Try These New Year’s Superstitions

On New Year’s Day, it’s safe to follow one general rule of thumb: anything you do for the next 24 hours sets a precedent for the coming year. Sometimes, this is literal. Sometimes it’s merely metaphorical. But there are some specific superstitions people from across the world follow to ensure good luck and prosperity for the following 365 days.

Here are some superstitions you can follow to ring in the new year. Note: You might already be doing some of these.

Eat collard greens: In the south, we tend to follow a similar New Year’s Day menu each year. The collard greens on our tables supposedly resemble money because they share a similar green hue.

Eat black-eyed peas: Of course, you can’t eat your collard greens without a side of black-eyed peas. Beans, like collard greens, resemble money — specifically coins. Together, the two sides are meant to bring good luck and prosperity into the new year.

Eat cornbread: No, we don’t add cornbread to the table just because we like the taste — although that is definitely a plus. Because cornbread’s coloring resembles gold, the dish supposedly brings fortune into the new year.

Eat pork: Whether it’s pulled or chopped, pork is said to bring good luck into the new year because pigs move forward when they eat. Since pigs are often quite plump, too, they symbolize a larger wallet in the year ahead. There are so many pork variations you can eat, but popular dishes include ham, pork roast (shoulder/butt), pork chops and hog jowls.

Eat fish: If you’re not so much a pork-eating person, fish is also meant to bring abundance in the new year. Fish scales resemble coins, and many fish swim in large schools. They also swim forward, which supposedly represents progress. Sardines, specifically, are seen as lucky.

Eat tamales: Last on the list of things to eat on New Year’s Day is tamales. The traditional Mexican dish symbolizes generations of familial bonds, since families typically gather to help each other make the dish.

Avoid chicken: Sorry, poultry lovers. One dish to avoid on New Year’s Day is chicken. Because chickens have wings, your luck could fly away. At least, that’s how the thinking goes.

Don’t clean your house: According to Chinese lore, cleaning on New Year’s Day is thought to clean away any good luck you have stored up for the new year. Another saying goes that if you wash laundry on New Year’s Day, you’re washing away loved ones. It might be best to save your chores for January 2.

Put cash in your wallet: Supposedly, if you have cash in your wallet before midnight on New Year’s Day, you’ll have a year of prosperity. You might participate in this superstition every year without even knowing it.

Eat 12 grapes at midnight: In Spain, it’s common for locals to eat a dozen grapes as soon as the clock strikes midnight. The superstition goes that each grape represents each month of the coming year. Finish all 12 before 12:01 a.m., and you will earn good luck in the new year.

More grape-related fun: Eat 12 grapes under a table when the clock strikes midnight, and some say you will find your soulmate in the coming year.

Wear dotted clothing: In the Philippines, it is believed that wearing clothing with polka dots will boost your luck in the year ahead. The polka dot circles represent coins, so this superstition specifically targets financial prosperity.

There are so many more superstitions people follow around the world — like drizzling honey on your food to ensure sweetness in the coming year, or smashing a pomegranate against the front door to measure your good fortune. Whether or not they work is another story. Give some of these a try and report back to us next December. Happy New Year!