How is New Year's Eve celebrated in America? How is New Year celebrated in different states? What is customary to give for the new year in America

New Year's holidays are celebrated all over the planet, and US residents are also not left out. Since the United States is a multinational state, many traditions originate in the culture and history of other peoples.

When is New Year celebrated in America?

IN THE USA New Year occurs at midnight from December 31 to January 1. And if Christmas is a home, family holiday, then the New Year is fun with friends or colleagues, noisy parties.

Parades are held throughout the city, the most significant one takes place in Time Square, New York. By the way, this is where many Americans tend to get on the last day of December. At 11:59 p.m., a special spectacle begins in Times Square - the lowering of the ball of time.

How is New Year celebrated in America?

Residents buy firecrackers and flashy accessories to get attention. And most nightclubs organize parties.

The New Year is preceded by a more significant holiday for Americans - Christmas. Therefore, the streets and buildings are already decorated with lights, garlands and fairy-tale figures. There are fir trees in all central squares.

The houses are also decorated, both inside and out: with various deer figurines, snowmen, garlands, and toys.

A baby in diapers is one of the symbols of the New Year among Americans. This character is present at all festive festivals and on many postcards.

American New Year: Traditions and Customs

Americans love to make a wish list of things to do for themselves, such as buying a car, joining a gym, going on a diet, winning a medal in a competition. Notes are saved, they are taken out at the end of next year and summed up.

People prefer to roam the streets all night and spend time in entertainment venues. Noisy events are held in every park and institution, so it’s unrealistic to get bored.

What is customary to give for the new year in America?

Americans present serious gifts to each other at Christmas, and for the new year, these are usually trinkets and souvenirs, clothes, and sometimes gift cards. It is customary to give large gifts with a check, this allows you to hand over the item in the future if the item did not live up to expectations.

Preparing for the New Year and Christmas in America id="1f16cd0c">

Christmas and New Year are just around the corner, which means that any respectable American has not only bought and packed gifts, but has already forgotten where he put them in anticipation of the holidays.

Preparations for Christmas begin in the US in the summer. It is a fact. Even the Hallmark TV channel (generally obsessed with Christmas) puts on a Christmas movie marathon in August.

And many families arrange "Christmas" in the summer - this is an occasion to gather all the relatives and there is a weekend away.

If you are preparing gifts for someone, then do not forget to put a check in the holiday package. No, not the one where it is indicated how much you paid for a pair of socks, but a special "gift" check, according to which the goods can be returned to the store, receiving instead a certificate for the purchase amount.

Now, before Christmas, it is offered to everyone at the checkout, and during the year you can just ask for it yourself.

Generally gift Certificate to one or another store - this is a way out of the situation "I don't know what to give." Works very well with the male half of relatives.

If you have Small child, then wait for three categories of gifts - clothes, toys and books. And get ready for the fact that there will be a lot of gifts.

Packaging is a separate epic. If the gift is in a package, then light multi-colored paper is placed on top. But often it is on Christmas that the offerings are placed in a cardboard box, and only then they are wrapped in paper and bows are molded.

In America, Christmas is not celebrated on December 25, it is celebrated throughout December. The house is decorated with themed toys (snowmen, deer, candles), a Christmas village and beautiful candles are arranged, garlands and socks are hung in front of the fireplace, and most importantly, a Christmas tree is put up. Often not alone.

The Christmas dinner itself can also take place on any date in December, because there are many relatives and you need to visit everyone with guests, include corporate parties, children's parties, fairs, photos in the shopping center with Santa in the schedule ...

And the main tradition is postcards.

The first wave is before Christmas. Either a family photo or a photo of a child is placed on the postcard. Cards are made according to a template, printed and sent to all relatives and friends.

The second wave is after Christmas, so each gift should be responded with a letter of thanks.

Giving birth, getting divorced, falling in love, getting married, raising children and studying, buying houses, steamships, yachts and dresses, making a career and traveling, electing a president and going to protest rallies... - all this must be done in the USA. Or like this: I like doing it in the USA. But it is necessary to celebrate the New Year in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia ... In general, somewhere in the post-Soviet space. But not in the USA, with all my love for this country.

