Overview
- Under the Gregorian calendar, January 1 is the widely observed start of the year across much of the world.
- Japan marks Ganjitsu as a national holiday, with many government offices and businesses closed during the New Year period.
- Fireworks and festivities roll across time zones as local midnights arrive, producing a staggered global celebration.
- Google featured an animated Doodle on January 1, 2026 to mark the New Year on its homepage.
- Some histories attribute Rome’s shift to January 1 to a military push tied to the Segeda campaign in Hispania, an interpretation reported alongside the well-established Julian and Gregorian reforms.