Have you heard about these unusual New Year traditions?
M3 India Newsdesk Jan 02, 2022
M3 India wishes you a Happy New Year!
New Year’s is one of the few celebrations that the whole world enjoys. Unfortunately, our social lives have come to a standstill because of the pandemic this year, but that need not dampen our spirits or our hope that the coming year should allow for more travel, giving you a chance to plan ahead for the next one, to participate in some lesser known but interesting customs observed by different countries.
Here’s a quick read for you to know what kind of New Year traditions exist in the world.
‘Keeping a new year resolution’ is customary for people around the world today. However, did you know that it was once New York’s most popular tradition? Nations worldwide follow some or the other tradition to mark the onset of the New Year. Mind you, not all are as simple as partying on New Year’s Eve! You will find some outright entertaining, some ridiculously silly and some mind-numbingly bizarre customs, too.
New year traditions related to food
- Ice cream on the floor and bread on the wall: The people of Switzerland mark the occasion by (hold your breath) dropping ice-cream on the floor. Insane, isn’t it? As if that wasn’t surprising enough, the Irish folk take bread and throw it at walls with all their might. Apparently, the act helps get rid of the evil.
- No wasting food in France: In fact, the French love their food, so they merrily enjoy a feast on New Year’s Eve. The feast is called ‘Le Réveillon de la Saint-Sylvestre’, which features pancakes and foie gras along with champagne among other traditional French dishes. They believe that being a part of the feast brings prosperity.
- Food for the spirits: New Year’s Eve in Estonia is also a celebration of food, as according to them prosperity and good luck can be attracted by having seven, nine or 12 meals. They also leave behind a little food as an offering for the spirits of their ancestors.
- The 'core' prediction: The Czech seem to be a curious lot. The time around New Year’s, they like to know what the upcoming year looks like, so they cut an apple in half in a way that the core’s shape is revealed. If the core’s cut resembles a star, the year would be a happy one. Feel free to try this one at home.
- Shapes with metal: The Finnish too like to make a prediction for the coming year. Their method is a tad bit different than simply cutting an apple like the Czech. They melt tin and then pour it into a bucket of water. Their prediction then depends upon the shape that they see.
- Pig's feet feast: The Italians want to ensure great luck with money and they believe eating pig’s feet and lentils just after midnight is a sign of prosperity.
- Finders keepers: In Norway, families make rice pudding with one almond thrown in. They believe that whoever gets a bowl of the dessert with the almond would be the luckiest of them. Likewise, the Bolivians bake sweets with coins in them. The finder, it seems, would have all the good luck for the coming year.
Using food for attracting abundance or ensuring good luck sounds whimsical to an extent, superstitious even. But what you are about to read now are actual superstitions that are consciously observed even today.
New year traditions based on folklore and superstitions
- The Danes stock old crockery till the New Year’s Eve. Upon the onset, they throw and break the plates or glasses on the doors of their friends in the neighbourhood or family in order to get rid of evil spirits.
- Communities in Puerto Rico,on the other hand, believe that throwing buckets full of water out of the window will drive bad spirits away.
- While some want to focus on the evil, there are others doing simple things to attract good luck and great health; like the Austrians, who give each other lucky charms, shaped as horseshoes, pigs, clover leaf, etc. on New Year’s Day.
- People in Romania throw coins in the river for good luck.
- Whereas people in Philippines use and wear everything that’s round in shape; shape of the coins. This includes serving round food items to wearing polka dots.
Some more to crack you up- Funny New Year’s traditions (or not, you decide)
We found some traditions quite funny. However, we wonder, whether or not the people who follow them, find them funny!
- The cattle-rearers in Belgium wish their cows a happy new year! The farmers in Romania whisper lovingly in to their cows ears the on New Year’s day. If they can (we don’t know how they think they can), it would be a good year for them.
- The Colombians wish to travel every New Year. With such a hope in their hearts, they lug around suitcases all-day long.
- The Thai like to throw water on each other! If you are in Thailand on New Year’s, you will probably find yourself amidst people drenched in water or with grey faces. That’s because, their custom requires them to throw water at each other and/or smear each other’s faces with grey powder.
- The Greeks hang an onion on the main door of their homes. Apparently it signifies rebirth. But that’s not all! On the morning of the New Year, the children in homes are woken up by their parents tapping an onion on their heads. (Now was switching off the fan to wake up children a better idea?)
Now let’s look at some interesting traditions for the New Year’s
- We saw how the Danes want to throw crockery on doors, but there’s more. At midnight, just when the clock strikes 12, the people climb up chairs and jump on the floor, as if literally ‘jumping into the next year’ for good luck.
- If you are the first person to enter a Scottish home in the morning of the New Year, you are supposed to carry a gift.That’s a sign of good luck for the host.
- The Russians like to have champagne before it’s midnight. But they keep a little behind before it is midnight. Just when the clock starts chiming, they write down their wishes on paper, burn it, gather the ash and mix it in their glass of champagne and drink it before the last stroke of 12 on the clock.
And we have kept the best for last: Some Bizarre New Year’s traditions
Confetti of old documents: The people of Buenos Aires, Argentina stack up old documents until the 31st of December. They then shred them tiny and throw them out the window at around noon. By afternoon, you can see the city’s lanes covered in bits of paper.
Grapes and yellow underwear: The people of Chile eat 12 grapes for the 12 chimes of a clock at midnight. Sounds sane enough to you? Read this: everyone also wears a yellow underwear that night to attract good fortune. However, until midnight, they wear it inside out and thereafter, they wear it the right way.
Cemetery sleepover: On the other hand, there are families in Chile who sleep at the cemetery, where their ancestors or loved ones were buried.
Burning effigies: In Panama, the people believe that burning effigies of the famous on New Year’s will bring them good luck.
Waiting for a stranger: The Scots look out for a strong young man at midnight, hopefully holding a bottle of whiskey, a piece of coal and a loaf of raisin bread. If he comes to their doorstep, they will have a great year. We wonder if such men actually move around at night carrying such goods!
Have you witnessed any of the above customs yourself? If not, you should plan a getaway to any of these countries around New Year's next year!
This article was originally published on January 1, 2020.
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