CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD: GREAT BRITAIN

Greeting: Merry Christmas
St. Nicholas Tradition: "Father Christmas"
Highlighted Custom: Christmas cards & Christmas "crackers" (not the kind you eat!)

Following the intense scrutiny by the Puritans under Oliver Cromwell, Christmas celebrations in Great Britain were in decline. At the same time, the Industrial Revolution allowed workers little time for the holy days.  But Christmas celebrations began to make a comeback in the mid 1800's, in great part due to Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, and... Charles Dickens!

Many of the Victorian-age Christmas traditions are still practiced today.  In 1841, Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, made popular the custom of decorating Christmas trees after he brought the idea to the British Isles from his native country of Germany.  Victorian trees were candle-lit and decorated with fruit, nuts, candy, and roses.

from "Godey's Ladys Book", December 1860

The first Christmas card made its appearance in the 1840's, designed by English artist John Calcott Horsely. If you love vintage Christmas postcards and heartwarming  stories, have I got the book for you...  

It's Aunt Olga's Christmas Postcards, by Kevin Major and it's truly one of my favorite Christmas treasures. Anna’s Great-Aunt Olga has collected Christmas postcards all her life (she’s ninety-five years young). Aunt Olga takes advantage of a holiday visit from her favorite niece to share her memories and collection of antique postcards - she received her first from her brother when he was a soldier during World War I - and we, as readers, get to delight in her collection too! Decked out in red, Aunt Olga is ready for fun as she teaches Anna how to write her very own Christmas rhymes. Written with warmth and slightly quirky humor, this unique story shows how sweet a loving relationship can be between a youngster and an oldster.


Finally, it was in large part due to the works of Charles Dickens, specifically his masterpiece A Christmas Carol, published in 1843, that the joys of Christmas were rekindled in Great Britain. Below is Dicken's self described "Carol Philosophy":

"a good time: a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time: the only time I know of in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of other people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys."

English poet Christina Rossetti was the author of many Advent and Christmastide poems.  Her most famous, A Christmas Carol became a favorite Christmas hymn entitled In the Bleak Midwinter after it appeared (posthumously) in The English Hymnal in 1906, with a setting by Gustav Holst (and later by Harold Darke).  It has been performed by choirs and soloists ever since, including the Robert Shaw Chorale, Chanticleer, Julie Andrews, Sarah Mclachlan, and most recently, James Taylor (who sings my favorite modern rendition). Click HERE to read my post about Christina Rossetti and listen to two beautiful settings of this hymn.

The tradition possibly most enjoyed by English children - Christmas "crackers" - was developed in 1844 by Thomas Smith, an English candy maker who visited France and saw cosaques ("crackers") there.  The French versions were sugar-coated almonds wrapped in squares of colored paper with each end tightly twisted.  Upon his return to England, Smith began making crackers that contained candy, jokes, mottoes, and riddles.  Still popular today, a cracker is placed beside each plate at the Christmas Dinner, ready for its tabs to be pulled as the anticipated "pop'' sound is followed by the emptying of its contents (trinkets, a paper crown, and riddles) by an eager child.

Illustration of children pulling a cracker
from ‘The Graphic Christmas’ 1878. [Image Source]

What's for dinner?  Turkey (first sent over by colonists from North America in the 1600's), cranberry sauce (which must still be imported from the U.S.), mashed potatoes, brussell sprouts, and a baked plum pudding. The pudding is traditionally prepared with 13 ingredients to represent Christ and His Disciples. Every member of the family takes turns to stir the pudding with a wooden spoon from east to west, in honour of the Three Kings.  A foil-wrapped coin is baked inside, for good luck.

Children send letters to "Father Christmas", which are tossed in the fireplace.  Legend has it that the smoke from them burning letters gets carried up the chimney directly to the jolly man in the red suit!  J.R.R. Tolkien wrote a book about Letters from Father Christmas, that I posted HERE last year.

"Boxing Day", celebrated the day after Christmas, marks the beginning of the Christmas pantomimes (plays, such as "Cinderella" or "Peter Pan", which are performed for children).  Boxing Day was originally a public holiday on which church alms boxes, filled with donations for the poor, were opened and the money inside was distributed. Today, people still give gifts of money to servants or other people such as postal workers, police, and newspaper vendors, who serve the public during the year.

CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD: SWEDEN

Greeting:  "God Jul" (Good Yule)
St. Nicholas Tradition:  The Swedish gift-giver is a Jultomten. The Jultomten, unlike Santa Claus, is believed to be a little dwarf or gnome who lives under the floorboards of the house. He might also live in the barn and guard their farm. He rides a goat, called Julbocker. The goat is a reference to the Scandinavian god, Thor, whose chariot was pulled by two goats. The Jultomten will hand out gifts from a sack to the children on Christmas Eve. Even though this pagan tradition was outlawed by both church and state in the middle ages, it persisted in private.
Highlighted Tradition: St. Lucia Procession

Four Sundays before Christmas marks the beginning of Advent, and of the Christmas celebration in Sweden. Church services are well attended, and communities start to decorate with greenery and white lights.  Most homes display a four-candle Advent candelabra, one for each Sunday of Advent.  Children enjoy counting down the days with an Advent calendar, which shows a Christmas scene in twenty-five numbered "windows" that are opened each day of December, until Christmas Day.

St. Lucia Day is celebrated on December 13, which also - according to folk tradition - follows the longest night of the year. Lucia means "light" and after long winter months with few hours of sunlight, there is certainly good reason to honor her. To read more about this 4th-century girl from Italy who died for her faith, click here. Swedish families, offices, schools, and churches choose one girl to wear a crown of candles as she represents St. Lucia in processions throughout Sweden.

Being of Swedish (and Norwegian) descent myself, I've already written several posts about Scandinavian Christmas traditions.  You can click on the highlighted titles below to read those posts:
Scandinavian Tomte (this post has a review of the book The Tomten)
Christmas in Scandinavia (this post has a link to a recipe for St. Lucia Buns)
Happy St. Lucia Day! (this post includes my reviews of books about St. Lucia)

Swedish families enjoy Christmas trees, which they decorate with candles, apples, Swedish flags, small gnomes in red hats, and ornaments made of straw.  They bake pepparkakor, or ginger cookies, and serve a smorgasbord, or buffet, for their dinner on Julafton (Christmas Eve). It might include ham, pickled pigs' feet, and lutfisk (dried codfish).  Risgrynsgrot, a special rice porridge, is served with cinnamon and sugar and a single, hidden almond.  Custom has it that whoever finds the almond in their bowl will marry in the coming year.

Early one Christmas morning in Sweden, Flicka, Ricka, and Dicka open their eyes. Soon they will have their Christmas gifts! Maj Lindman's books were originally published in the ’40s and ’50s. They were the wholesome adventures of three little Swedish girls, Flicka, Ricka, and Dicka, and three little boys, Snipp, Snapp, and Snurr. Longtime fans of the series will delight in revisiting the story, and new readers will find fun and excitement as the girls must save their friend Bertie after an ice-skating disaster. This updated hardcover edition comes with paper dolls!

A Star For Christmas, by Trisha Romance, is full of colorful Scandinavian style artwork, reminiscent of Trina Schart Hyman or Carl Larsson. A gentle old carpenter who has spent his whole life in the service of others has finally begun to build his own home in a quiet meadow, with nothing but a small reindeer to keep him company. Finishing by winter seems like an impossible task, but the carpenter reaps the years of kindness he has sown, and his neighbors return his love by helping complete his new home in time for Christmas. He has a wonderful Nativity surprise in store for them, making this Christmas one that everyone will cherish forever.

In Sweden and Finland, the Christmas season ends a week after Epiphany, on St. Knut's Day, January 13.  This is the day the tree is taken down and the ornaments are stored for the next year. St. Knut was King Knut IV, and ruled from 1080-1086.  He was know for his generosity to the poor.  This song is sung when the tree is finally taken out of the house:

Christmas has come to an end,

And the tree must go.

But the next year once again

We shall see our dear old friend,

For he has promised us so.

Source for my Christmas Around the World posts:

Mary D. Lankford's Christmas Around the World

CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD: RUSSIA

Christmas Greeting: Khristos Razhdayetsya! ("Christ is Born!) Response: Slavite Yego! (Glorify Him!")
St. Nicholas Tradition: St. Nikola (and the secular, Ded Moroz, "Grandfather Frost")
Highlighted Custom:  Holy Supper

St. Nicholas Cathedral, St. Petersburg, Russia [source]

St. Nicholas is especially popular in Russia. There is a tradition that Prince Vladimir traveled to Constantinople in the 11th-century to be baptized, and returned with stories about miracles performed by St. Nicholas of Myra. Since then many Orthodox Churches in the East have been named for the saint, and even today, "Nikola" is one of the most common names for Russian boys. (more information about Russian and St. Nicholas here)



During the communist years St. Nicholas was transformed into "Grandfather Frost" (Ded Moroz), the Russian Spirit of Winter who brought gifts for the celebration of New Year's Day. He is always accompanied by his granddaughter Snegurochka ("Snow Girl"), a merry girl who helps Grandfather Frost provide the New Year party for children.  According to new tradition, Grandfather Frost and Snow Girl live in the town Veliky Ustug from which they begin their New Year journey by troika, a sledge drawn by three white horses.

