January 1 Birthday
January 1 is the universal fresh start. New Year's Day carries the weight of resolutions and the lightness of hangovers, a strange duality that defines the modern celebration. Historically, not every culture started the year in January — Romans moved the new year to January in 153 BCE, but medieval Europe often used March or December. The Gregorian calendar standardized January 1 globally only in the 16th century, and some countries held out much longer. England and its colonies did not adopt January 1 as New Year's Day until 1752. Before that, the legal new year began on March 25, the Feast of the Annunciation. The psychological reset we feel on this day is a cultural construct, but a powerful one. People born on January 1 fall under the zodiac sign of Capricorn. The birthstone is Garnet and the birth flower is Carnation. Historical events on January 1 include 1863: Emancipation Proclamation issued by Lincoln, 1908: First New Year's ball drop in Times Square, 1985: First .com domain registered (symbolics.com). Famous people born on January 1 include J. Edgar Hoover (1895), Betsy Ross (1752), Pope Alexander VI (1431).