Old New Year

Culture of origin: Christian · Cultural

Holiday sources: Eastern Orthodox

Old New Year is the informal New Year of the Julian calendar, 1 January Julian, which is 14 January until 2100 and 15 January from 2101. Russians, Serbs, Georgians, Ukrainians, Macedonians and Middle Eastern Christians among others keep it; in Russia it is a family holiday with a large meal though not a public holiday, in Serbia it brings concerts and fireworks, and in North Macedonia, where it is also Vasilica (St Basil's day), a pita with a coin inside brings luck to whoever finds it. In the church the day is the Circumcision of Christ, one of the great feasts outside the twelve.