During the day of Hogmanay, everyone in the family will be kept
busy cleaning the house as it is seen as unlucky to see in the new year in a dirty house.
My Mum was a great believer in this and would say that we had to
get rid of the old years dirt before the new year arrived. I have always stuck to this custom, passing it on to my own children,
i think their Gran would approve of that!
It is bad luck to see in the new year in debt so any debts would be paid by
hogmanay
Any visitors arriving at your house before midnight on hogmanay would be sent
away to prevent bad luck. The man of the house would open the back door of the house to let out the old year and then open
the front door to let in the new year
The first stroke of the chimes at New Year is known as The Bells.
People would sing Auld Lang Syne together whilst linking arms. For the words of Auld Lang Syne go to the Robert Burns page
After the bells have rung people would go visiting friends and
family, or first footing as it is known in Scotland. This would involve carrying a bottle of spirit such as whisky to offer
people a new year dram
The first foot of the New Year (the first person to step into the
house after the bells) should traditionally be a tall black haired man. This stems back to the 4th - 12th century when unwelcome
visitors to this shore were Vikings who were short and fair-haired
