Follow These Superstitions for Good Luck All Year
The first half of the winter season is beloved by many mainly due to the holiday season that comes with it.
The cold season's PR team really got us when it stacked the most beloved holidays at the end of the year, right before things get really frigid. After you've done your gift exchanges and taken down the Hanukkah decorations, there's still one of the most exciting holidays of all to look forward to: New Year's Day. With the start of another trip around the sun comes new beginnings, blank slates, and (hopefully) good luck. The many different new year's superstitions around the world have their own ways of ensuring that, some by completing certain tasks and others by avoiding specific foods. Some of these New Year's Day superstitions are probably familiar to you, but we bet there are quite a few below that you've never heard of before.
While you may have your New Year's captions ready to go at the stroke of midnight and know the colors you'll be wearing and decorating with in 2024, make sure you have everything you need for a lucky future before working out your resolutions. Do you have a healthy number of grapes in your fridge? Are there collard greens simmering on the stove? Are you wearing red underwear? If not, you may want to find some! Luckily, though, there are plenty of New Year's superstitions that don't require any additional purchases. Read on to discover traditions you should follow to give yourself the best year yet.
Open Doors and Windows
Crack open your windows and your doors right before midnight to push the bad spirits and energy out of your home before the new year. If you're afraid of getting chilly, it doesn't have to be for long!
Keep Fully Stocked Cupboards
Starting the year with empty cupboards can welcome poverty and scarcity into your life, according to some beliefs. Make sure your pantry is fully stocked with cans and reusable containers so you won't add to food waste, and you'll welcome abundance into 2024.
Throw Furniture Out the Window
In parts of both South Africa and Italy, people observe a New Year's custom of throwing household items out the window to rid themselves of the past and make room for good fortune to enter their lives. Some get rid of old dishes and clothes; others toss furniture. Whatever you choose to chuck, just make sure no one is underneath before you do it!
Clean the House
Quite literally sweep away the negativity before you begin another trip around the sun. If you have company coming over for a New Year's Eve party, think of this as a lucky double whammy.
... Or Don't Clean the House
You know what, maybe simply ignore the one above completely. Some say by cleaning or even just sweeping on the first day of the year you can "wash away a loved one." (Around the Lunar New Year, which happens in February, tradition holds that you will sweep away your good luck.) That's one we wouldn't want to risk.
Drag Around an Empty Suitcase
A Colombian superstition requires you to walk or carry around an empty suitcase starting at midnight to encourage a year full of travel and new experiences. You don't have to make a long trek—just a stroll around the block should be fine.
Smash Dishes
This Danish tradition is a great way to take out any pent-up anger you don't want to bring into the year. Smashing old or unwanted dishes outside your loved ones' doors on New Year's Eve is supposed to bring them luck—the bigger the pile of broken dishes, the luckier they'll be.
Bang Loaves of Bread on the Wall
Before you finish prepping for that Christmas feast, bake an extra loaf of bread. The Irish believe that banging stale loaves of Christmas bread against the walls of your house will bring you a plentiful year.
Wear White
Encourage peace and positivity to come into your life by wearing white on New Year's Eve and as you enter the new year by following this Brazilian tradition.
Feast All Day
For those of you with stomachs that never feel full, this Estonian New Year's superstition will be the one to follow. In Estonia, there's a tradition of eating either seven, nine, or 12 meals on the last day of the year in order to begin the next one with the strength of the same number of men as meals you've eaten. The more you eat, the stronger you'll be.
Throw Some Ice Cream
On December 31, instead of toasting with a glass of champagne, ring in the new year the Swiss way and throw a scoop of ice cream on the ground. Doing so is supposed to bring luck and prosperity.
Hang Onions by the Door
Promote prosperity and a sense of rebirth for the new year the Greek way by hanging a bundle of onions outside your door. To the Greeks, onions represent growth and fertility—two great aspects to bring with you.
Put Your Right Foot Forward
Take the first step into the new year with your right foot forward—literally. In Argentina, it's believed that taking your first step with your right foot at midnight brings good luck.
Avoid This Crustacean
Because lobsters move backward, many cultures believe that you should avoid eating them on New Year's Eve to prevent setbacks in your life.
Dine on Lentils
The Chilean superstition of consuming lentils at midnight stems from the round legumes' resemblance to coins. Eating a good serving of lentils is believed to bring more money into your life.
Eat 12 Grapes
The tradition of eating 12 grapes at midnight began in Spain and spread to other Central and South American countries, making it a fairly known New Year's superstition. As the clock strikes midnight, you're supposed to eat one grape with each chime to welcome good luck for each month in the new year.
Serve Herring
Consuming this silver fish at midnight is very common in Scandinavian countries. The shiny color is supposed to represent money, and it's believed that eating it will bring luck and prosperity.
Burn Some Photographs
Everyone who has gone through a nasty break-up is familiar with this ritual. In Ecuador, it's common to find photos of things or old memories you don't want to bring into the new year and burn them before midnight to avoid carrying them along with you.
Wear Red (or Yellow) Underwear
In Bolivia, the color of the underwear you're donning as you enter the new year has a direct correlation to how it will go. Wearing red is supposed to bring love and passion into your life, while yellow or gold attracts money.
Kiss Someone You Love
Possibly the best known superstition in the Western world, a kiss at midnight is supposed to bring good luck for the next 12 months. There's also the idea that the person you kiss will be your lifelong love, but depending on who they are you might like prefer the luck interpretation!
Collard Greens and Black-Eyed Peas
In the southern United States, it's believed that eating collard greens and black-eyed peas on New Year's Day brings you luck and prosperity. The greens represent money, and the peas bring the luck.
Whip Up Some Cornbread
Another southern United States superstition, eating cornbread on the first day of the year is believed to bring you money. The gold of the bread and the whole kernels of corn represent—you guessed it—chunks of precious gold.
Eat Round Fruit
According to a Filipino superstition, consuming round fruit is believed to bring prosperity into the new year. The round shape resembles coins, so stock up on citrus.
Be As Loud As You Can
Ward off evil spirits and bad energy by being as loud as you can when the clock strikes midnight. This superstition is why noisemakers are still so popular today. Hopefully the noise won't upset your neighbors!
Watch for the First Footer
According to Scottish lore, the "first footer" is the person who first enters your home on New Year's Day, bringing either good luck or misfortune with them. Be cautious about who you let through your door if you're really wanting a good year: A tall man with dark hair is the luckiest possibility.
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