What Spanish New Year’s Eve tradition involves eating 12 grapes at midnight?

Spain’s New Year’s Eve tradition of eating 12 grapes at midnight is called Las doce uvas de la suerte.

The 12 grapes represent the 12 months of the coming year. People traditionally try to eat one grape with each chime of the clock at midnight, especially while following the clock at Madrid’s Puerta del Sol. Completing the sequence is widely associated with prosperity and good fortune.

The custom became especially prominent in Spain during the early 20th century. A commonly repeated account links its popularity to a large grape surplus in 1909, when growers promoted the practice as a way to sell more fruit. The idea may have existed before then, so the surplus story is best understood as an important popularization story rather than an absolute beginning.

The tradition is also practiced in parts of Latin America, although local customs and the precise symbolism can vary. The grapes are not the same custom as Spain’s Three Kings’ cake, which belongs to January 6.