When Was The First New Year Celebration?

MessageToEagle.com –  The earliest known New Year celebrations were in Mesopotamia and date back to 2000 B.C. Following the first new moon after the vernal equinox in late March, the Babylonians of ancient Mesopotamia would honor the rebirth of the natural world with a multi-day festival called Akitu.

During the Akitu, statues of the gods were paraded through the city streets, and rites were enacted to symbolize their victory over the forces of chaos. Through these rituals the Babylonians believed the world was symbolically cleansed and recreated by the gods in preparation for the New Year and the return of spring.

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