By Laís Oliveira | Translation: Isabela Jordão
The tradition of wearing white in Brazil comes from Afro-Brazilian religious rituals.
December 31 in Brazil is synonymous with wearing white as a tradition for the New Year, but do you know why? It all started, officially, in the mid-1950s, but in fact this habit has been around for much longer in some countries of Africa.
The symbolism of wearing white on New Year’s Eve came from an African religion, Candomblé, whose followers always wore white clothes to deliver offerings before midnight to the queen of the sea, Iemanjá — an African deity originally from Nigeria.
In Brazil, this tradition began in the 1950s, on the beaches of Salvador, a city with a strong influence of African culture, and in São Paulo, when a group called “Primado de Umbanda” (Umbanda is an African-Brazilian religion) went to Praia Grande, on the coast, to do Iemanjá Day’s Meeting of Waters, a kind of procession.
The tradition of jumping seven waves at the turn of the year, making seven different requests, is also linked to Umbanda and the cult of Iemanjá. Seven is a Kabbalistic number, which in Umbanda represents Exu, son of Iemanjá. It is also related to the Seven Lines of Umbanda, a concept of organization of spirits under the command of an orixá – you can also read here what are the orixás. Each jump, in this case, would be a request to a different orixá.
The ritual later reached Rio de Janeiro, turning Copacabana into a New Year’s icon.
This unique and standardized color ritual attracted attention and became famous at the time, taking on a giant proportion over the years. Many people wanted to participate in that curious event in which a crowd was celebrating the arrival of the new year of white.
The color, then, became a real Brazilian new year costume in the 1970s — when the ritual was exported to Rio de Janeiro, where Copacabana beach was already the meeting point of New Year’s Eve. There are no historical records as to why the date of the offerings to Iemanjá was moved to December 31 — since in Nigeria, the ritual is performed on February 2 (as well as in Bahia, which, in turn, does mostly in the last days of the year), but the habit was adopted by the population, regardless of religion.
In other countries, like the United States, the use of white is not so frequent. In some of them, groups that believe that color represents peace and harmony, receive the new year dressed in white, but still this number is not as large as in Brazil.
FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions
1. Why do Brazilians wear white on New Year’s Eve?
Brazilians wear white on New Year’s Eve as a tradition rooted in Afro-Brazilian religions like Candomblé and Umbanda. White symbolizes peace, spiritual cleansing, and renewal.
2. What is the connection between wearing white and Iemanjá?
The tradition comes from rituals honoring Iemanjá, the Afro-Brazilian goddess of the sea, where followers dressed in white to offer flowers and gifts before midnight.
3. Why do people jump seven waves during New Year’s in Brazil?
Jumping seven waves is part of an Umbanda ritual. Each wave represents a request to a different orixá, and the number seven has spiritual significance in the religion.
4. When did the white clothing tradition start in Brazil?
The custom became widespread in the 1950s on the beaches of Salvador and São Paulo, later gaining national popularity after reaching Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana.
5. Do other countries also wear white on New Year’s Eve?
Some cultures associate white with peace and harmony, but the practice is not as widespread or symbolic as it is in Brazil. In the United States, for example, it is uncommon.
