In a traditional Danish New Year's Eve custom, people smash old plates for luck.
The practice involves breaking unwanted or saved crockery, often outside the homes of friends or family. A large pile of fragments has traditionally been interpreted as evidence of many friends and strong social connections. The custom is therefore less about destruction for its own sake than about expressing goodwill and gathering symbolic proof of popularity.
Denmark's celebration also includes a televised New Year's address by the monarch and the midnight singing of “Vær velkommen, Herrens år,” depending on the program and local practice. Jumping from a chair or sofa at midnight is another modernized tradition associated with leaping into the new year.
The plate-smashing custom is not practiced by every Danish household today, and safety concerns have reduced it in some places. It is nevertheless one of the country's most recognizable historical New Year's traditions.