New Year’s Eve Superstitions

New Year’s Superstition

• For safety and riches eat Black-eyed peas and lentils on New Year’s Day.
• For prosperity eat 12 grapes, one grape for each month of the year.
• For moving forward in the coming year you should eat pork on New Year’s Day because pigs eat moving forward.
• Wear something new on New Year’s Day (Jan. 1st). It encourages more new clothing for the new year and wear red clothing on New Year’s Day.
• Wear red undies on New Year’s Eve to bring good luck.

On New Year’s Eve…

• Leave every door and window open at midnight to let the old year out.
• Make lots of noise at the stroke of midnight. Evil spirits attempt to come into the brand new year at this time – horns and whistles chase them away.
• Dancing around a tree ensures luck, love, and prosperity.
• Make sure to have money in your pocket or wallet at the stroke of midnight.
• Make sure to have food in your pantry.
• Kissing your significant other at midnight ensures that you will remain intimate with that person. To not kiss means a cold relationship for the year.
• A woman shouldn’t speak until a man says “Happy New Year.”

On New Year’s Day…

• The first words you hear in the minutes of the New Year will set the precedence for the entire year.
• Do something you are good or successful at on New Year’s Day – especially if it’s work related. This will tell how the rest of the New Year will go.
• Any baby born on New Year’s Day has good luck the rest of his/her life. The baby also brings good luck to the family.
• Nothing goes out – not even the garbage or nothing goes out until something new comes in.
• No money should be spent (that would be going out).
• No sweeping or dusting the first day of the year. The good luck could be swept out. If you have to sweep, you should sweep towards the center of the house and use a dust pan. (Some cultures “sweep out” the old year.)
• Superstition says that whatever happens on New Year’s day will set the trend for the whole year to follow.
• So, no crying, unless you want to cry all year long.
• No negativity, unless you want to constantly feel impending doom and gloom.
• No fighting, nagging, yelling or any of the other things that you don’t want to have to do all year long.
• Poultry should never be eaten on January 1st. Poultry scratch for their food, so those who eat poultry will “scratch” for their food all year.