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New Year's Traditions From Cultures Around The World
Happy (almost!) New Year!
Whether you’re ringing in New Year’s Eve from some exciting foreign country or at home with family and friends, you probably have a New Year’s tradition or two. Common traditions throughout the United States include singing “Auld Lang Syne” to greet the New Year and eating black-eyed peas for good luck.
Around the world, cultures welcome the change of the calendar with unique New Year’s traditions of their own. Here are some of our favorite New Year’s traditions around the world (we’re especially fans of Colombia’s!).
Spain - In Spain, it is customary to eat 12 grapes – one at each stroke of the clock at midnight on New Year’s Eve. Each grape represents good luck for one month of the coming year. In bigger cities like Madrid and Barcelona, people gather in main squares to eat their grapes together and pass around bottles of cava.
Finland - In Finland, people predict the coming year by casting molten tin into a container of water, then interpreting the shape the metal takes after hardening. A heart or ring means a wedding, while a ship predicts travel and a pig declares there will be plenty of food.
Panama - To drive off evil spirits for a fresh New Year’s start, it is tradition to burn effigies (muñecos) of well-known people such as television characters and political figures in Panama. The effigies are meant to represent the old year.
Philippines - You’ll find round shapes all over the Philippines on New Year’s Eve as representatives of coins to symbolize prosperity in the coming year. Many families display piles of fruit on their dining tables and some eat exactly 12 round fruits (grapes being the most common) at midnight. Many also wear polka dots for luck.
Brazil - In Brazil, as well as other Central and South America countries like Ecuador, Bolivia, and Venezuela, it is thought to be lucky to wear special underwear on New Year’s Eve. The most popular colors are red, thought to bring love in the New Year, and yellow, thought to bring money. (Source)
Colombia - A common tradition in Colombia is to run hard and fast around the house with a suitcase in hand to ensure a year of traveling. Great for someone who suffers from wanderlust.
Denmark - No, the Danes do not smash plates on each other’s doors, despite the Viking-esque rumors. They do, however, stand on chairs and jump off of them at the stroke of midnight. By taking your feet off the ground in the final moments of the year, it is said that you'll leave all the bad spirits behind as you "jump into" a fresh, new year.
Germany - In Germany, many people rub chimney ashes on their foreheads for good fortune and health. Like many Nordic countries, they also indulge in a fortune telling ritual by pouring molten lead into cold water, and the shape of the cooled metal predicts your fortune. Shapes such as a heart or anchor will predict new love or hard times ahead, respectively.
Greece - In Greece, the pomegranate has held strong symbolic meaning since ancient times. A common tradition on New Year's Eve is to throw pomegranates on the ground and break them apart. The more they burst, the more abundance your household will have.
Ireland - A very old custom, and still practiced by some today in Ireland, is for the unmarried women to place mistletoe leaves under their pillow. This is believed to bring good fortune, hoping to find love in the new year.
Mexico - Mexicans celebrate by eating 12 grapes, one for each of the 12 clock chimes at midnight, making a wish with each one. The grapes also represent the 12 months of the new year, and each wish is to ensure a lucky month. However, a sour grape will represent a particularly unlucky month and a wish unfulfilled.
Russia - New Year's Eve is a big deal in Russia and is very similar to how we celebrate Christmas in the West. One wish-making custom on New Year's Eve is to write your wish on a piece of paper, burn it, and mix the ashes in your champagne glass before drinking it at the stroke of midnight.
Scotland - In Scotland, they celebrate Hogmanay, and the most popular tradition is the "first-footing," which involves the first person to "cross the threshold" (enter the front door) of a friend's house that will determine that household's fortune of the new year. The first foot is expected to bring luck-bearing gifts of coal, salt, bread, whiskey and a coin, and enter saying "A happy New Year and good tidings to you and yours!"
United States - Passed down from English and German folklore, Americans kissing their special someone at midnight has been a common tradition said to bring good fortune and erase bitter memories. Originally, it was believed that the first person you encountered at the start of the new year would determine whether you had good or bad luck in the new year, so you'd kiss them to seal the deal. Over time, the custom changed to selecting who you wanted your good fortune to be shared with.
Venezuela - Venezuelans wear bright yellow underwear for luck, and typically showcase it for the world to see. Whether that means wearing underwear on the outside or no pants at all, each are supposedly good luck. Other variations of the same ritual include wearing different colors for what you want to have in the new year: red for love, gold for wealth, and white for peace and a fresh start. (Source)
Japan - Just before midnight on New Year’s Eve, the Japanese eat soba noodles. The Toshikoshi soba, which translates to a “year-crossing” buckwheat noodle dish, has lots of symbolism. The long noodle denotes the crossing from one year to the next. Since it’s an easily cut noodle, it signifies a letting go of the past year’s regrets—a cutting-off, if you will, before the fresh start the new year brings.
France - The French usually ring in the New Year with a huge feast, commonly know as le réveillon de la Saint-Sylvestre. The meal is full of traditional, decadent eats, including foie gras, oysters, lobster and escargot. And just like in the U.S., champagne is the drink of choice.
Italy - Italians love lentils for their coin-like shape, symbolizing luck and prosperity. A New Year’s Eve dinner usually features this legume to bring on luck in the coming year. Pork is often added to lentil dishes in the form of cotechino, a spicy sausage, or zampone, a deboned pig trotter, to represent the plenitude of the land.
