Hogmanay is the Scottish term for the country's traditional New Year's celebration.
Hogmanay refers to the festivities surrounding the last day of the old year and the arrival of the new one. Customs vary across Scotland but may include torchlight processions, public concerts, parties, singing, and first-footing, in which the first person to enter a home after midnight is thought to influence the household's luck.
The word's origin is uncertain. Scholars have proposed Scandinavian, French, Gaelic, and other linguistic connections, and no single derivation is universally accepted. Scotland's distinctive celebration was also shaped by the historical influence of the Reformation, which reduced the public prominence of Christmas for long periods.
Auld Lang Syne is strongly associated with Hogmanay, but the song and the festival are not the same thing. Robert Burns helped popularize the song in written form, while Hogmanay is the broader Scottish New Year's tradition.