Where does the word Hogmanay come from?
Hogmanay is the Scottish New Year, celebrated on 31st December every year. Never being slow to spot a good excuse for a party, the night involves a celebratory drink or two, fireworks and the kissing of complete strangers - not necessarily in that order. Where did the word Hogmanay come from? Nobody knows for sure. Various suggestions have been made over the years and they all sound pretty good from where we are sitting:

• from the Gaelic oge maidne ("new morning")
• A Flemish combo of hoog ("high" or "great"), min ("love" or "affection") and dag ("day")
• Anglo-Saxon Haleg Monath ("Holy Month")
• Norman French word hoguinané("gift at New Year")

Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.