How much do you actually know about the black-eyed pea tradition?

When I think about New Years celebrations, there are two things that come to mind. First, there is your typical champagne induced haze, brought on by the popping corks that bounce off living room walls at midnight. Second, there is my family’s Cuban tradition of eating twelve grapes to symbolize good fortune in the year ahead. However, in the South, New Year’s Day often means that black-eyed peas will be present at the dinner table. Although I’m a native born Southerner, the Cuban tradition is the default setting for me.

Sure, I have a connection to the land that I was born in, but it doesn’t stretch back nearly as far as it does for others. For me, New Year’s Day is about fresh starts and renewed prospects.

For many Southerners, this is also a time of remembrance.

The Twilight Months of 1864

But what’s the origin of the black-eyed pea tradition? I asked this question to 21 year old Austin Roddy of Garland Texas, “We have no idea, it came from my mother’s grandmother’s tradition.”

His mother, Lisa, would elaborate, saying how the tradition was “passed down from my great grandmother in Iowa.” She would go on to say how people in Garland don’t usually partake in the tradition. Austin’s Dad would add that, in Arkansas, his side of the family definitely ate black-eyed peas on New Year’s.

Carter Cole, a Political Science major at North Carolina State University, also said he didn’t know where the tradition came from, “But I’m still hassled every year to eat some black-eyed peas for good luck in the coming year.”

The origin of the black-eyed pea tradition dates back to the twilight months of 1864 during the War Between the States. Union General William Tecumseh Sherman was in the midst of his “March to the Sea,” where he enacted the doctrine of total war, which brought civilians in as targets of the conflict as a means of crippling the Confederate war effort.

Buildings were torn down, farms and fields were burnt, and it left the Confederate state of Georgia in economic turmoil.  Legend has it that when the Union soldiers raided homesteads for supplies, they took everything but black-eyed peas and salted pork. Hence, black-eyed peas were one of the few foods left available for survivors to eat, and they became symbolic of luck because of it.

While the distinct taste of the black-eyed pea is something that takes getting used to, there are still a plethora of recipes that have come to exist over the years. Yet it’s not just how to cook the peas that’s important, but the superstitions surrounding them and their accompaniments as well. Of course, the meanings vary based on where exactly in the South you are, but it is still worth noting.

“I’m more of a collards fan, ” said Carter, “which I also eat every New Year to represent money in the coming year.”

Along with collards, Cornbread represents gold, while stewed tomatoes represent wealth and health. In some places, it’s said you have the best chance of luck if you eat one black-eyed pea for each day of the year.

Remembrance

While the Southern black eyed pea tradition does have aspects of the quintessential New Year’s celebration, ushering in good luck and good health, it is also a matter of remembrance—that is why it’s important. The history of the War Between the States is controversial, what it was or was not fought over is hotly debated, and its ramifications are still felt to this day.

A point of agreement, however, has always been Sherman’s March, which is considered to be a morally questionable flashpoint of the war due to the devastation it wreaked on civilian populations. Southerners still curse Sherman’s name to this day for what happened. The black-eyed pea tradition harkens back to that time, and allows for the Southerners to remember the resilience of their ancestors and the struggle for survival as the war rushed to a close.

In remembering the hardships of the past, one can more easily face the uncertainty of the future.

Days of remembrance have always been common holidays, but are so often taken for granted. Like the black-eyed pea tradition, Memorial Day, which is fast approaching,  remembers hardship and sacrifice as well, but is often met with weekend long getaways and barbecues.

“To remember all of our history,” Austin said on the meaning of remembrance, “And all the soldiers who died trying to protect us and our land from people who want to destroy us.”

This coming Memorial Day, perhaps we should take a break from our vacations and sit down to ponder all that’s been given up so that we could be here today. Be it the valiant doughboy who went over the bags at the Battle of Amiens or the grizzled marine who stormed the beaches of Okinawa, all the sacrificed lives had meaning, and all died for the bold experiment that is America. All I’m saying is, maybe folks should take a cue from the South and put aside the time to remember.

“To me remembrance means honoring the memory of something that is near and dear to your heart,” Carter said. “Communion comes to mind when I think about that word.”

The past has a lot to teach us. Who knows? You might find yourself humbled.