Discover interesting New Year's Traditions from around the world
Which one will you try next year?
Scotland 🏴
During Scotland’s Hogmanay, or New Year’s Eve celebration, they practice the “first-footing”. The first person who crosses a threshold of a home in the New Year should carry a gift for luck. Scots also hold bonfire ceremonies with parades of people swinging giant fireballs on poles. Supposedly, these symbolize the sun and are brandished to purify the coming year.
Japan 🇯🇵
Just before midnight on New Year’s Eve, the Japanese enjoy eating soba noodles. The Toshikoshi soba, which translates to a “year-crossing” buckwheat noodle dish is a staple. The long noodle denotes the crossing from one year to the next. Since the noodles are easily cut, they symbolize letting go of the past year’s regrets — a sort of cutting-off point - before the fresh start the new year.
Spain 🇪🇸
In Spain, on the last 12 gongs before the New Year, people eat 12 green grapes to bring good luck in the coming year. It’s thought to be bad luck if you can’t eat them all by the final midnight chime. But gobble them down in time and 12 months of good fortune will come your way.
Italy 🇮🇹
Italians have a tradition of wearing red underwear to ring in the new year. In Italian culture, the color red is associated with fertility, and so people wear it under their clothes in the hopes that it will help them conceive in the coming year.
Learn about Swiss traditions here
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