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Turkey, world welcome 2019 with festive celebrations
Turkey, world welcome 2019 with festive celebrations
Billions across the world, including Turks, celebrated the New Year with festivals, parties, concerts and fireworks. Click through for the story in photos...
Turkey entered the New Year with festive celebrations, eagerly welcoming 2019. As always, Istanbul's Taksim neighborhood was one of the most popular areas for the celebrations.
While leaving 2018 behind, many Turks celebrated the new coming year with enthusiasm on the streets with their beloved ones.
Like every year, firework shows from all over Turkey lit up the sky while the countdown to 2019 started in several cities, including Ankara, İzmir, Bursa and Antalya.
Those who chose to stay indoors for the New Year celebrations had the opportunity to watch TV programs’ special editions on New Year’s Eve. Programs such as “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” and “The Voice Turkey” entertained viewers while they were greeting 2019.
In Turkey, between the years 1926 and 1934, New Year was celebrated on the first weekend after Jan. 1.
But the “Westernization” process which the country underwent under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founding father of modern Turkey, changed this tradition.
In 1935, New Year’s Day became a public holiday. Since then, all public institutions and bodies, along with schools and many businesses, get closed on Jan. 1.
Australia’s largest city Sydney put on its biggest-ever fireworks display to welcome the New Year and kick off a wave of celebrations for billions around the world.
The New Year, obviously, arrives at different times in different countries across the world. The tiny Pacific island of Tonga was the first country to greet 2019.
Here are more photos from around the world...
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