Luck ritual

The First Visitor on New Year’s Day

by Elizabeth Fabowale

March 9, 2026

American Superstitions·American Traditions & Beliefs

In many American communities, New Year’s Day has long been a time of reflection, renewal, and hope. Beyond the celebrations and gatherings, a deeply held superstition shaped the way families approached the very first moments of the year. It was believed that the identity of the first person to enter a home on New Year’s Day determined the family’s fortune,

Parchment-style artwork of the Sun and Moon facing each other in the sky, Cherokee folktale scene.

The Sun and the Moon Are Man and Wife: Cherokee Folktale (United States)

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Parchment-style illustration of Rip Van Winkle waking on a Catskill Mountains slope, American folktale.

Rip Van Winkle, The Man Who Slept for Twenty Years: American Folktale of Time and Change

At the foot of the misty Catskill Mountains in colonial New York, there once lived a good-natured man named Rip Van Winkle.

Parchment-style illustration of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox in snowy woods, American folktale.

Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox: An American Folktale that Teaches Lessons on Strength, Teamwork, and the Power of Legend

Long ago, in the rugged northern forests of America, where towering pines whispered to the wind and the snow stretched farther than

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Luck ritual

The First Visitor on New Year’s Day

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The Sun and the Moon Are Man and Wife: Cherokee Folktale (United States)

Rip Van Winkle, The Man Who Slept for Twenty Years: American Folktale of Time and Change

Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox: An American Folktale that Teaches Lessons on Strength, Teamwork, and the Power of Legend