In Denmark's New Year's Eve tradition, people traditionally smash old plates against friends' or neighbors' doors.
The custom is associated with good luck and friendship. A household that finds broken crockery outside its door is traditionally considered popular, because the fragments are understood as gifts left by friends and relatives. The practice is generally described as involving old or unwanted plates rather than valuable tableware, although modern celebrations vary considerably from family to family.
Danish New Year's Eve includes other distinctive customs, such as watching the monarch's New Year speech and eating festive foods. At midnight, many people also jump from a chair or sofa into the new year, a symbolic leap into the year ahead. The plate-smashing tradition is sometimes confused with ordinary vandalism; in its customary form, it is a playful ritual involving people who know one another and understand the meaning of the broken crockery.