Australia - Australians celebrate the New Year with midnight fireworks in cities and towns throughout the country. Firework displays are launched off bridges, such as the Sydney Harbour Bridge, from jetties along the beaches, and on river banks, with the lights of the fireworks sparkling off the water. In a typical year, people pack picnic baskets and arrive hours early to get the best viewing spots. (Source)
England - Church bells are traditionally associated with major public events like royal weddings and it was customary for bells to chime at midnight on New Year’s Eve, accompanied by ships’ horns in ports and people running onto the streets banging pots and pans. Today, the clock tower at the Palace of Westminster and the chimes of Big Ben are icons of the British New Year. (Source)
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i live out in the middle of nowhere in Norway. I dont know if this happens country wide, but where i live, the family get together for a nice meal, similar to christmas dinner,.early evening. we then sit around playing games, some people sharing a bottle of wine.
then just before midnight, you and your neighbours get together and you freeze to death, watching fireworks! nowadays, fireworks seem to be so loud, and for 20 minutes or so, the valley is alight, and sounds like world war ii. (do i sound like an old moany man!!). i do feel for the pets with all the noise though.
it is lovely there is a community spirit here. i have lived in places where you only know your neighbours to say hello to, and not even know their name.
then by approx half past twelve, i have broken all my new years resolutions!!! :)
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Thank you @Elsa for all the information about what the traditions are for New Year's Eve.
In fact, in Germany we often do the so-called lead casting shortly before midnight. In various shops you can buy a set for this. It contains the materials and a small book. The book describes the different shapes and pictures where you can see what your result can mean. Of course, some forms are ambiguous, so there is some room for interpretation. But it's funny and a pastime until we can toast the New Year at midnight.
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Hi @Elsa in Cape Town we usually go to the City Center to see the lights and Coon Carnival. If you can't get into get into the City Center, you can just go to your main street of your suburb, you can watch the troops marching to the City Center. They will march from all over Cape Town. This usually lasts for over a week. If you don't feel like leaving your house, having a braai (BBQ) is the to go and at midnight you light either sparklers or fireworks. Though with covid 19...everything changed.
This is just a drop in the ocean of all the colours you would see, and each Troop would have band playing music.
Thanx for the tag @Diamond Lim
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@Elsa thank you for sharing a little bit of the different counties new year traditions. My family traditions include lots of food and celebration and fellowship. At 12 am we ring in the new years by banging pots and other noise makers and shooting off shot guns. New Year's day is celebrated with a dish of pork and sour kraut for good luck in the new year. And new years day would not be complete without watching the hours long summers parade. Go Ferko Stringband!!!
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Thanks for the tag @Diamond Lim
Thank you @Elsa for sharing the New Years traditions of other countries. In Ecuador we also have some traditions.
Burning of Año Viejo Dolls
A common question we get asked is: What do they burn on new years eve in Ecuador? This is known locally as the año viejo tradition, read on to learn more!
During the week between Christmas and New Year’s, effigies (known locally as Manigotes) of national and international politicians, celebrities and cartoon characters appear outside the houses and gathering places of the cities and small towns across the country.
Donald Trump dressed in jeans and old button-down shirts, Ecuador’s president, Sponge Bob, Speed Racer, and Shrek quietly appear out of the blue streetside. They are made from papier-mache and stuffed with paper and fireworks, waiting for New years evening to arrive. Similar to UK’s “penny for the guy” tradition, it is traditional to donate small change for the best prepared effigy dolls – this of course goes into the drinking fund for the big night.
There is often a more serious story to these life-sized mannequins. They represent the Año Viejo (the old year). So this is a chance to leave behind all of the trials and tribulations of the previous year and welcome better luck in the coming one. For this reason political figures are very common – people remember the bad things that came from politics that year that adversely affected the country.
At the stroke of midnight on the 31st December, the año viejo dolls are set on fire in the street. What better way to bring better fortunes for the country in the new year?
Tradition also dictates that you jump over the resulting fire twelve times to ensure happiness and prosperity in the coming year. Most companies, families or groups of friends have their own doll, so you will see this tradition repeated in the streets across any town or city.
What many people don’t know though is that the aaño viejo ritual originated from tragedy. Back in 1895, a yellow fever epidemic hit Guayaquil, devastating the port city. Family members stuffed coffins with the clothes of the dead and set them alight, symbolizing purification from the disease and new beginnings.
New Year Viudas (Widows)
Viudas translates to the “widow of the old year”. Men across the country dress-up in drag, complete with balloons to accentuate their figures, high heels, short skirts and female wigs. They then take to the streets, stopping traffic to ask for small change before letting commuters continue on with their day.
When the afternoon of the 31st December comes around it can be hard to travel by car in the city due to so many viudas blocking traffic on every block. But it’s all for a good cause – the money that they collect goes into a communal pot to fuel the party later into the night.
What do the women of Ecuador do while their men make fools of themselves? They usually take photos to embaress the men with later in the evening, or are trusted to look after the spoils of their hard work.
Eating of Twelve Grapes
At midnight on New Year’s Eve, families gather and eat twelve grapes per person. This sounds like a curious custom but actually originates in Europe, where the 12 grapes are said to symbolize the twelve apostles. The number 12 could also represent the months of the year.
This tradition does have an interesting Ecuadorian twist though, the 12 grapes must all be eaten during the final minute of the old year! Yes, that’s a lot of grapes to eat in 60 seconds! But the reward for those who manage it is guaranteed good luck in the new year.
Choose the Color of your New Years Underwear carefully!
A lighthearted Ecuadorian tradition on New Years related to the color of the underwear that you use as the clock passes midnight. Vendors crowd the streets selling different colored undergarments. Red is predicted to bring you love in the coming year, while Yellow brings prosperity. Other colors have less significance, but you could always be creative and imagine something for yourself. (Source)
