New Year’s is a time to reflect on the past and start fresh.
To set a good tone for the new year many people make resolutions, while some people participate in traditions to bring them good luck.
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We’ve compiled a list of New Year’s traditions from around the world, check them out below.
Southern Superstitions
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It is a common practice in the southern United States to eat black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day. The beans and leafy greens represent coins and money symbolizing luck, knowledge, and wealth. The tradition stems from several places including West Africa, Europe, and the south. Over the years the traditions have morphed together and can be seen in dishes like Hoppin’ John or Cowboy Caviar. There are several ways of preparing the dish, but the most important part is the black-eyed peas.
Round and Round
Circles are thought to bring prosperity in the new year, which is why several cultures eat round foods or wear polka dots on New Year’s Eve. In the Philippines it is tradition to eat 12 round fruits, one for each month, to ensure a good year.
Brazilian Beliefs
The Portuguese-speaking country has a few superstitions for the new year. White is worn on New Year’s Eve to invite good luck and peace into people's lives. If you’re feeling extra lucky, it is also common for people to run into the ocean and jump over waves. Make sure you know what you want because you get one wish for each wave.
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TikTok Trends
You may remember the trends of people sitting under tables eating 12 grapes or running around the house with an empty suitcase. These trends stem from Latin countries and invite different luck into the new year. Eating 12 grapes at the stroke of midnight comes from Spain. While most participants expected it to help them find love in the new year, the 12 grapes are supposed to bring you luck. However, if you don’t finish all 12 grapes before the bells finish chiming you might not be granted the good fortune. In Columbia, people walk around the block with empty suitcases to encourage travel in the new year.
Smashing Good Time
Watch your step, smashing plates or fruit on doorsteps is common in some cultures. In Denmark, people smash plates on friends' and families’ doors to release any negative energy and wish them good luck in the new year. Similarly in Greece. families smash pomegranates on doorsteps. It is believed that pomegranates represent abundance and fertility.
Make Some Noise
This food tradition is a little different. In Ireland, families bang stale Christmas bread on the walls to chase bad spirits out of the home. Some people bang pots and pans for the same idea, and the tradition is celebrated in other places like the UK and Australia.
Similarly in Japan, temples around the country ring the bells 108 times to represent the cleansing of 108 worldly possessions.
Wish Everyone Good Luck
Make sure everyone has a good year, even the livestock. It's tradition to rise early and wish a “Happy New Year’ to all the farm animals in Belgium, so they have a good farming year.
Don’t Get Burned
Most people pop some bubbly for the occasion, but in Russia, they add something special to their glasses. People will write a wish on a piece of paper and burn it, then they place the ashes into their champagne glass.
Leap Into the New Year
Starting the New Year in Denmark is very literal. At midnight people will line up on chairs and jump “into the New Year” at midnight.
Open a Window
Leaving the windows and doors open allows the past year to leave and ushers in the New Year. This tradition is practiced in many places, but in Puerto Rico, they dump a bucket of water out the window and sprinkle some sugar to attract good luck.
FAQs
If you want to keep with Southern tradition, eating black-eyed peas and collard greens on New Year's Day will supposedly bring good luck and prosperity, respectively, in the months ahead.
How can I make my new year lucky? ›
7 New Year's Good Luck Traditions Around the World
- Keep your money under the carpet.
- Burn an “old man.”
- Turn the oven on and music up.
- Do good. Eat good.
- Wave bad luck goodbye.
- Fill your house with money - and some round fruit.
- Pop some grapes and grab a suitcase.
Popular rituals include serving food that symbolizes good fortune and making resolutions concerning what one hopes to accomplish in the next year. When the clock strikes 12:00 AM and the new year begins, people may cheer, toast with champagne, kiss loved ones, and, in the West, sing the ballad “Auld Lang Syne.”
Why shouldn't you wash laundry on new year's Day? ›
Don't wash those clothes
This is an odd one. According to folklore, if you wash clothes on New Year's Day, you'll be “washing for the dead” or washing a loved one away -- meaning someone in your household will die in the coming year. Get your laundry washed, dried, folded and put away by New Year's Eve.
What is the most common ritual on new year's Eve? ›
Watching the ball drop in Times Square, listing out resolutions, and sharing a toast and a kiss when the clock strikes 12 are all fairly traditional ways to spend New Year's Eve.
What foods are superstitious for New Years? ›
Along with black-eyed peas, some cultures believe that grapes, noodles, pork, or pomegranates can be considered lucky when eaten on New Year's.
What not to do on New Year's Day? ›
Don't Clean the House on New Year's Day - You will wash away any good luck coming your way.
What not to cook on New Years Eve? ›
Lobster, cows, and chicken are all considered unlucky animals to eat on New Year's because of how they move. Read on for more foods superstitious people try to avoid on the holiday.
Can I wash my hair on New Year's? ›
No washing or cutting your hair
It is believed that if you wash your hair on New Year's day, you'd also be washing away all your luck. It's somewhat similar to if you cut your hair, you'd be cutting your life shorter!
What color is supposed to bring you luck in the new year? ›
Wear white
But be sure to add a little bit of color too. Brightly colored underwear is supposed to bring luck in the new year. Red brings love, and yellow (not green) brings money, according to Little Birdies.
If you don't want your luck to fly away in the new year, it's best to avoid any animal that has wings and scratches in the dirt, like turkey or chicken. These birds scratch backward, which can imply dwelling in the past or—even worse—the need to scrape by for your living.
What is the oldest New Year tradition? ›
Though the Babylonian New Year's celebration dated back about 4,000 years, the oldest continually celebrated New Year's holiday is the Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival, that began during China's Shang Dynasty about 3,500 years ago.
What is the New Year's Day food for good luck? ›
A ubiquitous New Year's Day good luck food in Europe and the United States, leafy greens from kale to collards are eaten to represent money and wealth. In the American South, collard greens especially are eaten with two other New Year's good luck foods, black-eyed peas and cornbread, for some extra fortune.
What is often served on New Year's Day for good luck? ›
Black-eyed peas have been linked to luck and good fortune for New Year's since around the Civil War era. Serve them with cornbread and greens for a delicious triple threat of good luck.
What to wear on New Year's Day for good luck? ›
The color green (particularly emerald) attracts prosperity and abundance. Wearing this color as part of your New Year's Eve outfit will help in bringing in money and wealth.
What is a lucky color to wear on New Year's Day? ›
White: New and Pure
Like the first snowfall, white is often linked to purity and serenity. An all-white color scheme will give your New Year's party a clean slate, perfect for new beginnings.
What are you supposed to have on New Year's Day? ›
Greens, pork, and cornbread, as well as black-eyed peas, cowpeas, or beans, are some of the typical symbolic foods served on New Year's Day. When planning your dinner menu, add the Southern foods that some say bring good luck and avoid those that may do just the opposite in the new year.
