“Christmas waves a magic wand over this world,
Norman Vincent Peale
and behold,
everything is softer and more beautiful.”
Christmas in different countries is a world of best wishes. All these traditions reveal the same ancient story told in many languages. Midwinter is dangerous. The sun is weak. Spirits wander. The future is unclear. So humans light fires, make noise, share food, tell fortunes, honor ancestors, and invite luck inside. Christianity gave a new meaning to the holiday, but the old traditions still glow warmly underneath.
Christmas in Russia
Russians celebrate Christmas on the 7th of January. This is so because the church uses the old Julian calendar for religious celebrations. Russians fast for about forty days until January 6th (Christmas Eve). During the traditional Christmas Eve, people say special prayers. Then commences a twelve-course supper, each meal is for one of the twelve apostles. They don’t eat meat until the first star appears in the sky. There are divination rituals: young women once used mirrors, candles, boots thrown over fences, and even listening to how the dogs bark at night to predict future husbands. Grandfather Frost (Ded Moroz) brings presents with his snow-maiden granddaughter Snegurochka. She is a figure from Slavic winter folklore, not the Christian Myth. He is a personification of winter itself, a frost spirit, who once had to be appeased rather than adored.
Christmas in Spain
A Christmas tradition in parts of Spain, Portugal, and Italy is to set up a model exhibition of Bethlehem. Together with the Virgin Mother, Joseph, and little baby Jesus, they place a Caganer in the scene. The Caganer (also known as The Crapper, or The Shitter) is a little figure of a peasant wearing a Catalan red cap, in the act of defecating. People explain this with tradition and a sense of humor. It is especially amusing for children. The Caganer is fertilizing the Earth. The idea is that God will manifest himself when he is ready, without regard for whether we, human beings, are not. In agricultural magic, excrement symbolized nourishment for the land. Far from being disrespectful, the Caganer symbolizes luck, fertility, and good harvests. Laughter itself is a ritual to ward off scarcity and darkness. On Christmas Eve, the magic happens after midnight.
Christmas in the Czech Republic
Women in the Czech Republic perform a strange ritual on Christmas Day to predict whether they will marry next year. With their back turned to the house door, they throw one shoe over their shoulder. If it lands with the heel towards the door, she will stay single, but if the fallen shoe points towards the door, it means she should start preparing for a celebration, other than Christmas. Shoes thrown toward doors echo marriage magic tied to thresholds, always sacred in folk belief. People cut apples to reveal a star or a cross inside, predicting either health or bad fortune. After dinner, bells ring, and the baby Jesus has secretly delivered gifts for the family.
In Sweden
Every year on the 13th of December, the Swedes very solemnly celebrate the approaching of Christmas with the holiday of Saint Lucia. This saint in the IV century helped the pursued Christians with food and water. On this date, early in the morning, around 4 AM, the littlest girl in the home wears a long white tunic, puts on her head a wreath with seven candles and thus serves the food.
In the town of Gavle in Sweden, people erect a giant Goat – the Julbock – made of straw to mark the beginning of the holiday season. Sweden’s Julbock is a survival of Norse Yule. Vandals do everything in their power to burn down the goat before Christmas Day, but there are people protecting it. Since 1966, it has survived until Christmas Day only 10 times. The Goat symbolizes the Norse Yule God Thor – goats were sacred to him and symbolized strength and fertility. People dress as Santa Claus or elves to get past the guardians and ignite the straw monument.
At precisely the same time around the nation, families watch an old Donald Duck cartoon – a strange modern ritual turned sacred. The Swedes believe that animals speak at midnight – for they were closer to the spirit world on holy nights, but listening to them might make you mad. At Christmas, the Swedes dine on smoked fish, ham, and milk with rice.
In Norway
In the most north-east European country, during the holiday days, no heavy work is done. At 5 PM on the 24th of December, around the whole country church bells are ringing. It’s a signal for sitting at the holiday table. The main course is oatmeal with a single almond. The one who finds it in his plate receives a special present. In a lot of places, especially in the province, a separate table for the fairies and the spirits is served. According to very old legends, they visit the homes exactly around the Christmas holidays.
In Norway, Christmas is a time to protect yourself from witches. Brooms are placed by doors to prevent the evil spirits from stealing them to fly on Christmas Eve, an old pagan belief. Yule logs burn in the fireplaces. Coming from Viking rituals meant to return the sun. Darkness is treated with respect as the veil between worlds is thinner. Christmas Eve was once a night of defence from the ghosts and wandering spirits, not of rest.
The people of the Netherlands, who celebrate the holiday in December, expect SinterKlaas and his companion Black Pete, who come down by the way of the steamer and leave candy and nuts for good little boys and girls. The kids have filled their shoes with hay and sugar for the horse.
