In the original Julian calendar, the year started with January, named after Janus, the Roman god of beginnings. He was two-faced, so he looked back at the old year and forward to the new year.

"Originally, January 1 was the date of the new year in the Julian calendar, but after the fall of the Roman Empire, the date gradually changed in various parts of Europe to March 25, to conform with Christian festival of the Annunciation. England adopted March 25th as New Year's day in the twelfth century."

It changed here in 1752 with the adoption of the Gregorian calendar.