At Edinburgh's Hogmanay, the tradition of visiting friends and neighbors after midnight is called first-footing.
A first-footer is traditionally the first person to enter a household after midnight on New Year's Day. In Scottish custom, this visitor brings symbolic gifts intended to secure good fortune for the coming year. Traditional offerings include coal for warmth, shortbread or other food, salt, and whisky.
Folklore in some regions considered a tall, dark-haired man a particularly lucky first-footer, while a fair-haired visitor could be viewed less favorably because of historic Viking associations. Customs have varied between communities and families, so there is no single universal gift list.
Edinburgh's Hogmanay is a major public festival, but first-footing is primarily a household and social tradition. It is distinct from a ceilidh, which is a social gathering featuring Scottish music and dancing, and from singing “Auld Lang Syne.”