Happy New Year, everyone! May this year bring us all the joy, peace, and success we hope for.
There’s nothing more refreshing than welcoming a brand-new year with brand-new excitement, isn’t it? Though we are the same people living in the same world, the new year makes us look at everything with renewed hope and energy. It’s fascinating how much can change with just a change of calendar!
New years, indeed, are beautiful events. We may live anywhere in the world, but the new year makes us all feel the same way—cheerful and optimistic.
Speaking of the world, do you know that people from different places celebrate the new year with unique traditions? So far, you must have only known about the US new year tradition, which is watching the ball drop in Time Square. But we have many more fun traditions lying low around us.
Some of them are so fascinating that I couldn’t help sharing them with you!
1. Spaniards Eat 12 Grapes
Spain people have an intriguing new year tradition. They welcome the new year by eating 12 grapes; each grape symbolises each strike of the clock.
According to their belief, it repels bad energy and brings luck and prosperity in the coming year. But there’s a twist here. You have to finish all 12 grapes before the last strike at the midnight.
This tradition is called Las doce uvas de la suerte.
2. Danes Throw Plates at Each Other
In Denmark, people throw plates at each other and welcome the new year. Don’t be startled if you happen to be in Denmark and witness this event. It’s a way of wishing good luck to your loved ones. In fact, the more broken plates are at your doorstep, the better luck you will have that year.
I think it’s a way to tell how many well-wishers you have. If you have more well-wishers, you will automatically have more plates broken at your front door. And if you have more good people in life, you are most certainly lucky.
That’s what I make of it!
3. Colombians Place 3 Potatoes Under Beds
Every New Year’s Eve, Colombians keep three potatoes—one fully peeled, one partially peeled, and one unpeeled—under every family member’s bed. The peeled potato symbolises good fortune, the unpeeled one suggests a financial struggle, and the partially peeled one represents a mix of both.
When the clock strikes 12, each person will pick one potato from under their bed with their eyes closed. This tells them their fortune for the coming year.
4. Greek Smash Pomegranates
For Greeks, Pomegranates are a symbol of life, abundance, and fertility. So they have an interesting new year tradition around this fruit.
At midnight, people in Greece smash pomegranates against their front doors. The tradition says that the number of scattered pomegranate seeds you have, the better luck you will see in the year ahead.
5. Germans Melt Lead
This is yet another fascinating new year tradition—lead pouring. On new year’s eve, Germans melt a small piece of lead and pour it into cold water. The substance instantly hardens in the water and forms a shape, which tells the person’s fortune for the new year.
If it’s in the shape of a frog, it meant winning the lottery. Or if it is an épée, a fencing sword, it meant courage to take a risk. And if it’s in the form of a mask, you are welcome everywhere. So on and so forth.
Such fun traditions, aren’t they?
These are not the only fun new year traditions we have around us—there are many more. Apart from the nationwide traditions such as these, each family also have their own little customs. It could be a family trip, a movie night, a cook-off, or something else.
No matter what we do, at the end of the day, all we want is a bit of hope, luck, and cheer.
So do you follow any such new year traditions?
Let us know in the comments!
Happy New Year, once again!
Cheers!