“Auld Lang Syne” is traditionally sung at midnight on New Year's Eve in many English-speaking countries.
The song uses a Scots phrase meaning “old long since,” commonly understood as remembering times gone by. Its familiar melody and lyrics were printed in the eighteenth century, with verses associated with the Scottish poet Robert Burns. The song became internationally popular through nineteenth-century musical arrangements and diaspora traditions.
People often sing it while linking hands in a circle and crossing arms near the final verse, although customs vary. In the United States, Guy Lombardo's broadcasts helped establish it as a standard New Year's song during the twentieth century.
“Auld Lang Syne” is not Scotland's national anthem, and the phrase is not a literal instruction to stay awake until dawn. Versions differ in wording and number of verses, but the remembrance theme remains central.