New Year in Brazil

Fireworks going off at the start of 2021 in Novo Hamburgo - RS (photo: Diego Mandarino)

This post is about the way Brazilians celebrate the New Year from my perspective. It is a personal account rather than a deeply grounded academic study or even a meticulously woven journalistic report. The latter would have required a considerably larger amount of time and funding than just sitting down on a chair and writing from my personal experience - which is exactly what I am doing here;  the former - an academic research - would have required an immensely greater amount of time and even more funding in order to cover costs such as field trips and the work itself: reading, interviewing, photographing, recording videos, compiling everything, writing, editing, proof-reading, publishing and distributing.

As it is a personal account, it might differ from the customs of many other people in Brazil. My focus is on telling about what I perceive as being traditional in New Year's celebrations in general in my country. Feel free to add your input in the comments session, provided it is done in a civilized manner. 

Gathering

In Brazil, we call the transition between December 31st and January 1st, exactly at midnight, Virada ("flip", “turn”, “overturn”), or Virada do Ano ("year flip", “turn of the year”). In the same way, we refer to the whole event as Virada or Ano Novo, which consists of a gathering of family or friends (whether one stays with their family or spends the Virada with friends varies a lot) in the evening of New Year's Eve, extending to the fireworks displays at midnight or even further into the night, sometimes till the sun rises. 

Food

It is customary for Brazilians to eat pork for New Year's Eve dinner and often also for New Year's Day lunch. This is not a hard rule, though, as many people eat fish or something else instead. It is normal to sit at a table and eat New Year's Eve dinner when the family is brought together. At friends gatherings, people might have finger food instead of eating at a table. 

For those who do prepare pork as a dinner dish, it is usually roasted pork loin. The accompaniments vary, but they are similar to Christmas dinner's side dishes, like farofa (toasted cassava flour) and rice. 

People who eat pork usually say something like "The pig roots forward; the chicken scratches backward" (o porco fuça para frente; a galinha cisca para trás) when they explain why they eat pork for New Year as opposed to Chester chicken or turkey, which are common at Christmas. The saying means that, because it roots forward, the pig is a symbol of progress and forward-moving, instead of looking back and staying in the past as the chicken that "scratches backward" may suggest.

Another very important New Year food item in Brazil is lentils, which bring good luck according to popular belief.

As for Bolo Rei (King Cake), which is common in Portugal and some other parts of the world, including southern United States, it is not a Brazilian tradition. 

Drink

Sparkling wine, essentially, just like most of the world.

Brazilians open a bottle of sparkling wine, fill the glasses and wait for the countdown to the New Year. At midnight sharp, we shout Feliz Ano Novo! (Happy New Year), spectacular fireworks go off in major cities, we clink our glasses and drink, shake hands, hug each other sometimes, wishing a happy new year to each person. 

Clothing

The way one dresses to the New Year, or Virada, is usually a big deal in Brazil. Many Brazilians are superstitious about the colors of the clothes they are wearing when a new year starts; this cultural feature is so remarkable that even the many people who do not really care about this color stuff tend to conform to the rite so as to not raise too much attention from others - which would certainly happen if they, for example, wore black or another very dark color. 

The most common clothing color to usher in the new year is white, which represents peace. Many people wear a combination of white and some other color; for example, white shorts and a T-shirt or tank top in a different color (remember that it is summer in Brazil), or vice-versa. So, one might wear white shorts for peace and a yellow T-shirt for money. One might also wear red for love (if they want to find a partner, for example), green for hope or purple for health, just to name a few. Some people wear a combination of blue and white just because blue generally goes well with white.

Fireworks in Novo Hamburgo - RS at the start of 2021 (video: Diego Mandarino)

Firecrackers, a controversial topic

The fireworks that make a lot of noise are a contentious issue in Brazil, even at the Virada. Many people just love setting off these loud tiny rockets, much to the unease of animals like dogs, which are sensitive to such roar/rumble, as you probably know. This triggers a sort of "war" between noise enthusiasts and animals rights advocates. People argue a lot about that on social media. 

Personally, I don't get what the fun is about some crackers popping in the sky. What I love seeing is the actual fireworks. That said, I don't see a problem with a bunch of noisy crackers for five or ten minutes to welcome the New Year. In fact, I would probably feel a little lost and empty without a lot of noise in the first few minutes. The problem is that there are people who start setting off crackers at random every now and then on Christmas Eve and keep doing that on the days leading up to the Virada. Sometimes, it is a 30-second firecracker outburst without any apparent reason, sometimes it is just one single rowdy bass-drum-beat-like rocket explosion out of the blue during the day, just to scare the s*** out of the unaware folk who is just trying to relax in their hammock. I can't figure out what the fun about that is.

Some bills regarding firecrackers have been passed in different states and municipalities in the last few years. In the state of Rio Grande do Sul, a law banning firecrackers 🧨 that exceed 100 decibels at a distance of 100 meters came into effect at the end of 2020.

Jumping seven waves

Yes, that is a tradition for people who spend the Virada at the beach. It is a popular superstition that jumping over seven waves right at the start of a new year brings you luck for that year.

Iemanjá, the lady of the seas 

Some people make offerings on the beach to the lady of the ocean, "mother Iemanjá" (or "Yemoja"), - a deity in some African and African-originated religions (like the Candomblé) - at the Virada, asking for blessings. The most common offering is flowers, which are thrown into the sea, but I was just looking up on the internet and I found out that the offerings might sometimes be objects, including jewelry, mirrors and perfumes.