Curious Christmas Customs

In North America, Christmas traditions and customs are pretty standard. The Christmas feast, gift exchange, Christmas carolling, Santa Clause and the Christmas tree,  are all part and parcel of the Christmas Celebration. We tend, however, to assume that Christmas is celebrated in a similar fashion everywhere else in the world. While there may be some common Christmas traditions, there are also many unusual customs followed when celebrating Christmas in different parts of the world.

Having a turkey at your Christmas dinner is a popular custom in North America. In England, a roasted boar’s head used to be the main dish at Christmas feasts during the Middle Ages.  It is reported that this started when a student at the Queen’s College of Oxford was attacked by a wild boar on Christmas day. To protect himself, he shoved a copy of Aristotle down the boar’s throat. He then cut of the boar’s head in order to get his book back. The student returned to the college with the boar’s head which was served for Christmas dinner.

If you tried telling your kids to wait a week after Christmas to open their presents, you would probably have a mini riot on your hands. In Italy, however, Christmas gifts are exchanged on January 6th which is the feast of the Epiphany and when the Magi’s visit to baby Jesus is remembered.  Similar to a Santa Claus, but in the image of a witch, La Belfana is a figure in Italian folklore who presents gifts to children throughout Italy. 

On the eve of January 6th, children are rewarded with candy and gifts. But no milk and cookies for the La Belfana, instead she is left a glass of wine and some food. According to Christian legend, La Belfana refused the magi (three Kings), when they approached her and asked for food three days before the birth of Jesus. She later changed her mind and started looking for Baby Jesus and the three kings. According to legend, she continues to search to this day.

At Christmas, a very elaborate custom is played out in the Christian villages of Bangladesh. Here the men undertake the laborious task of cutting down several banana trees which are then replanted along the pathways to churches. The trees are replanted in twos and the leaves intertwined to form an arch. Bamboo poles are filled with oil and when lighted it points the way to the church.

The Christkindl, is the “Christ Child’s Messenger” in Germany, bringing baskets of presents to homes at Christmas. A far cry from the old Santa used in other traditions, Christkindl is a fair haired girl who wears a crown of candles. On Christmas Eve children are awaken at midnight to the sight of a lighted tree and Christmas presents on a table.  

Forty days of fasting precedes the Christmas feast in Greece. As you can well imagine, after such a long fast, a large feast is eagerly anticipated. Instead of turkeys, pigs are slaughtered for the feast and christopsomo or “Christ Bread” accompanies the meal. In Greece, St Nicholas plays a different role than in other countries. He is a patron saint of sailors and not the giver of Christmas gifts. Gift giving is reserved for charities at this time. On Christmas Eve, young boys visit homes beating drums and singing carols and are given candy, figs and small presents.

It is interesting to learn that while many Christians all over the world celebrate Christmas, they do so in very different ways. The main message of Christmas may be the same but there are many different and intriguing ways of getting that message across.