And not even in New York, where a luxurious Christmas tree beckons with lights near the Rockefeller Center, where, supposedly, it's so fun to wait for a crystal in Times Square and a lot of parties in general - don't believe it! And if the devil brought you to our glorious country on the night of December 31, then urgently look for a Russian-speaking area - only there you will have at least some sense of celebration.

A well-known fact - on a grand scale in the USA they celebrate Christmas. By December 25, everything that even slightly resembles a gift will be swept off the shelves of stores (this is the time to sell the most slow-moving goods). Christmas trees are sold all around at absolutely cosmic prices - in New York this year the price starts at $ 130, I have not yet seen cheaper ones. You can’t break through in shopping centers, while in general people are relaxed and happy - a holiday is just around the corner ...

Manhattan on the eve of the holidays receives three times more people than usual. And only in the Russian-speaking communities is peace and quiet. In the same New York, “ours” are in no hurry to buy even a Christmas tree. What for? 'Cause it's too late on the evening of December 25 at the same Wallmart it can be purchased for just a dollar or take it for free. Because that's it - the holiday is over, which means that the tree is no longer needed. Moreover, on December 26 they are already being thrown out!

On Christmas night, when Americans gather at the table with families, when children go to bed, looking forward to how they will open gifts in the morning, when Santa Claus has long had cookies in store, as well as gifts for Rudolph's deer, when socks are hung on the window in the absence of a fireplace ... "Russians" just go to bed. The exceptions are those who are married to Americans or work for American companies. If the family lives in the Brighton Beach area, they work there, in general, everything is done according to the principle “But we don’t go to that America!”, then Christmas night passes for them like any other.

The most that “our people” can do on the eve of the holidays is to go to the City to see how Macy's decorated the windows, and go through the sales, which, in a good way, are not sales yet - the most interesting will begin after the holidays, when the goods there are many more, and the new season is already on the nose and new holiday- Valentine's Day.

And now Christmas is over. Children are on vacation, adults also often rest. Everyone is relaxed and not in a hurry. But not in the Russian-speaking community, which is just beginning to come to life and prepare for the most important holiday of the year. When the Americans have already finished celebrating, we begin to hastily buy gifts, Christmas trees and green peas in cans.

Someone, of course, does not stand at the stove for hours, but goes to a restaurant. By the way, it's too late to book a table - everything has long been reserved and paid for. Perhaps there are still tickets for expensive parties for Russian-speaking millionaires which take place, for example, in Miami.

Four years ago, I got to one of these - the minimum ticket price was $500, the maximum - $5,000. They fed guests with Russian cuisine, for example, with the same “Olivier”, however, with cancer necks, as in the original recipe. Timati, Yuri Antonov, Teona Kontridze and other stars performed on stage. The party was hosted by Ksenia Sobchak and her husband Maxim Vitorgan. Well, everything was almost ours. We were a little embarrassed by the New Year's palm trees, hung with garlands - something else a sight, and also the complete absence of snow and fireworks.

The last one is especially sad. In the same New York fireworks from individuals under the ban. But on the night of December 31, in Russian-speaking areas, this is, of course, safely forgotten and, as usual, they shoot until the morning. Americans do not consider this day so important that it is also celebrated with fireworks. Yes, sometimes somewhere.

Last year, for some reason, I decided that we would be given fireworks on the Brooklyn Bridge in honor of the New Year. And at 11:30 at night with three small enough children and her husband, she arrived at the bridge. A couple thousand more people came with us. We froze and began to wait for the multi-colored frenzy.

At 12:00 o'clock at night, the crowd timidly whistled: Happy new year!
-Happy new year, - we answered languidly, having decided to save the main forces for the delight of fireworks. But we waited in vain for the knight near the window - he did not gallop. That is, in general. Somewhere far away on the horizon, either in Queens or on Red Square itself, fireworks flashed. Above our bridge, the moon and stars shone peacefully. I understood everything, but I continued to stare at the sky, afraid to look down at the children. My son, whom I hardly torn away from the computer, and to whom I promised “ best view in the world, ”quickly guessed everything himself.

At that moment, when fireworks stopped flaring even far on the horizon, he looked at me intently and said menacingly: - What is this? What is it like? Why did we come to this stupid bridge, if it’s not clear where the fireworks are? And who told us “Children, today you will see the BEST fireworks in your life????”

