I’m sure you already know that different countries and cultures have different traditions associated with the holiday season?
But just in case you didn’t –
You can read about some Christmas legends and lore here. We are all pretty familiar with the traditional trappings of Christmas (for the US) those
But what about those stories that are lesser known? Those legends that may seem odd to us here but are familiar lore in other countries? Well, let’s explore some of those!
1.Icelandic Yule Cat (read more about that here ) – Iceland had a strange giant cat that is said to roam the snowy countryside at Christmas time. Traditionally farmers would use the Yule Cat as motivation for their workers – those who worked hard would receive a new set of clothes, but those who didn’t would be devoured by the gigantic cat-like beast. Today it is customary for everyone in Iceland to get new clothing for Christmas to avoid a most unpleasant demise.
2.Italian Witch La Befana – Santa, who? December 25, what? In Italy, all the action takes place on the eve of January 5th. According to folklore, an ancient woman named Befana visits all the children of Italy to fill their stockings with candy and leave them presents if they’ve been good. Much like Santa or Father Christmas, Befana enters through the chimney and is left treats by the children who live there – typically wine and local delicacies.
3. Norwegian Witches – Is anyone else surprised by how many witches are associated with Christmas? According to Norwegian folklore, Christmas Eve marks the day when mischievous spirits and witches take to the skies for mischief and general troublemaking. As it is customary for witches to use brooms as their preferred mode of transportation, in Norway it is a tradition for families to hide any cleaning supplies attached to sticks where the witches won’t be able to find them. I love this!
4.A Swedish Goat – I talked about the Yule Goat a bit here but this is one of the oldest traditions associated with Christmas that there is! You see, the Yule Goat dates back to at least the 11th century where there are mentions of a man-sized goat figure, led by Saint Nicholas, who had the power to control the devil. The Yule Goat has changed a lot throughout history now the legend is mostly remembered as a traditional Christmas ornament on many trees throughout Sweden.
5. Iceland Yule Lads – Iceland has so many awesome legends and traditions! I also covered the Yule Lads briefly here. These guys are some of my absolute favorites. These jolly but mischievous fellows take turns visiting kids on the 13 nights leading up to Christmas. Each night, children place one of their shoes on the windowsill. For good boys and girls, the Yule Lad will leave candy. When it comes to naughty children, the Yule Lads are not so subtle at expressing their disapproval: they fill the shoe with rotting potatoes. They have absolutely fantastic names, my favorites are Door Sniffer, Window Peeper, and Meat Hook.
6. The Welsh Mare – Mari Lwyd, or “Gray Mare” is the given name of the ghoulish horse figure often brought door to door between Christmas and New Year’s Eve. The Gray Mare is typically constructed of a horse skull, white sheet, and colorful ribbons and bells. The Mari Lwyd is then carried around Welsh towns by singing revelers. While it may be associated with Christmas now that wasn’t always the case, in fact, Mari Lwyd dates back to pre-Christian practices.
If the Yule Lads, ghoulish Welsh horses or Befana aren’t your cup of tea then this next list is for you! Here are 4 fun tradition ideas to add to your celebration this year!
1.Icelandic Book Exchange – Take a cue from Iceland and exchange books and chocolate on Christmas Eve. My family started doing this a few years ago. We pull names out of a hat at Thanksgiving for the book swap. We swap on Christmas Eve and then spend the rest of the night all cozy reading our books and eating chocolate. It’s awesome!
2.Polish/German Christmas Pickle – This tradition comes from Poland (and/or
3.Italian Feast – Chow down in Italian (and Italian American) fashion by celebrating Christmas Eve with the Feast of the Seven Fishes and eat lentils during the holiday season to ensure luck and wealth for the following year. Today the feast is generally comprised of 7 different seafood dishes. Think – shrimp cocktail, fried calamari, stuffed quahogs, and stuffed lobster. I’m drooling and I can totally get behind that!
4. Technically this one would be for next year, but you can take part in St. Nicholas Day – this day is generally celebrated on December 5 or 6 in Western Christian countries and December 19 in Eastern Christian countries. American Santa Claus, as well as the British Father Christmas, derive from Saint Nicholas. “Santa Claus” is itself derived in part from the Dutch Sinterklaas, the saint’s name in that language. However, the gift-giving associated with these figures is generally done on Christmas Day rather than Saint Nicholas Day itself. BUT you can take part by having children place shoes by the front door or stockings by the fireplace for Sinterklaas or St. Nick to leave presents.
- In Austria, Krampus gets in on the St. Nicholas Day fun and children are asked to provide a list of both good and bad deeds they’ve done throughout the year. Good children are rewarded with sweets, apples, and nuts, and bad children worry what Krampus might bring on Christmas morning. Krampus is my absolute favorite (I’m writing a post on him later this month) because there is nothing quite like scaring children into being good with a devil-like creature, is there?
Some more fun traditions that I’ve seen:
- Christmas Eve pajamas – get the whole family new PJs for Christmas Eve festivities.
- Christmas Fettuccini – Yep, that’s right, I’m taking that from The Holiday and yes, I love that movie! Did you ever notice that everyone in the movie eats Christmas fettuccini? My family started doing this last year and there is just something so satisfying about fettuccini on Christmas, I can’t explain it!
- Lord of The Rings Marathon – I am low key obsessed with J.R.R. Tolkien and his one ring to rule them all (yep, I’m a Harry Potter nerd and Lord of the Rings nerd). I love the idea of doing a Lord of the Rings marathon Christmas Eve into Christmas day that includes all 7 hobbit meals!
- A Tennessee Train Ride – I just read an article about this and would love to do this one year. You can hop onboard the Tennessee Valley Railroad’s vintage observation car for a holiday night out, Nightcaps with St. Nick. These roughly 75-minute holiday adventures depart from Chattanooga’s Grand Junction and cost $65 (2 drink vouchers, a dessert plate, and a souvenir mug included). You must be 21 or over and trains depart on weekends (Fri, Sat, and Sun) through December 22. How fun?? Not to mention, the drinks sound spectacular, peppermint schnapps hot chocolate anyone?
One more did you know?
Did you know that the first eggnog ever consumed in the United States was in 1607 at the Jamestown settlement in Virginia?
According to reports from Captain John Smith himself!
I hope you will consider adding some of these fun new traditions to your holiday celebrations this year! I’m sure, I will!
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