The modern celebration of January 1 as New Year's Day traces directly to ancient Roman pagan traditions, not biblical or divine command.
• Early Roman Calendar: The original Roman calendar (attributed to Romulus, ~8th century BCE) had only 10 months, starting with March (named after Mars, god of war) and ending in December. Winter months were unnamed and not counted formally.
• Numa Pompilius's Reforms (~715–673 BCE): The second king of Rome added January