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Happy New Year 2016: How Americans Celebrate New Year’s Eve And Day [Videos, Photos]

By Charisse Van Horn
Published on: 02:18 PST, Dec 31, 2015

“Happy New Year 2016!” The shouts and fireworks have already cracked the sky in Sydney, Australia, and New Zealand while London and Paris are soon to follow. As the U.S. prepares for New Year’s Eve, celebrations have already taken place on the other side of the globe, and shouts of “Happy New Year 2016” have permeated the air. This year, there is an ominous threat over many New Year’s activities and events worldwide, and that is terrorism. In the U.S., extra security is underway to ensure that the nation’s biggest events continue in the safest settings possible.

According to CNN, extra security measures are already in place at New York’s Times Square and Los Angeles, where the Rose Bowl and Parade of Roses will take place. As we approach 2016 with a careful and watchful eye, it’s a good time to reflect on how Americans celebrate New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day and ask whether terrorism will impact the way people celebrate. As Americans leave 2015 behind, we can be certain that from the east coast to the west and from the north to the south, exclamatory shouts will be heard of “Happy New Year 2016.”

Celebrating the global appeal of the holiday, Twitter created a “Happy New Year 2016” video that says “Happy New Year” with a fireworks symbol in over 35 languages!

In America, young and old alike will shout “Happy New Year 2016,” and everyone celebrates New Year’s in different ways. Schools are canceled for the winter holidays, so many children are able to stay up until the clock strikes midnight, although many do fall asleep before the midnight countdown. Similar to the young, the elderly may also engage in New Year’s Eve festivities, but might fall asleep before the clock strikes midnight. Many, from late teens and up, might revel in the festivities through partying, drinking, dancing, and honoring the New Year with a celebratory kiss that culminates with fireworks, blasts from car horns, whistles and shouts of “Happy New Year.”

There are events scheduled across the country, and the threat of terrorism may have increased security but hasn’t slowed the festivities down. People are planning parties and many will watch New Year’s Eve: Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin Eve’ 16 that precedes the Waterford Crystal ball drop in NYC’s Times Square. With the advent of the internet and mobile technology, people worldwide can watch the events live streaming from their phones, computers, and mobile devices, such as tablets, rather than attending in person. As the ball drops, loud shouts will fill New York’s Times Square with “Happy New Year 2016!”

The way Americans will say “Happy New Year 2016!” is often determined by budget. Most people determine their expressions of celebration based upon how much they have to spend. Parties can be small, intimate gatherings or large block parties. Some may choose to travel to New York City for the events that take over Times Square, but this too can be an expensive ordeal. The price of a New Year’s Eve meal can skyrocket during to the holiday. Fortunately, it doesn’t cost anything to celebrate New Year’s Eve, and that may be one of the reasons the holiday is so popular.

Firework displays are often hosted by communities and cities and can easily be attended. Those who want to stay indoors can celebrate quietly in their own homes, and no one will be none the wiser if they begin shouting “Happy New Year 2016” behind closed doors. The way Americans celebrate New Year’s Eve varies from one person to the next, but there is a universal sense of excitement and a new chance at life as the New Year comes.

How will you celebrate New Year’s Eve? Where will you be when you shout “Happy New Year 2016”?

[Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images]

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