The Christmas presents are given by the Goat. They welcome it with a feast – oat straw put in the shoes of children.
Christmas in Germany
In Germany, Nikolaustag is December 6th. On that eve, children leave a shoe outside the door, and the next morning, candies appear in it for the good little boys and girls. But if they haven’t been good, a golden birch is put next to the sweets, as a symbol of spanking. Advent wreaths count down time. The Advent Calendars are refined sun magic, counting the return of light. Nutcrackers guard homes against evil spirits – they were guardians meant to frighten them away.
In France
The citizens of this country stay awake until midnight, when the good old man Pere Noel passes by with his sleigh. To orient him in the dark night, most people put up Christmas trees next to their windows, shining with lit candles. The traditional Christmas sweet is a coated chocolate roll. 13 desserts symbolize Christ and the apostles and must be tasted for prosperity. The main course is a baked turkey garnished with chestnuts. They also eat oysters and foie gras. In certain regions, logs are blessed and burned slowly throughout the entire season.
In Italy
Here the Christmas lasts for 3 days and is a symbol of abundance. The Italians prepare a special Easter cake bread called panettone, full of tangerines, oranges, and raisins. They eat that at Christmas, and we eat it at Easter. The walnuts and the almonds with which the Christmas sweets are sprinkled are an ancient symbol of the relationship between the living and the dead. On Christmas night, the newborn Jesus Christ comes to give gifts to the little children. The season doesn’t end until January 6th, when La Befana – a broom-flying old with delivers gifts. Her broom symbolizes both flight between worlds and cleansing. She searches for baby Jesus, leaving presents along the way. Nativity scenes are crafted with devotion.
Christmas in Japan
Japan transformed Christmas into a modern holiday of romance and light. It symbolizes joy, beauty, and being together. The Christmas tree is popular there nowadays. Many Japanese people on Christmas Eve dine traditionally on KFC It is so popular and famous that if you want to eat at a KFC on Christmas, you will have to make a reservation. Christmas Eve is a night of lovers, like Valentine’s Day.
Christmas in Slovakia
At the beginning of Christmas Eve, the head of the family takes a spoonful of Loksa (a traditional Christmas dish made out of bread, poppy seed, filling, and water) and throws it up at the ceiling. The more of it that remains glued on the ceiling, the richer the crops next year. Chains are placed on the table to keep the family together. Hay lies beneath the tablecloths to honor animals and fertility. Everything you eat, place on the table, and speak has meaning and is a spell component. Binding the table symbolizes binding fate and family together.
Christmas in Venezuela
In Venezuela at Christmas Eve morning, the roads of the city are closed to cars so that people can roller skate to Mass. The roots of this tradition lie in procession rituals. Movement towards the sacred space has always been magical. Children sleep with a string tied to their toes and the other end tied to the bedpost. This resembles ancient wake-up charms. Bells call people out of sleep, and they are a sound magic used to summon protection and blessing.
In Brazil
At Christmas time, it is summer, and the temperatures are rather high. This is why the people celebrate the holiday on the beach with merrymaking and feasts. A lot of them wear bathing suits. The traditional treat includes fruit salads and cold cocktails. Nativity scenes are full of tropical plants and animals. Families exchange gifts, believing generosity should arrive before dawn. Fireworks light the sky. They descend from noise rituals meant to scare away spirits. Midnight meals are long and abundant.
In Bolivia
The Bolivians welcome Christmas without a Christmas tree. They adorn their hats with flowers and put necklaces on the animals. Around Christmas, they cover each other with flowers. The women give away delicious buns, and the men sing and dance. Figurines called alasitas represent wishes for the coming year and are blessed during the season. They come straight from the indigenous Aymara magic. Tiny offerings symbolize the abundance that is to come.
Christmas in Finland
Finland claims to be the official home of Santa Claus. Santa himself evolved from forest spirits and gift-bringing household beings. Christmas peace is declared publicly in the ancient city of Turku. At Christmas, the Finnish families perform a special ritual with which they reminisce about their dead and ancestors. On their graves, they burn torches and candles. Sauna is sacred on Christmas Eve, cleansing body and spirit before celebration. Sauna rituals are purification rites tied to birth, death, and rebirth.
Christmas in Bulgaria
Here is the place where everybody travels to Grandma’s house. The whole family gathers together, and they spend a day cooking an odd number of meals. When evening comes, the oldest family member burns some frankincense to drive evil spirits away from the house, then the family holds their hands and says the Lord’s Prayer together. Carol-singers would drop in around that time, called Koledari. Their songs function as spoken spells, protecting villages from demons during the most dangerous nights of the year.
