So, did anyone head out to any New Year’s Eve parties last night? Not surprising, I suppose, since the New Year has been happening on January 1 in many parts of the world for quite some time. Exactly how long depends on what country you’re in.
The early Romans considered March 1 the first day of the year, which is why September, October, November, and December mean 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th month respectively. In 153 B.C.E, however, the New Year was set at January 1. Even though that’s the same date that many people use today, its adoption (like that of the Gregorian Calendar) wasn’t completely straightforward. Click to discover all the different dates for the New Year, and the confusion resulting from neighboring countries starting the year at different times.
Happy New Year! The month January (originally Ianuarius) is named for the Roman God Janus, who represents beginnings and endings and is often shown with two faces, as with this bust in the Vatican. As months go, January is a latecomer to the calendar party: the Roman Calendar used to consist of ten months beginning in March, which explains why the names of the months September, October, November, and December mean 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th month respectively. These ten months had a total of 304 days, and then there was an indeterminate period of “winter” (which sounds about right, for those of us living in the northern climes) . 
360 