Other religious traditions were suppressed during the communist era. Before the revolution, a figure called Babushka would bring gifts for the children.  The legend is that Babushka failed to give food and shelter to the three wise men during their journey to visit the Christ Child. According to tradition, she still roams the countryside searching for the Christ Child and visiting the homes of children during the Christmas season. Babushka never completely disappeared, and now in the post-communist era, has returned openly.

Christmas trees (Yolka) were also banned by the Communist regime, but people began to trim "New Year's" trees instead.  To this day, New Year's is more widely celebrated than Christmas, which is now allowed again as a religious celebration.

To read my post about Uncle Vova's Tree click HERE.

Most Christian Russians belong to the Eastern Orthodox Church, and it is customary to fast from meat and dairy until after the first church service on Christmas Eve. Since the Russian Othodox Church follows the old Julian Calendar, Christmas Day is January 7th. Christmas Eve dinner is meatless but festive. Kutya, a type of porridge, is the primary dish. It is very symbolic with its ingredients including various grains for hope, and honey and poppy seeds for happiness and peace.

"Christmas is Here" painting by Yaroslava Surmach Mills

Then begins a twelve course Holy Supper in honor of each of the Twelve Apostles - fish, beet soup or Borscht, cabbage stuffed with millet, cooked dried fruit, and much more. A white table-cloth, symbolic of Christ's swaddling clothes, covers the table. Hay is brought forth as a reminder of the poverty of the Cave where Jesus was born. A tall white candle is placed in the center of the Table, symbolic of Christ "the Light of the World." A large round loaf of Lenten bread, pagach, symbolic of Christ the Bread of Life, is placed next to the Candle.

MORE PICTURE BOOKS ABOUT CHRISTMAS IN RUSSIA:

The Miracle of St. Nicholas, by Gloria Whelan, illustrated by Judith Brown, for ages 5-8 (click on the title to read my review).

The Miraculous Child, by Alvin Aleski Currier, illustrated by Nadezda Glazunova. (ages 4-8)
"The Miraculous Child is a charming, delightfully illustrated Russian tale of a poor Russian family who entertains an angel unawares in a humble log home where a woodcutter, his mother, wife and children have almost nothing to eat, very little to trade or sell, and nothing for the Christmas Feast. The woodcutter encounters a little boy out in a field, shivering and cold. When he brings the lad into his home to share what little poor fare the family has, they discover that it's an angel they have invited in from the cold and a Christmas Feast is held that will never be forgotten.

Information source for St. Nicholas: www.stnicholascenter.org

CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD: MEXICO

Greeting: Feliz Navidad ("Happy Nativity")
Saint Nicholas Tradition: In Mexico, St. Nicholas is not the traditional bearer of gifts.  Instead the children believe el Nino Jesus, "the Infant Jesus", brings them gifts.
Highlighted Custom: Las posadas procession

Painting by Carmen Lomas Garza

Beginning of December 16, children take part in las posadas, a nightly occuring reenactment of Mary and Joseph's journey to Bethlehem and the Inn.  Led by two children carrying small statues of Mary and Joseph, a procession of friends and neighbors goes from house to house seeking posada ("shelter").  At each house, the resident responds by refusing lodging, until the weary travelers reach the pre-designated site for the party, where Mary and Joseph are finally recognized and allowed to enter. Once the "innkeepers" let them in, the members of the procession come into the home and kneel around the nacimiento, "Nativity scene", where they place the figures of Mary and Joseph and pray.  Finally on Christmas Eve, the procession goes to the church, where the children place a figure of the infant Jesus into the manger.

The Night of Las Posadas, by Tomie dePaola. "Sister Angie has organized the celebration of Las Posadas for many years, in which the people of Santa Fe re-enact Mary and Joseph's search for shelter on the night Jesus was born. This year's performance promises to be very special. Sister Angie's niece Lupe and Lupe's husband, Roberto, are to play the parts of Mary and Joseph. But on the night of the celebration, a snowstorm hits and Lupe and Roberto's car breaks down on their way into town. And to make matters worse, Sister Angie is home sick with the flu. It seems that only a miracle will be able to save Las Posadas." 



The beautiful red of the flor de la noche bueana, "flower of the Nativity" (we call it a "poinsettia" plant here in the U.S., named for Joel Roert Poinsett, who served as the American ambassador to Mexico from 1825-29) adds to the colors of the festive celebrations in Mexico.

