Hogmanay is the Scottish festival that gives Edinburgh's New Year's Eve celebrations their traditional name.
The word refers to the Scottish celebration of New Year's Eve and the customs surrounding the arrival of the new year. Edinburgh's modern festivities developed into a large public event featuring concerts, street celebrations, fireworks, and a torchlight procession.
Scottish Hogmanay customs include first-footing, in which the first person to enter a household after midnight is traditionally expected to bring symbolic gifts such as coal, shortbread, or whisky. Dark-haired first-footers were historically considered especially lucky in some regions.
Hogmanay is not simply another name for a fireworks show. It describes a wider Scottish seasonal festival with regional customs, music, visiting, and good-luck rituals. Edinburgh is its most internationally famous modern celebration, but the tradition is observed throughout Scotland.