Greece

The New Year is considered a time of renewal in Greece. This is also considered a lucky time, and many people view the activities that take place on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day as an important part of ensuring a prosperous and healthy new year.

The Greeks believed onions to be a symbol of rebirth, so they hung them on their doorstep in the hope of doing well in the coming year. Greek culture has long associated onions with sustainability, due to the onion's nature to constantly grow. By placing an onion or sea onion at the door, the people of Crete in particular and Greece, in general, believe that the luck and resilience of this plant will stick to them. The next morning, parents would wake the child up by pounding an onion on the head, then the whole family would go to church.