Unlock Your Fortune: 7 Fascinating Ways to Boost Your Luck for the Coming Year
Why you might want to skip the wings (but go for the donuts!) when you ring in the New Year ...
Thinking about munching on wings to welcome the New Year? You might want to reconsider and opt for donuts instead. Here’s why…
The countdown to the New Year is on, a significant moment when we bid farewell to the old and welcome the new with open arms. Throughout time, cultures around the globe have linked New Year’s Day activities with the destiny of the upcoming year. Let’s dive into some intriguing New Year’s superstitions, age-old beliefs, folklore, and charming food traditions that have stood the test of time.
New Year’s Folklore and Fascinating Beliefs
1) Midnight Smooch
Believe it or not, a romantic kiss at the stroke of midnight could guarantee a year overflowing with love. On the flip side, neglecting this tradition might just spell trouble in paradise.
2) Clear Those Debts
Stepping into the New Year burdened with unpaid debts? Not the best idea if you want to court Lady Luck.
3) Fill your Pantry
Ring in the New Year with a well-stocked pantry or risk a year of hardship.
4) First Footing
The first guest to step into your home after the clock strikes twelve can dictate the luck you’ll have for the entire year. A tall, dashing male bearing gifts supposedly brings the best fortune. According to this belief, no one should exit the house until a visitor has first stepped in, and nothing should be taken out of the house on New Year’s Day.
5) Let the Old Year Fly Away!
Opening all doors and windows at the stroke of midnight is a symbolic act of letting the old year escape.
6) New Year’s Babies
Babies who make their grand entrance into the world on New Year’s Day are believed to lead charmed lives.
7) Early Bird Gets the Luck!
A Polish tradition suggests that rising early on New Year’s Day sets the tone for the rest of the year. Plus, if you touch the floor with your right foot upon waking, you’re paving the way for a year filled with good luck. (You’re quite literally starting the year on the “right” foot.)
New Year’s Food Superstitions and Traditions
- Yearning for a sweet year ahead? Indulge in chiacchiere, an Italian carnival fried pastry – find the recipe below!
- In Spain and many Latin countries, savoring 12 grapes as the clock strikes midnight is believed to usher in a year of luck.
- For Pennsylvania “Dutch” Germans, a hearty meal of pork and sauerkraut is considered a good luck charm for the New Year.
- In the Southern U.S., feasting on black-eyed peas, ham hocks, and collard greens or cabbage on New Year’s Day is thought to bring a financial windfall.
- Enjoying foods shaped like a circle—such as donuts and bagels—can supposedly bring good fortune in the coming year.
- German folklore advocates eating herring at midnight to attract luck for the following year.
- In the same vein, those of Polish descent believe having pickled herring as the first morsel of the New Year brings good luck.
But Don’t Eat These…
Wait a minute before you dive into certain foods on New Year’s Eve, to ensure you don’t invite any unwelcome luck for the coming year. Lobsters and chickens, for instance, are a big no-no!
You see, the quirky thing about lobsters is their ability to move backwards. Indulging in them just before the clock strikes midnight could bring in potential setbacks. And chickens? Well, they have a knack for scratching in the reverse direction. We wouldn’t want that, would we? Even other winged creatures are best avoided, lest your good fortune decides to take flight!
Sure, these traditions may seem to be steeped in superstition, but the notion that our actions on the very first day of the year could shape our upcoming 365 days is quite a compelling one. So, choose your New Year’s Eve actions wisely!
Join The Discussion
Do you believe any of these superstitions?
What do you do on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day for good luck?
Let us know in the comments below!
This article was published by the staff at Farmers' Almanac. Do you have a question or an idea for an article? Contact us!
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Farmers' Almanac Staffhttps://www.farmersalmanac.com/author/fa-admin
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Farmers' Almanac Staffhttps://www.farmersalmanac.com/author/fa-admin
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Farmers' Almanac Staffhttps://www.farmersalmanac.com/author/fa-admin
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Farmers' Almanac Staffhttps://www.farmersalmanac.com/author/fa-admin
New Year’s Eve…… I usually stay up till midnight as I’m a NIGHT OWL. I always drink Champagne @ midnight. On New Year’s Day…… I watch the ROSE PARADE on T.V. every year. I’m from Pasadena, Ca. and have gone to almost every parade each year. I slept on the parade route one year in H.S. and have gone to the ROSE BOWL to watch football. I also graduated high school from the ROSE BOWL. HAPPY NEW YEAR…… 2024 to everyone.
I think the best thing to do on new years eve is to be on your knees praying that God will bless, first your country and then your family then yourself. Every thing else is vanity. just sayen.
It’s just another day in the long life of a human.
What you do on New Year’s Eve…you will repeat again in the new year. So….a good meal, music and fun with family and or friends, a toast and a kiss at midnight. Greens and black eyed peas w/ham on New Year’s Day for Luck and good fortune!
We never do laundry on New Years day and we eat bean soup. I’m 58 years old and that’s been going on for over a 150 years in our family.
For my family, by the time the New Year arrives, we are tired of ham and turkey, I do fix black eyed peas and a roast for our dinner. I have always been told, not to wash clothes on New Year or you might wash some family member away. Tradition I know, but I still won’t do laundry on that day. If a man comes in first, good luck all year, if a woman comes in first, bad luck.
I toast in the New Year with a glass of wine, usually alone., snack on grapes, donuts, chips, dip and raw oysters. Wake up early Thank God for the waking and giving me more time with family and friends then cook blackeyed peas with ham, fresh greens, make cornbread, pitcher of unsweetened tea, straighten the house of any clutter because otherwise will be messy all year. Make sure the house is open and filled with fresh air for healthy breathing.
for us, it is a mix. I am PA Dutch traditions (pork & sauerkraut) and my wife is S.C. southern, so we also have blackeyed peas, collard greens and ham.
my dad is S.C. southern too! we had black eyed peas, collard greens and cornbread for lunch. my mom and I are Dutch with PA Dutch ancestors, so we mixed in some ham as well.
Black eyed peas setting beside the stove with ham chunks to add to the peas in the fridge will be eating it tomorrow 2022
I’m lazy, I love my crockpot! I start dry beans (any kind) in warm water. Cook on low all night
I’ve heard that eating pork on New years means you will be forging ahead and if you eat chicken you’ll always be scratching?
Hi Sharon, close. According to the traditions and superstitions, pork does represent forging ahead but chickens mean you’ll have “setbacks” because they can move backwards. Just like lobsters.
My dad has been telling me since I was a little kid never to eat chicken on New Year’s Day. He’d also be ready with the pickled herring, a tradition I just introduced to my kids last night!
I just found out not to eat chicken. I had it for dinner.
I to just found out not to eat chicken n also had it for dinner.
No chicken on 1/1 but eat your grapes ?
This year. No one is to say “Happy New Year”, instead we are to yell “JUMANJI” this is to insure that we leave 2020 behind~!!!
Interesting!
EVEN though Im a Maniac by birth I lived in the south so we have black eyed peas EVERY New Years!
Thank you!! All new year traditions sound great!
Happy new year!!!
this is cool stuff to learn no sweeping no washing laundry on new year’s