New Year is a public holiday of Ukraine

Celebrated on January 1 every year, it is celebrated on the night of December 31 (Generous Eve) on January 1.

The Slavs' New Year, like that of other Indo-European peoples, began in March, this holiday was closely related to preparations for spring field work. The beginning of the New Year in ancient Russia was associated with the beginning of the spring revival of nature. Most likely, the New Year was celebrated with the appearance of the new moon in the first days of spring, closest to the vernal equinox. At the same time, the year could have both 12 and 13 months. The holiday was named "New Summer".
With the forcible introduction of Christianity in ancient Russia, the Julian calendar was introduced, and the celebration of the New Year was established on March 1, which, according to legend, corresponded to the date of the creation of the world. In Ukrainian lands, a calendar was used that had 13 months that coincided with the lunar phases, and its year began on March 1. Later, the New Year was moved to September 1, in accordance with the decree of the Byzantine Church, and the calendar began from the Creation the world
"Mnogaya leta for the new year" Ukrainian postcard. 1906 year
In the Ukrainian lands that were part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and later the Commonwealth of Nations, since 1362 the beginning of the New Year was set on January 1, and the calendar was counted from Christmas. You can find this system in the Ukrainian chronicles of that time.
As part of the Russian Empire, January 1 was established by Emperor Peter I as the date for celebrating the New Year.
At this time, children went from house to house, carrying a big straw doll Kolyada with them, greeted their owners, and also sang peculiar New Year's songs - shdervkas or carols. In response, the hosts gave gifts to the singing children, as well as to the guests - figurines of animals and birds baked from the dough. In this period of Ukrainian history, Christmas remained the most important holiday of all Ukrainians.

In the years 1930-1947, the New Year in the Soviet Union, as well as in the Ukrainian SSR, was not included in the list of official holidays. However, with the spread of secular views, the New Year replaced Christmas as the main state holiday of Ukrainians of all religious and non-religious worldviews, and the main symbols of the New Year became Santa Claus and the Snow Maiden instead of Saint Nicholas. Most modern Ukrainian New Year's traditions were established during the Soviet occupation of Ukraine.

Ukrainians celebrate the New Year on the night from December 31 to January 1. Since Soviet times, in many homes, it is before the New Year that they put up a Christmas tree (artificial or live), set the festive table and gather with relatives and friends around the table. The holiday dinner usually consists of several dishes, among which there is often (a tradition from Soviet times) Olivier salad, tangerines, and a traditional drink — sparkling wine. With the departure from Soviet times, the festive table becomes more diverse, in particular, steaks, French-style meat, vegetarian meat substitutes, baked turkey or duck, pork tenderloin, Greek salad, etc. have become popular New Year's dishes.
In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and quarantine restrictions, there were no mass celebrations.

Before celebrating the new year, it is necessary to put up a Christmas tree and decorate apartments and houses. There are no exact terms when you have to install the Christmas tree yourself. Someone does it a few days before the celebration, and others on the eve of St. Nicholas Day in early December. The Christmas tree is decorated with toys and garlands. In order for your next year to be happy, you should decorate the Christmas tree with toys of the colors of the symbol of the year according to the Chinese calendar.

According to the latest opinion polls for 2021, 37% of Ukrainians consider the New Year a significant holiday. However, the significance of the traditions of the New Year's celebration has a peculiar color associated with geographical concentration. Thus, mainly in the regions of the south and east of Ukraine, the New Year is considered the most important holiday in the country: 54% in the east and 46% in the south. At the same time, in the west and center of Ukraine, the majority of respondents prefer Christmas (in general, 73% throughout Ukraine).

According to the research conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) in February 2024, 47% of Ukrainians celebrate the New Year as the most popular holiday, while Christmas is 70% and Easter is 68%.