Flor de la noche buena, "flower of the Nativity"

The Legend of the Poinsettia, by Tomie dePaola. Distressed because she has no other gift to offer Baby Jesus, Lucida carries into the church an armful of weeds, each of which suddenly becomes "tipped with a flaming red star"-marking the miraculous blooming of the first poinsettias.  Based on a Mexican folktale.

Bunuelos

There's lots of cooking to be done for the Christmas celebration...bunuelos are thin round pastries covered with sugar and cinnamon.  Dinner may include ensalada de la noche buena, a fruit and vegetable mixture; roast turkey; tortillas; and hot chocolate with vanilla and cinnamon.  A special Christmas salad, ensalada novidena, includes fruit, beets, sugarcane, and nuts.  It is decorated with small colored candies.

On the eve of Epiphany, children place their shoes in a window.  The next morning they will find their shoes filled with gifts given by the Reyes Magos, or Magi, on their journey to Bethlehem.  Candlemas, or el Dia de la Candelaria, marks the end of the holidays on February 2.  The service celebrates Jesus' presentation in the temple to the elderly priest Simeon, who refers to the babe as, "a light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of thy people Israel."


Source for my Christmas Around the World posts:
Mary D. Lankford's Christmas Around the World

A SWEET NUTCRACKER: DUKE ELLINGTON MEETS TCHAIKOVSKY!

By Anna Harwell Celenza ▪ Illustrated by Don Tate 
A perfect picture book, with CD, for the holidays!

If my books can make classical music more accessible to kids, that would be a dream come true.
-Anna Harwell Celenza, author


Before illustrating this book, I never even considered listening to Ellington music — or Tchaikovsky either, for that matter. Big band jazz? Classical? That’s for old people, was my thinking. I’ll stick to my R&B, funk, hip-hop. But research for the book led me to Ellington’s and Tchaikovsky’s music. While I worked, I be-bopped to Toot Toot Tootie Toot and Zeet Zurzday. And before long, I was downloading jazz and classical music. I became a fan of both musical genres, and I hope this book will have the same effect on kids.
-Don Tate, illustrator (click on his name to see his illustrations from the book)


This book is the story behind the story of how the great Duke Ellington and his friend and collaborator Billy Strayhorn put a jazzy 1960's spin on an 1890's classical suite and created the nuttiest Nutcracker of all:

CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD: GERMANY

Greeting: Frohliche Weihnachten ("Merry Christmas")
St. Nicholas Tradition: Sankt Nikolaus.  In some areas of Germany, children also write letters to Christindl, the Christ Child, who they believe brings them gifts as well.
Highlighted Custom: Tannenbaum (Christmas Tree)

[source]

Germany is famous for its Christmas markets, where shoppers are treated to the aroma of baked fruit loaves, bratwurst (sausage), roasted nuts, and lebkuchen (gingerbread spice cookies), as they make their way between red-roofed stalls full of toys and Christmas decorations.

Maybe you could spend a quiet afternoon baking gingerbread cookies with your child and reading Jan Brett's fun Gingerbread Baby.

"I am the Gingerbread Baby,
Fresh from the pan.
If you want me,
Catch me if you can!"

What about gingerbread houses?

Make your own! [source]

 The tradition of baking the sweetly decorated houses began in Germany after the Brothers Grimm published their collection of German fairy tales in the early 1800s. Among the tales was the story of Hansel and Gretel, children left to starve in the forest, who came upon a house made of bread and sugar decorations. The hungry children feasted on its sweet shingles. After the fairy tale was published, German bakers began baking houses of lebkuchen --spicy cakes often containing ginger -- and employed artists and craftsmen to decorate them. The houses became particularly popular during Christmas, a tradition that crossed the ocean with German immigrants. Pennsylvania, where many settled, remains a stronghold for the tradition...Nuremberg, Germany, became known as the "Gingerbread Capital of the World" in the 1600s when the guild employed master bakers and artisans to create intricate works of art from gingerbread, sometimes using gold leaf to decorate the houses.
-"HOLIDAY TRADITION WITH SPICY HISTORY," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, December 9, 2001, METRO, Pg.N-9


What about St. Nicholas?

German smoker
St Nicholas Center Collection

Copyright © 2002-2011 St. Nicholas Center

In the Catholic areas of Germany, Sankt Nikolaus still comes as a bishop with flowing beard and a bishop's miter and staff.  Children put letters to the saint in their shoes with straw and carrots for his horse, and leave them outside their door on the evening of December 5 (the night before St. Nicholas Day). His hungry horse will eat the contents of the shoes and then St. Nicholas will refill them with apples and nuts. Children who have misbehaved will find their shoes filled with coal.

