New Year’s traditions vary wildly from culture to culture, although most include “the three F’s,” food, fun and fireworks, plus time-honored (if not exactly proven) ways to assure good luck in the coming year. Whatever your traditions, may your 2025 be blessed. Because blessings beat luck every time! Don’t miss the summary of unusual traditions after the pictures below.
Click on any image to enlarge it, or to begin slide show.
Time Square, New York
Chile
Ethiopia
Brazil
China
Ecuador and Colombia
Greece
Haiti
India
Ireland
Japan
Japan
Netherlands
Peru
Philippines
Denmark
Scotland-Hogmanay
Siberia
South Africa
South Africa-refrigerators galore!
Spain
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe-Vic Falls Carnival
Switzerland
Scotland
- South Africans party all night into New Year’s Day. When the church bell chimes at midnight, everyone cheers, and many throw refrigerators from balconies because…um…?
- Brazilians eat seven pomegranate seeds to assure wealth and seven grapes to assure abundance in everything else. Wearing red underwear also helps!
- Siberians plant volkas, New Year’s Trees, under frozen lakes, symbolizing the coming of Father Frost, and the promise of a new life.
- In Denmark, friends and relatives jump off chairs and break dishes on doorsteps. The bigger the pile, the more friends and happiness you’ll have in the coming year.
- Chileans eat three spoonfuls of lentils: one for love, one for health, and one for wealth. They also place a luca (1000 peso note) in their right shoe to multiply wealth in the coming year.
- The Chinese, once plagued by a hungry monster called Nian, make loud noises and decorate things in red to scare it away. Nian is now the word for “year.” Oh, and there are dragons, can’t forget the dragons.
- In Netherlands on New Year’s Eve, Oudejaarslot, people buy lottery tickets and munch oliebol, Dutch doughnuts, at oliebollenkraam stands while waiting for the jackpot to be announced.
- Ecuadorians and Columbians burn scarecrows at midnight. Columbians also place three potatoes under their beds: one peeled, one unpeeled, and one half-peeled. When the clock strikes midnight, they reach under and grab one. A peeled potato means money problems, unpeeled means abundance, and half-peeled means “who knows.”
- The Spanish eat Twelve Grapes at Midnight. If they can eat all 12 in 12 seconds, they’ll have 12 months of good luck.
- The Irish bang bread against their walls on New Year’s Eve to chase away evil spirits and attract good luck.
- Peruvians celebrate (?) the New Year at the annual Takanakuy Festival by beating each other up!
- The Swiss toast the new year with ice cream cones, then drop them on the ground at midnight, guaranteeing abundance—and more ice cream—in the coming year!
- USA: the famous Times Square ball drop began when fireworks were outlawed in 1907. Also, many African-Americans eat black-eyed peas and collard greens to assure happiness in the coming year.
- In Haiti, joumou, a pumpkin soup once forbidden to slaves, is eaten in honor of the independence they fought for and won in 1804.
- In the Philippines, round is the ticket: Round fruits are eaten, balls and coins are handed out, and polka-dotted clothes are worn for luck.
- The Scottish New Year, Hogmanay, involves lots of Vikings with torches, lots parties with haggis, and other actually edible things. The first party guest to arrive gets cakes or, better yet, a bottle of Scotch!
- Ethiopians, far more soberly celebrate Enkutatash, the Coptic Christian New Year, with worship, processions and feasts, and end with torch-burning and hymn-singing on New Year’s Eve.
Whatever your traditions…
Thanks for this around the world tour. Beautiful pictures and words. Happy New Year, Mitch.
Thank you, Kathy!
Very interesting…though I have lots of questions LOL! How do they plant trees under a frozen lake is number one! Happy New Year, Mitch!
;>) Thanks, Rhonda!
Happy New Year, Mitch. Thanks for the fascinating world tour! I guess I should be picking up some bread for later tonight!!!
Yes! And thanks, Sally!
Happy new year, Mitch! May you be blessed in 2025, and beyond! ✨ 🎊
Thank you, and likewise, Laura!
laura type 4550
Happy New Year! 🥳🥂
Thank you, CJ!
Love it! Happy New Year Mitch. 🙂
Thank you, Jeanne!
You are very welcome. 🙂
Have a shiny New 2025 Year!
You too, Rasma!
Punching someone! There ya go 💪🏽
;>)
Man that’s a lot of information. But very cool! Thank you and happy New Year’s.
My pleasure, my Anonymous friend.
