Plate smashing, a traditional Greek folk custom involving the smashing of plates or glasses during celebratory occasions. In popular culture, the practice is most typical of foreigners' stereotypical image of Greece, and while it occurs more rarely today, it continues to be seen on certain occasions, such as weddings, although plaster plates are more likely to be used.
Plate smashing is also used in the Philippines, but in a different context.
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The practice may be part of a Greek spirit of joy or kefi. It probably derives from an ancient practice of ritually "killing" plates on mourning occasions, as a means of dealing with loss.
The practice may also be related to the ancient practice of conspicuous consumption, a display of one's wealth, as when plates or glasses are thrown into a fireplace following a banquet.
In 1969, the military dictatorship of Georgios Papadopoulos that had suspended democracy and ruled Greece autocratically from 1967-1974, banned plate smashing to the great disappointment of Greeks and foreign tourists alike. It is no longer officially allowed at Greek nightclubs, but still happens occasionally.
A modern modification of the custom is for customers at small Greek restaurants or "tavernas" to buy trays of flowers that they can use for throwing at singers and each other.
For private celebrations such as weddings, Greeks today may purchase specially-produced plaster plates, which are less expensive, less dangerous when broken, and more easily broken.
In the Philippines, the breaking of plates during the wedding ceremony is seen as a means of shooing away bad luck. It is also customary in Davao City to break plates before taking coffins out of any edifice.