New Year's day ", "yuan" refers to the beginning, is the first point, the beginning of every number is called "yuan";" Denier, "pictographs, the" day "on behalf of the sun, the" a "represents the horizon below." Denier "that the sun rises from the horizon, symbolizes the beginning of a day. People call" yuan "and" denier "two words together, to start on the first day of the New Year. New Year's day is also called" three yuan ", namely, the yuan, the yuan, at the time of yuan. New Year's day is a word begins with the earliest three sovereigns, tang fang xuanling and others write the Book of Jin upload: "xu emperor for Meng Chun in yuan, at that time is: New Year's day in the spring. "That call on the yuan, the first for the denier. Southern liang people LanZiYun dielectric jas poem or cloud:" new New Year's day, four gas Wan Shouchu today. "
There is a legend, is over 4000 years ago the ancient rao war, yao right in diligent people do a lot of good things for the people, is popular with the masses of the people love, but because his son was not out, he didn't pass "son of heaven" the throne to his son, but rather to shun the character can have both. Yao to shun said: "you in the future must hand getting the devotee, wait for after I die also can be at ease with open eyes." Shun later put mercy to flood active yu, yu also like shun his populist did a lot of good for the people, are very popular. After the death of the yao people later ShunDi sacrifice to heaven and earth and emperor yao first on that day, as the day of the beginning of the year, called the homonym for "New Year's day", or "yuan", this is the ancient New Year's day.
元旦”的“元”，指开始，是第一的意思，凡数之始称为“元”;“旦”，象形字，上面的“日”代表太阳，下面的“一”代表地平线。“旦”即太阳从地平线上冉冉升起，象征一日的开始。人们把“元”和“旦”两个字结合起来，就引申为新年开始的第一天。元旦又称“三元”，即岁之元、月之元、时之元。元旦一词最早始于三皇五帝，唐房玄龄等人写的《晋书》上载:“颛帝以孟春正月为元，其时正朔元旦之春。”即把正月称为元，初一为旦。南朝梁人兰子云的《介雅》诗也云:“四气新元旦，万寿初今朝。”
还有个传说，是在4000多年前远古的尧舜盛世之时，尧天子在位时勤政于民为百姓办了很多好事，很受广大百姓爱戴，但因其子无才不太成器，他没把“天子”的皇位传给自己的儿子，而是传给了品德才能兼备的舜。尧对舜说:“你今后一定要把帝位传交好，待我死后也可安心瞑目了。”后来舜把帝位传给了治洪水有功的禹，禹亦像舜那样亲民爱民为百姓做了很多好事，都十分受人爱戴。后来人们把尧死后，舜帝祭祀天地和先帝尧的那一天，当作一年的开始之日，把正月初一称为“元旦”，或“元正”，这就是古代的元旦。