[source]

Religious reformer Martin Luther, the father of the Protestant religion, is credited with starting the custom of giving gifts to children on Christmas Day.  According to legend, Luther started the tradition of giving gifts on Christmas as a substitute for St. Nicholas Day on December 6. German children would ask for presents by writing a letter to the Christkindl, or Christ Child.

What about O Tannenbaum?
The Christmas tree, may also have originated in Germany. This custom is again attributed to Martin Luther, who is said to have decorated a fir tree with candles and brought it into his house. He said the candles symbolized the light of Christ.

Decorations have changed over the years.  Branches once hung with paper roses, cookies and fruit are now laden with beautiful glass ornaments, wooden hand-carved and painted angels, straw stars, and lebkuchen baked in different shapes. Handcrafted ornaments from Germany are treasured around the world!

Speaking of handcarved woodcrafts, thanks to the Nutcracker Ballet and Tchaikovsky's beautiful music, many children today are familiar with Christmas nutcrackers. While the first nutcrackers were produced to more efficiently crack nuts, the first German nutcrackers as decorative pieces were developed somewhere between the late 1400s and early 1500s. Early German nutcrackers were designed in the shapes of animals, birds, and people. It was not until the late 1600s and early 1700s these handcrafted nutcrackers took on the personas of the kings, soldiers, church leaders, and policemen. People of Germany enjoyed using the nutcrackers that were shaped like the ruling classes because it reduced them to the position of mere crackers of nuts rather than possessing any authoritative power over their individual freedoms.

There are many beautiful picture books about the Nutcracker Ballet, bu my favorite is by Susan Jeffers. (click here to read my post)

Information about St. Nicholas found at: www.stnicholascenter.org

CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD: GREECE

Greeting:  Kala Christougena ("Merry Christmas")
St. Nicholas Tradition: Hagios Nikolaos, the country's patron saint of sailors and fishermen.
Highlighted Custom: Christopsomo, "Christ Bread"

Happy St. Nicholas Day!  Nicholas was the Bishop of Myra, an ancient city of Asia Minor (now in present-day Turkey), at the beginning of the fourth century. Bishop Nicholas attended the Council of Nicaea in AD 325 (Maybe you recite the "Nicene Creed" at your church? more information here)

St. Nicholas and the Three Poor Girls, by Egle-Ekaterine Potamitis. Today, children in many countries eagerly await gifts from St. Nicholas. In this memorable story, the saint's humble, secret charity surprises three sisters and saves them from a terrible fate. Mysteriously, on three different occasions, a bag of gold appears in their home - providing much needed dowries. The bags of gold, tossed by Nicholas through an open window, are said to have landed in stockings or shoes left before the fire to dry.  The book and gold foil wrapped coins are available from Paidea Classics. (type "gold coins" into the search box for different flavors and packaging.)

At Christmas, to honor St. Nicholas, many small fishing boats are decorated with blue and white lights (which are also the colors of the Greek flag).

source

On Christmas Eve, large groups of family and friends gather for a festive dinner.  Dried figs are served with the spicy golden Christopsomo bread.  The large sweet loaves are decorated with a cross or other shape.  Before the meal begins, the sign of the cross is made over the bread, and the table is lifted three times.

Christopsomo, "Christ Bread"
Recipe HERE

Christmas morning usually starts with an early liturgy at Greek Orthodox churches all over the island. "Today, the Virgin bears Him who is transcendent, and the earth presents the cave to Him who is beyond reach. Angels, along with shepherds glorify Him. The Magi make their way to Him by a star. For a new child has been born for us, the God before all ages." (Kontakion Hymn of the Nativity)

After church, groups of children go from house to house, singing carols (watch the cute YouTube video below).  They are met with something sweet to eat or a small gift.  The word "carol" comes from the Greek word choaulein, a combination of choros, or "dance", and aulein, "to play the flute". (Doesn't that sound like an explanation from the dad, in the movie, My Big Fat Greek Wedding?)


In Greece, Christmas gifts are exchanged on January 1st, St. Basil's Day.  This saint, one of the four Fathers of the Greek Church (Basil, Gregory of Nazianzus, and Gregory of Nyssa are collectively referred to as the "Cappadocian Fathers") is suppposed to visit all the Greek homes on the first day of the year, bearing gifts and toys. Vasilopita, "Sweet Bread of Basil" is prepared and a coin is baked into the ingredients. The person who gets a slice that contains the coin is considered blessed for the New Year. (recipe HERE)

Sources for my Christmas Around the World posts:

Mary D. Lankford's Christmas Around the World

St. Nicholas Center: www.stnicholascenter.org