At New Year the Roman throws everything out of the window — a description of the Roman tradition of discarding old objects from windows at midnight on New Year's Eve, symbolizing the elimination of the old year's bad luck. Used more broadly to describe the Roman tendency toward dramatic fresh starts and theatrical gestures of renewal.
The Roman tradition of throwing old objects — crockery, furniture, clothes, small appliances — out of windows at midnight on New Year's Eve is one of the most distinctive and dangerous folk customs in Italy, and it is most strongly associated with Rome and Naples. The practice has ancient roots in the idea of 'sympathetic magic': by physically eliminating old, broken, or unwanted objects at the moment of the year's transition, one eliminates the bad fortune associated with them. Medieval and early modern Rome saw this tradition practiced openly, with the streets below becoming hazardous zones during the midnight hour. Today the custom has diminished but not disappeared: fireworks have replaced much of the window-throwing, but the underlying philosophy — the Roman conviction that renewal requires a decisive physical act, not merely a resolution — remains culturally alive.
The custom of throwing old objects from windows at New Year is documented in Roman sources from the late medieval period and may derive from the ancient Roman festival of Janus — the two-faced god of transitions who gave January its name — during which old things were ritually discarded to propitiate the new year.
A Roman explains the tradition to a puzzled foreign flatmate on December 31st
Attento stanotte — a Capodanno er romano butta tutto dalla finestra. Tieniti lontano dai portoni.
Be careful tonight — at New Year the Roman throws everything out of the window. Stay away from doorways.
A Roman uses the proverb about a colleague who dramatically quit and restarted his career
Ha lasciato tutto — lavoro, città, relazione — e ha ricominciato da zero. A Capodanno er romano butta tutto dalla finestra.
He left everything — job, city, relationship — and started again from scratch. At New Year the Roman throws everything out of the window.
A Roman nonna approves of a grandchild's decision to leave a bad relationship in the new year
Bene — lascialo. A Capodanno er romano butta tutto dalla finestra, e quella storia era vecchia e rotta.
Good — leave him. At New Year the Roman throws everything out of the window, and that relationship was old and broken.
A Roman journalist describes the eve tradition in a New Year's column
A mezzanotte, nelle strade del centro storico, bisogna stare attenti. A Capodanno er romano butta tutto dalla finestra — letteralmente.
At midnight in the streets of the historic center, you need to be careful. At New Year the Roman throws everything out of the window — literally.