On New Year's Eve in Denmark, some people traditionally throw old plates at friends' doors for luck.
The custom is known as plate smashing or plate breaking. People save unwanted crockery and break it outside the homes of friends or neighbors at New Year. A large pile of broken dishes has traditionally been interpreted as evidence that a household has many loyal friends who wished to celebrate with it.
The practice is not universal, and many Danes now avoid it because of noise, cleanup, safety, or environmental concerns. Modern celebrations more commonly center on dinner, fireworks, speeches, and the midnight kiss. Local habits also differ between generations and communities.
This tradition is often confused with ordinary vandalism. In its customary form, the broken plates are left deliberately and symbolically, usually at the homes of people known to the celebrants. The “old” part matters: the objects were typically unwanted dishes rather than valued household possessions.