Italian New Year's traditions

Good wishes for the new year: luck, money and health. There are many rites, customs and traditions that enrich our Peninsula and make New Year's Eve even more special.
Many of these have taken hold since the times of the ancient Romans, others have arrived later and perhaps are the result of contamination with other cultures.
But what are the most particular New Year's traditions in Italy? Let's find them out together!

“I botti” (fireworks)
Not everyone likes them and yet it seems that they are very useful for driving away evil spirits, according to tradition. We are talking about fireworks, which are considered the right remedy to remove all negativity from our life.

Lentils
On the table at the New Year's Eve party, what is the dish that cannot be missing? Lentils of course. The reasons are the most varied: there are those who consider them the right food to attract money and those who eat them because they promise a long life.

Red underwear
Another of the habits Italians have to greet the old year and wait for the new one is to wear red underwear. It seems that this idea came from the ancient Romans and that it was also a good omen for the new year. At the time, red was a symbol of courage, while today it symbolizes passion.

Throwing objects from the window
One of the best-known traditions is certainly the throwing of objects. This ritual requires that both at home and on the street, plates, glasses and anything that can be broken is thrown away. It is a gesture that has the meaning of leaving behind the things that have happened, of throwing away the old to make room for the new. Of course, it is not necessary to destroy everything, even a symbolic gesture is enough.

Exchange of gifts
The gifts instead are always a Roman heritage: the exchange of gifts on New Year's Eve means that we can receive abundance for the whole new year that awaits us.

The wheat
Among the peasants, a very popular custom is to place twelve grains of wheat, one for each month, in a circle on embers. If the grain jumps forward, it will indicate that the price of wheat will go up in that month; on the contrary, it will become lower.

The first meeting
To determine the course of the new year, it is important to meet the right person, after the stroke of midnight. Good luck will come if you meet an elderly person or a hunchback (the old person is a symbol of long life), while it is believed that the meeting of a child or a priest is expected to herald disgrace.

If you are curious to experience these particular traditions firsthand, plan your New Year’s holiday and book a luxury villa for rent in Italy!