First-footing is the New Year's Eve and New Year's Day ritual in which the first visitor entering a Scottish home is believed to bring luck.
The first-foot, or first-footer, traditionally arrives after midnight and may carry symbolic gifts such as coal, shortbread, salt, a black bun or whisky. These items represented warmth, food, prosperity and hospitality in older household customs.
In some traditions, a tall, dark-haired man was considered the luckiest first-footer, though practices differ across Scotland and modern households. The visitor generally should not already have been inside the home at midnight.
First-footing is associated with Hogmanay but is not the same thing as Hogmanay itself. Hogmanay names the wider Scottish New Year celebration, while first-footing is one particular custom within it.