In a Danish New Year's Eve custom, old plates are traditionally smashed against a friend's or neighbor's door.
The custom involves saving unwanted or chipped dishes and throwing them at the doors of friends, relatives, or neighbors on New Year's Eve. A pile of broken crockery outside a home is traditionally interpreted as evidence that the household has many loyal friends willing to visit and celebrate with it.
The practice is one of several Danish New Year's customs, alongside the midnight toast and the tradition of jumping from a chair or sofa as the clock strikes twelve. The jump is said to symbolize leaping into the new year.
The plate-smashing custom is not universal in modern Denmark, and many people no longer practice it because of safety, noise, and cleanup concerns. It is best understood as a well-known folk tradition rather than a rule observed by every Danish household.