People in Spain traditionally eat grapes one at a time during the New Year's Eve countdown.
The custom is known as the twelve grapes, or las doce uvas de la suerte. Celebrants try to eat one grape with each stroke of the midnight clock, with the twelve grapes representing the twelve months ahead. Successfully completing the sequence is popularly associated with good luck and prosperity.
The best-known public countdown takes place at Madrid's Puerta del Sol, whose clock is broadcast nationally. Families and groups across Spain follow the chimes at home, often preparing twelve grapes in advance because the pace is surprisingly fast.
The tradition is frequently linked to a large grape harvest in the early twentieth century, when growers and merchants promoted the practice to sell surplus fruit. The exact origin is debated, since grape-eating customs existed earlier among some urban groups. Spain's version became a nationally recognized New Year's ritual through newspapers, radio, and television.