and now attracts visitors from many countries. The celebration’s torchlight procession, castle backdrop, and street gathering are often associated with the city, while first-footing belongs to a wider Scottish tradition rather than to Edinburgh alone.