I started laughing and couldn't answer. He was disappointed by the lack of fireworks, but I was disappointed by the complete absence of that very day that you have been waiting for all day, on which you have some stupid hopes, which should be the beginning of a new countdown ... And the cars kept driving and driving along the Brooklyn Bridge and the traffic density was the most common - life did not stop here for a second between 11:30 and 12:30 on the night of December 31 to January 1.

Not, there are a lot of parties in the USA that night. And in major cities - New York, LA, Miami, Chicago ... you will be offered the most different variants New Year's celebrations. In the Big Apple, for example, Night at Madame Tussauds. Or a party at Empire Hotel, a ticket for which will cost a very decent amount. Or a party on a ship that sails down the Hudson with a royal four-course dinner and champagne that flows like water.

AT Los Angeles on this day you can take a picture with Santa on the beach, visit a light show - what is Hollywood without special effects?

But this is not all! There is no fuss that I need on this day in the USA! The smell of tangerines does not invigorate and does not remind of anything, and I am the only one who smells them in the whole house. “Olivier” is not a cult salad, and if I translate the story “Enjoy Your Bath” to my Americans, they will ridicule Lukashin for infantilism. Why, when the chimes strike, no one will eat burnt paper with desire! Americans simply kiss each other, thus congratulating on the new year.

All in all, New York at Christmas is amazing and even more - it's beautiful, magnificent, beautiful, however, as at any other time of the year. But on New Year's Eve you have to go somewhere to ours. For at least these two days, when “Olivier” is already creeping out of your ears, and at one in the morning you suddenly find yourself in high heels and in a thin dress flying on a cardboard somewhere into a tree and a snowdrift at the same time.

And no, I don't have nostalgia, I don't yearn for the country where I was born and grew up, I don't want to go back. I'm just so used to it. I like to start the countdown of the new year with a bright night. I like that the whole country, with rare exceptions, starts with a bright night. And separate, albeit very provocative parties, alas, do not reassure me. You leave it with longing, realizing that tomorrow, January 1, is a normal working day in the country, and that neither your American husband nor your American children will eat Olivier in the morning, wrapped in a blanket, that no one will knock on the door. at the door with a bottle of cold champagne, and will not offer to continue celebrating ...

PS By the way, the Chinese celebrate their New Year on the same scale as we do. And because they in the United States suffer from misunderstanding. Although in the same New York, in honor of their New Year, everyone is given one day off. And yet no. The scope is not the same. It's a pity.

Opinion I The most boring day of the year or why you shouldn't celebrate the New Year in the USA updated: August 20, 2019 by: Marina Sokolovskaya

Video site

New Year in the United States of America is celebrated on the night of December 31st to January 1st. In terms of popularity, this holiday is inferior to catholic christmas(December 25). Unlike Christmas, which is a family celebration, most Americans celebrate the New Year in public, with friends at parties, carnivals, clubs and casinos.

The most popular place to celebrate the New Year is Times Square in New York. Here is the most spectacular action in the country - the descent of the ball of time (Times Square Ball). On December 31 at 23.59 it is lowered from a height of 23 meters along the flagpole. The ball reaches its lowest point at midnight, which is considered the beginning of the New Year. For the first time this action took place in 1907. His spectacle appealed to the Americans, and the descent of the ball of time has become an annual tradition. The design of this New Year's attribute has changed more than once over the years. In 1907, it was a structure made of metal, wood and incandescent lamps. The modern ball consists of triangular crystal panels and thousands of LEDs.

Other U.S. cities have begun holding their own variations of the ceremonial lowering. Christmas ball. Instead of a ball, they use local symbols: images of animals, plants, fruits, cars. In Atlanta, a giant peach is used, in Raleigh, an image of a brass acorn, in Strasbourg, a ping-pong ball, in Plymouth, a slice of cheese.

Traditions and rituals

On New Year's Eve, Americans take stock of the outgoing year: reflect on what has been done and what has failed. Everyone tries to make a list of important things to do for the next year: go to college, quit smoking, sign up for dances, visit another country, change housing, car or job.

A traditional New Year's attribute in the United States is Baby - a baby in a diaper. It grows and ages throughout the year. At the end, he becomes an old man and transfers his powers to the next newborn. Americans love the image of a baby in a diaper. They often use it in New Year's shows, souvenirs and postcards.

