New Years Day actually has its roots in both the Julian Calendar, where it is, together with January named and celebrated after the pagan god Janus, who was the god of new beginnings and gateways, akin to the Hindu god Ganesha, as well as the Gregorian Calendar which is the preferred calendar of today where the circumcision and naming of the Christian Messiah is celebrated.
Besides the calendar history and religious celebrations which are usually only celebrated by Anglican and Lutheran denominations within the Christian Faith, New Years Day holds promise and hope for the people of the world.
It is usually a day where most shops, restaurants and malls are closed, leaving people with a 24hour span of quiet reflection where the traditional practice of making new years resolutions and cleaning out takes place.
There is a differing of traditional practices across the world which vary greatly to the conventional New Years Day practice of either surviving the day from partying the night before or quiet reflection.
In Japan for example, in Japan people celebrate their birthdays, which would be quite a treat after receiving all your Christmas gifts a week before if the holiday were accepted worldwide.
New Year's Day, also simply called New Year, is observed on 1 January, the first day of the year on the modern Gregorian calendar as well as the Julian calendar.
Human Rights Day in South Africa is historically linked with 21 March 1960, and the events of Sharpeville. On that day 69 people died and 180 were wounded
Many Christians around the world observe Good Friday on the Friday before Easter Sunday. It commemorates Jesus Christ’s Passion, crucifixion, and death, which is told in the Christian Bible.
Family Day was first celebrated as Easter Monday in 1910. Family Day was renamed as such in 1994 in order to include all religions, as the holiday was originally more Christian. It is celebrated annually on the Monday following Easter.
Freedom Day is a public holiday in South Africa celebrated on 27 April. It celebrates freedom and commemorates the first post-apartheid elections held on that day in 1994.
Labour Day, or International Workers Day, is an International public holiday in many countries, most often celebrated on 1 May.
Youth Day commemorates the Soweto Uprising, which took place on 16 June 1976, where thousands of students were ambushed by the apartheid regime.
National Women's Day is a South African public holiday celebrated annually on 9 August. The day commemorates the 1956 march of approximately 20,000 women to the Union Buildings in Pretoria
Heritage Day is a South African public holiday celebrated on 24 September. On this day, South Africans are encouraged to celebrate their culture and the diversity of their beliefs and traditions
The Day of Reconciliation is a public holiday in South Africa held annually on 16 December. The holiday came into effect in 1995 after the end of apartheid, with the intention of fostering reconciliation and national unity for the country.
Christmas Day (or Feast of the Nativity) is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25[a] as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world.
Day of Goodwill is observed on the day after Christmas, 26 December. It is also known as Boxing Day. It is said that this public holiday is one of the many changes that were implemented after the South African government did away with apartheid in 1994.
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