Un bel viaggio, grazie buon anno 💖🌹🐈
Un bel viaggio, grazie buon anno anche a te, amica mia!
Happy new year, Mitch!
I celebrated NYE in Manila, Philippines last year – albeit for sad reasons – and the fireworks were something else!
Praying this is a far happier New Year, then, Ab!
You are so right about the blessings and the luck! Amen!!
˛¸.o•°“°•o.˛¸˛.o•°★°•o.˛¸˛.o•°“°•o.˛¸
★ WiSh y0u And YouR FaMiLY ★
˛¸.o•°“°•o.˛¸˛.o•°★°•o.˛¸˛.o•°“°•o.˛¸
Happy & Healthy New Year!
Aww, thank you, and likewise, Cindy!
Happy New Year Mitch. Alas Edinburgh had to take the difficult decision to cancel tonight’s celebration because of the awful weather. that has already happened once before this century. I guess whatever humans are doing, nature just carries on regardless!
I heard about that! Well, here’s to a warm, cozy, indoors Hogmanay, Janet!
Really interesting!
Best wishes for a happy 2025 🎉
Thank you, and likewise, Luisa!
Thanks for the interesting pics and lists of traditions from around the world. Happy New Year to you and your family, Mitch. 🙂
My pleasure, and thank you, Nancy!
Happy New Year!
Thank you, Maja!
Happy New Year, Mitch!
Thank you, Gail!
Happy New Year 🥳
Thank you, Meonn!
All the best for 2025 Mitch!
Thank you, and the same to you, Steve!
Happy New Year! 🙂
Thanks, Gabrielle!
Happy New Year, Mitch!
Thank you, Liz!
You’re welcome, Mitch!
Fun stuff, Mitch! A very happy and blessed New Year to you and yours.
Thank you, and likewise, Steve!
I agree, Mitch. “Blessings beat luck every time!”
Have a blessed New Year.
Thanks, Chaya!
Happy New Year, Mitch.
Thank you, Michael.
You’re welcome.
What a fascinating compilation of New Year’s traditions from around the globe! 🌎✨ It’s incredible how diverse cultures have their unique ways of celebrating and ensuring good fortune. From eating grapes in Spain to burning scarecrows in Ecuador, each custom carries such rich symbolism and history. 🎆🎉
I love how some traditions focus on abundance and joy (like Brazil’s pomegranate seeds) while others seem wonderfully quirky (hello, Denmark’s dish-breaking and South Africa’s refrigerator toss!). These stories make me appreciate how universally important it is to start the year with hope and positivity. 🌟🥂
It is indeed, my new friend.
Happy New Year! Love the cultural tour!
So glad you enjoyed it, Lori!
Awesome post! Thanks for the cool info and photos. Have a great New Year!
You too, Tim!
Happy New Year to you and yours -be blessed!
You too, Gregory!
Thank you for sharing these traditions. Happy New Year, Mitch.
My pleasure, and thank you, Jennie.
You are welcome, Mitch.
Happy New Year!
Thanks, Dora!
Very interesting, Mitch. Thanks for sharing. Happy New Year to you and yours.
Thank you, Carla.
Happy New Year! I really enjoyed reading about these traditions.
Delighted to hear that, SunKing.
Happy New Year to you, Mitch.
Thank you, Daniel.
Happy and Blessed New Year to you and your family! Loved all the info on new year celebrations!
Thank you, Peggy!
Truly interesting to learn about all these traditions.
The photos you posted are stunning.
Thanks. I do enjoy curating photo galleries.
Happy New Year, Mitch!
Thank you, Ann!
We’re a funny lot, aren’t we? But if we weren’t, what would there be to write about? Many thanks for your visit to mine and sorry it’s taken me so long to get here. I didn’t mean to laugh at your extreme day tripping misfortunes, but I’m afraid I did. Hope the rest of 2025 goes better.
;>) Thanks, Jo.
type 4550
Ollie Bollen from the Netherlands is my favorite. I haven’t had any for many years, but my Dutch friend’s husband used to make it every New Year’s Eve and I got to have some. Sure would like some right now. 🙂 Such a variety of different ways to celebrate. Very interesting. Thanks for sharing, Mitch.
My pleasure, Diane.
Pingback: New Year’s Traditions Around the World – QuietMomentsWithGod
Fun post! happy new year!
Thanks, you too, Kit!
Such a joyful post! A tour around the world from your own device. Thank you for sharing.
My pleasure, Mishka.
Pingback: New Year’s Traditions Around the World – For The Fan