In America, it is not customary to give gifts for the New Year. They are presented to relatives and relatives on Catholic Christmas.

history of the holiday

On the territory of modern America, the New Year began to be celebrated in the 17th century, when colonists from Holland arrived on these lands. They introduced their own traditions and rituals. The cult of Indian pagan gods has been ousted from society for centuries. Only in the 20th century, during carnivals and parades, people began to use their bizarre images in their festive costumes.

New Year decoration

The New Year is preceded by Catholic Christmas, so the houses, streets and squares of US cities take on a festive look in early December. Americans decorate shop windows with fabulous New Year's compositions that delight the eyes of passers-by and attract buyers. Christmas trees are set up in the central squares of cities. The country's main Christmas tree is located in New York at Rockefeller Plaza. They begin to mount it from mid-November. Americans are looking forward to the lighting ceremony of the main Christmas tree, which traditionally takes place on the last day of autumn. This tradition began in the 1930s. Tens of thousands of citizens and tourists gather on the square to watch this spectacular spectacle.

the day before new year holidays Americans also decorate homes. They install fir trees in living rooms, decorate the facades of houses with shimmering garlands, hang a Christmas wreath on the door, and put figures of deer, Santa Clauses, and snowmen in the yards.

Festive table

For most Americans, New Year's is a public holiday. In the United States, it is not customary to set a luxurious table of festive dishes. Those residents of the country who stay at home on New Year's Eve prefer to put various casseroles and light snacks on the table. For dessert, they serve sweet puddings and pies. From alcoholic drinks, Americans prefer champagne, punch, brandy.

Cities and resorts

New Year's holidays in the USA are celebrated in a fun and big way. Carnivals and parades that take place on New Year's Eve will amaze guests with their entertainment.

New York is the center of the main solemn events of the country and noisy parties. The world famous ball lowering ceremony will leave bright unforgettable emotions.

In the city of Pasadena (California), since January 1, 1890, a grandiose New Year's event "Parade of Roses" has been held. The festival involves dozens of mobile platforms decorated with flowers, orchestras, riders, dancers and musicians. After the parade is over, a college football game takes place at the Rose Bowl Stadium.

The Pantomime Parade in Philadelphia is not inferior in its spectacularity and scale. The open-air show lasts about ten hours and is available to everyone. It involves clowns, jugglers, dancers and musicians dressed in colorful costumes.

Exotic lovers will love the New Year holidays in the Hawaiian Islands. The most popular are the Big Island and Oahu. Tourists who find themselves in the mild and warm Hawaiian climate in winter will feel like they are in paradise. Visitors will be greeted by friendly locals with garlands of flowers. Beautiful nature, sandy coasts of the Pacific Ocean and clear water will not leave vacationers indifferent. Hawaii is a great place for surfing and diving. Restaurants and clubs diversify the rest with parties. The most popular New Year's event in Hawaii is the fire show.

If you ask a resident of any post-Soviet state what main holiday in a year? You will be answered without delay - New Year! But if you ask the same question to an American, then you will surely hear a different answer, because Americans are much more waiting for Christmas, Independence Day, Thanksgiving Day or even Halloweenthan New Year. However, this absolutely does not mean that the New Year in the United States is celebrated modestly. Like any holiday in the US, New Year's celebrations are accompanied by concerts, parades, sales, fairs, fireworks, and more. On the eve of the New Year, let's get acquainted with how this holiday is celebrated in America.

History of New Year's Eve in the United States

The Gregorian calendar was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582. In the British colonies, which consequently became states, new calendar have been in use since 1752. The celebration of the first day of the new year (January 1) in the United States came from Europe, where, according to tradition, this day was associated with festivities and parties.

American New Year Traditions

One of New Year symbols among Americans, is a baby in a diaper. According to legend, New Year's Baby grows and ages within one year. At the end of the year, he becomes an old man and passes on his duties to the next New Year's baby, this happens from year to year.

Another tradition is that many Americans make important decisions or changes that will take effect from the new year. Often these are promises to improve something in your life. For example, quit smoking or drinking alcohol, lose weight, start exercising, make peace with loved ones, etc.

How do Americans celebrate the New Year?

