Hindu new year is not diwali. It varies by region, and is usually around March. Diwali is a harvest festival after the monsoon crops.
[en.m.wikipedia.org]

All cultures have their own method of keeping track of time. When I was teaching on the Hopi Indian Reservation, the New Year was the beginning of the planting season. It occurs in January when the sun can be seen rising in the exact center of a rock formation on the eastern side of the Hopi valley, known as the sun alter.

It is decided and declared by a specific priest who resides on First Mesa. Sixteen days after this declaration, bean sprouts are planted and kept in the kiva until the actual planting time occurs. This marks the start of the religious cycle and a new year.

I don't know about the forewarning, but personally I enjoyed the information provided by St. Sinner. I knew some and learned some new tidbits of info. Nothing wrong with that.

Great post, xmas, new years and all that crap is only because the xtians happened to win another war they started. Such bullshit because the whole xtian thing was plagiarized from earlier made up bullshit.

It is 5779 on the Hebrew calendar.

Have a great and safe new year, which ever one you choose to observe.

You lost me at "don't start doing....." Gee, I can roll my eyes only so much !!!!!!.... Here's what I know.... IamNOT Jew, Chinesse, African, Cambodian, Thai (I wish I was though), Dravidian ( whatever that is) or Islamic. Last but not least, I'll celebrate whatever the hell I want, you can do the same.

Starting a new year on April 13 is like starting a new day at 4:35 in the afternoon.

I hope you have a wonderful New Year! ☺

Since I can actually see a year pass and we need a date to make it official might as well use the system the local banks do. That way we all wish each other a happy new year and bitch about remembering to write a new year during the same part of the year instead of spread out over 12 months. It's a cultural bonding ritual thingie and much less annoying that way.

But my actual, official year change is on my birthday, which is a handy way to celebrate the passing of every year twice instead of once. We humans are just so freaking clever.

I can't speak for those other religions, but Rosh Hashanah in fact starts on the first day of the Hebrew month of Tishrei - which on the Gregorian calendar can fall anywhere between the 5th of September and the 5th of October rather than beginning on either the 1st of September or October. Also, it only lasts for two days, not ten - though the Yamim Noraim or High Holy Days, which are usually considered to begin with Rosh Hashanah and end with Yom Kippur, do last for ten days which is probably the source of the error. (Incidentally, some Jewish people consider the Yamim Noraim to begin at Rosh Chodesh Elul in the month preceding Tishrei, in which case they last for forty days.)

It's also worth noting that Rosh Hashanah is just one of four Jewish New Years - there is also 1 Nisan which is the New Year for kings and the date from which months are counted (which is why Rosh Hashanah - and thus Hebrew calendrical years - starts in the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar instead of the first), 1 Elul which is the New Year for cattle tithes, and 1 Shivat which is the New Year for trees.

I just want Barbara Walters to say "It's now 2020!" .

Plus you do realize it's a new decade and all?

Well, I'll take all of them, thank you...

Any excuse at all to have or join a party. About a million people are about to agree with me at Time's Square in about four day's time and there isn't a single thing you can do about it!