Definitions

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  • noun Alternative spelling of first footing.

Etymologies

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Examples

  • Time to j New Year's Eve, 1978; Kirkcaldy, Scotland They'd made a pact, back when they were fifteen, when their parents were first persuaded that they could be allowed out first-footing.

    The Distant Echo McDermid, Val 2003

  • Once a long time ago Carella had been told by a detective of Scottish ancestry that in the northern parts of Great Britain the custom of first-footing is still honored on the first day of the New Year.

    Eight Black Horses Ed McBain 1985

  • The gift bearer is the first person to set foot in the house in the New Year: hence, first-footing.

    Eight Black Horses Ed McBain 1985

  • Before we leave the subject of British "first-footing" we may notice one or two things that have possibly a racial significance.

    Christmas in Ritual and Tradition, Christian and Pagan Clement A. Miles

  • The New Year calling to offer good wishes resembles in some respects the widespread custom of "first-footing," based on the belief that the character of the first visitor on New Year's Day affects the welfare of the household during the year.

    Christmas in Ritual and Tradition, Christian and Pagan Clement A. Miles

  • The custom of _first-footing_ is still in vogue in many parts of

    A Righte Merrie Christmasse The Story of Christ-Tide John Ashton

  • In the north of England first-footing on New Year's Eve is common, and a dark-complexioned person is esteemed as a herald of good fortune.

    Vanishing England 1892

  • The first visit on Christmas Day is considered important -- we may compare this with "first-footing" in the British Isles on January 1 -- and in order that the right sort of person may come, some one is specially chosen to be the so-called _polaznik_.

    Christmas in Ritual and Tradition, Christian and Pagan Clement A. Miles

  • _first-footing_ to account, for the purposes of plunder.

    A Righte Merrie Christmasse The Story of Christ-Tide John Ashton

  • On New Year’s Eve, the Scots and folks of northern England practiced a tradition called "first-footing."

    Celebrating the New Year Joanna Waugh 2008

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