New Year is a worldwide celebration, with people gathering to reflect on the past and look forward to the year ahead.
However, aside from the usual fireworks and parties, there are various other fun – and slightly less conventional! – New Year traditions that take place.
From eating 12 raisins at the stroke of midnight to walking around with empty suitcases, here are 13 New Year’s celebrations from around the world.
What’s the history of New Year celebrations?
Civilisations have celebrated the start of each New Year around the world for at least four millennia. Today, most New Year’s celebrations begin on 31st December and continue into the early hours of 1st January. Various traditions take place – from parties and fireworks to feasting and making resolutions for the New Year. But how did we get here?
The earliest recorded New Year’s celebrations can be traced back around 4,000 years, to ancient Babylon. Babylonians marked the first new moon after the vernal equinox (a day in late March that has equal amounts of sunlight and darkness) with a large religious festival called ‘Akitu’. Involving a ritual on each of its 11 days, plus the New Year celebrations, it was during Akitu that a new king would be crowned.
As history progressed, world civilisations developed increasingly sophisticated calendars – often linking the first day of the year with an agricultural or astronomical event. For example, in Egypt, the year began with the flooding of the Nile.
The early Roman calendar consisted of 304 days and 10 months, with each new year beginning at the vernal equinox. However, over the centuries, the calendar began to fall out of sync with the sun. So, in 46 BC, Julius Caesar, with the help of prominent mathematicians and astronomers of the time, introduced the Julian calendar – which is similar to the more modern Gregorian calendar used by most countries today.
As part of the reform, Caesar set 1st January as the first day of the year – partly in honour of Janus, the Roman god of beginnings, who the month was named after.
13 New Year’s celebrations from around the world
Although most of the world rings in the New Year with some form of festivities, we don’t all celebrate in the same way. We’ll take a look at some different New Year’s celebrations below.
1. Various countries – eating 12 lucky foods
Eating foods considered lucky is a New Year’s Eve tradition in many countries. It’s common for people to gather around tables and feast together – eating foods believed to bring luck and prosperity for the year to come.
In Italy, this means eating 12 spoonfuls of lentils; while in Portugal, Spain, and much of Latin America, many people eat 12 grapes or raisins – one for each chime of the clock at midnight.
Germany turns to marzipan-shaped pigs, the French enjoy stacks of pancakes, and, in the Netherlands, many people eat doughnuts or other ring-shaped foods.
In Estonia, some people have up to 12 meals on New Year’s Eve – believing you’ll gain the strength of that many men for the year ahead.
2. Cuba – throwing a bucket of water out of the front door
In Cuba, it’s traditional for people to symbolically gather up all of the negative energy and bad spirits from the past 365 days and ‘throw’ them out of the front door.
It’s not uncommon to see people throwing buckets of dirty water out of their homes during the midnight countdown – so watch out if you find yourself strolling through a Cuban neighbourhood on New Year’s Eve!
3. United States of America – watching the ball drop
Of the many celebrations that take place across America to celebrate New Year’s Eve, the New York City ball drop is undoubtedly one of the most famous traditions.
Beginning at 6pm with the lighting and raising of the ball, every year, millions of people gather on the streets of Times Square (or tune in at home) to watch the ball drop when the clock turns midnight. There’s a full programme of fireworks and live entertainment that takes place alongside it, too.
The first New Year’s Eve ball drop was in 1907, organised by Adolph Ochs. Owner of the New York Times, Ochs wanted to promote the new Times headquarters.
4. Mexico – walking around with an empty suitcase
In Mexico, one New Year’s Eve tradition is designed to help welcome a new year filled with travel and fresh experiences.
It’s common to see people walking around with an empty suitcase; or to have one set in the middle of a room for people to walk around. Those willing to take it further may take their empty luggage on a walk around the block!
5. Scotland – celebrating Hogmanay
Christmas was virtually banned in Scotland for around 400 years. So, to this day, New Year is generally considered the most important holiday in Scotland.
Until the 1950s, most Scots worked over the Christmas period and celebrated at New Year instead – in what came to be known as Hogmanay.
Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Festival has evolved to be one of the greatest outdoor New Year’s Eve celebrations in the world. You can expect everything from fireworks and live concerts to outdoor street parties and voices gathering to sing ‘Auld Lang Syne’.
6. The Philippines – eating round fruits and wearing polka dots
Wearing polka dots and eating round fruits are two New Year’s Eve traditions in the Philippines believed to bring prosperity and good fortune in the coming year.
The circular pattern of polka dots represents coins and wealth – resembling financial stability. Similarly, eating 12 round fruits – one for each month of the year – symbolises a year of abundance. Popular examples include oranges, grapes, melons, apples, kiwis, and watermelons.
Another tradition practised by both Filipino adults and children to help you grow taller in the new year is to jump as high as you can when the clock strikes on 1st January!
7. Greece – hanging up and smashing pomegranates
A Greek custom known as Podariko, which roughly translates to ‘good foot’, is believed to bring luck in the New Year.
Before New Year’s Eve, many households hang pomegranates (a symbol of luck, prosperity, and fertility) on their door. Then, just before midnight on New Year’s Eve, everyone turns off the lights and leaves the house, before sending one lucky person to be the first to reenter the house – right foot first.
Afterwards, another person will take the pomegranate in their right hand and smash it against the door to reveal how much luck they have acquired. The more seeds that spill out, the more luck the new year is thought to have in store…
8. Germany – melting lead
In Germany, it’s long been customary to heat small pieces of lead, before casting them into cold water to make a prediction for the year ahead based on the shapes that form. For example, if a ball forms, it’s believed that your luck may roll away.
These days, many German-speaking countries sell kits including tin figurines to melt, rather than lead. The tradition is also common in countries like Finland, Bulgaria, and the Czech Republic.
9. Ireland – setting an extra place at the table
There are several Irish New Year’s traditions, which include starting the year with a freshly cleaned home and banging the outside walls of houses with bread to keep away bad luck.
However, one of the most common and well-known is setting an extra place at the dinner table for any loved ones lost in the past year.
10. Italy and Spain – wearing red underwear
Wearing red underwear on New Year’s Eve is a tradition in Spain and Italy.
The belief can be traced to the tradition of celebrating New Year with symbols of positivity, luck, and good fortune – as red is associated with energy, passion, and prosperity.
11. Japan – exchanging lucky charms at a temple
New Year in Japan is usually celebrated with a visit to a local temple, where people exchange last year’s lucky charms for new ones.
Afterwards, communities enjoy feasting on traditional New Year foods, including prawns and herring roe – which are believed to signal long life and boost fertility.
12. Spain – searching for a man with many noses
In the Catalonia region of Spain, a special character, known as the man with many noses, appears on the last day of the year.
According to legend, the man with many noses has as many noses as there are days left in the year…and, if you can find him, he grants wishes. For fun, children are encouraged to look for him – rarely realising that he’ll be incredibly tricky to spot as on the last day of the year, he only has one nose!
13. Brazil – wearing white clothing to jump over sea waves
The tradition of wearing white on New Year’s Eve has its roots in Africa. However, in Brazil, this custom has become part of a wider celebration known as the Festa de Lemanja.
On New Year’s Eve, the Festa de Lamanja celebrates the goddess of the sea: Lemanja. The event ends with everyone – dressed in white – running into the sea at midnight to jump over seven waves. Each wave and jump symbolises a different request, resolution, or hope for the future.
Final thoughts...
Most of us enjoy celebrating New Year, and it’s fun to consider how others around the world like to join in the festivities.
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Do you have any New Year traditions that you’d like to share? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below.