Many Americans enjoy celebrating the New Year at home with their friends and loved ones. Others, on the contrary, attend public events that bring together thousands, and in some places tens and hundreds of thousands of people. These events are accompanied by celebratory cries, car horns, explosions of firecrackers, fireworks, ringing of bells and other means by which you can create a loud noise.

Christmas ball in Times Square

In 1907, a New Year's tradition appeared in New York, which has become famous all over the world today. Every year on December 31 at 23:59 local time, a huge ball descends from a height of 23 meters in Times Square. The ball falls within one minute, and the final 10 seconds are unanimously counted down by people gathered in the square and in front of the TV screens. Exactly at 00:00, the ball reaches its lowest point, which means the onset of a new year. This tradition has become very popular in New York. Many residents and visitors of the city come to Times Square on New Year's Eve to see this action, and the TV audience of this project has more than 1 billion viewers.

Other cities and towns in the United States began to hold their own version of the fall of the New Year's ball. Only instead of the ball, objects associated with local symbols are used. For example, a copy of a domestic or wild animal, fruits, vegetables, cars, industrial equipment, etc. Atlanta, Georgia uses a giant replica peach instead of a ball, Raleigh, North Carolina uses a 900-pound brass acorn, and Strasbourg, Pennsylvania uses a ping-pong ball.

Public life in the USA during the celebration of the New Year

New Year in the USA is considered official holiday, therefore, January 1, as in the CIS countries, is a day off. On this day, government offices, schools, colleges, as well as many state-owned enterprises are closed. Public transport operates according to the holiday schedule. But December 31 is not an official holiday, however, in some states, such as Kentucky, Michigan and Wisconsin, the last day of the year is considered a day off.

In conclusion, I would like to note that the United States has 6 time zones, so while New Yorkers are already sleeping soundly, Honolulu residents are just waiting for the chiming clock.

Happy New Year!

When is New Year celebrated in America? and got the best answer

Answer from ZOSIC[guru]
In the United States, the celebration of the New Year is closely associated with the celebration of Christmas (December 25, according to the new style). The New Year itself is not such a big holiday for Americans, and it is celebrated mainly by people from other countries (for example, from the CIS). Americans are likely to celebrate New Year's Eve among friends, watching entertainment programs on TV, or in theaters, nightclubs and restaurants.
Although New Year's Day is officially celebrated on January 1st in the United States, it begins on December 31st. By tradition, until midnight, everyone sees off old year, and then meet the next one. Exactly at midnight, after the ringing of bells, fireworks take off into the air, champagne corks, howling sirens and car horns announce the beginning of the New Year. People hug and kiss each other, wish happiness. Americans have champagne on their tables (drinking a glass of sizzling drink at midnight is an established tradition) and snacks - nuts, cheese, cookies. It is not customary to eat and drink, and gifts are not given that night. In the outgoing year, sentimental Americans sing an old song written back in the 18th century called “Auld Lang Syne” (approximate translation is “Good Old Times”). It is a good tradition to sing about friends and old times.
Parades are held in some major cities in the United States on January 1st. Admittedly, the most cheerful and numerous of them is the New Year's parade in New York's Times Square.

Answer from Yatiana Kolupaeva[newbie]
New year in the USA (eng. New Year's Day) is one of public holidays countries. It is celebrated on January 1 of each year according to the Gregorian calendar. Despite the fact that the popularity of the New Year is inferior to the Catholic Christmas, especially in more religious and conservative rural areas, in a number of cities in the United States, their own new year traditions. By the way, Christmas and New Year in the USA differ greatly in their spiritual content. Christmas is an important intra-family holiday, filled with religious symbolism, and New Year's Eve is public and often takes place as a party with friends in a club, casino, or city square. Most of the country 's casinos offer free champagne toasts in their lobby on New Year 's Eve . The English Puritans were introduced to the celebration of the New Year by the more liberal Dutch colonists, the founders of New York, so it is in this city that the celebration of the New Year is of the most solemn nature. Its main meeting place is Times Square, where on New Year's Eve, more than a hundred thousand people wait for the descent of a shiny ball - a symbol of the New Year.

Answer from Dasha Vereyutina[expert]
In general, on the night of December 25-26. But visitors to America celebrate like everyone else on the night of December 31 to January 1