Beech Tree News Network

In the Southern United States, eating black-eyed peas or Hoppin’ John(a traditional soul food) on New Year’s Day is thought to bring prosperity in the new year.  Two popular explanations for the South’s association with peas and good luck dates back to the American Civil War. 

Stories passed on over the years reveal that black-eyed peas are supposed to resemble coins.  Greens are supposed to represent dollar bills and cornbread is supposed to represent gold.  Eating them is supposed to allegedly bring you prosperity in the new year. 

Allegedly, the peas were not worthy of General Sherman’s Union troops.  When Union soldiers raided the Confederates food supplies, legend says they took everything except the peas and salted pork.  The Confederates considered themselves lucky to be left with those meager supplies, and survived the winter.  Peas became symbolic of luck. 

Black-eyed peas were also given to slaves.  Let’s face it, a lot of the tuff we eat on New Year’s is soul food.  One explanation of the superstition is that black-eyed peas were all the southern states had to celebrate on the first day of January, 1863.  That  was the day that the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect.  From then on, the peas were eaten on the first day of January.

Others say since the south was/is a good place for farming, black-eyed peas were just a good thing to celebrate with in the winter.  Not many crops are grown this time of year, but black-eyed peas hold up well, were cheap and just made sense.  How did you eat your peas this year? Or did you? For the past several years, my family has eaten Hoppin’ John Soup on New Year’s Day.  And there’s always some left over.  The leftover soup is just as good as on New Year’s Day. 

I hope everyone has a Happy New Year and that you all ate your black-eyed peas!