It’s that time again! If you’re learning another language with The Language Guru, or even if you’re just interested in how other countries do it, here are some festive ways the holidays are celebrated in France, Spain and Germany. And to help you organise posting all those gifts to loved ones abroad, there’s a link to the last posting dates too.
Saint Nicholas’ Day, Germany
Not to be confused with Weihnachtsmann (Father Christmas), Nikolaus travels by donkey in the middle of the night on December 6th (Nikolaus Tag) and leaves treats like coins, chocolate, oranges and toys in the shoes of good children. St Nicholas also visits them in schools or at home and in exchange for sweets or a small present, each child must recite a poem, sing a song or draw a picture.
But it isn’t always fun and games. St Nick often brings along Knecht Ruprecht (Farmhand Rupert). A devil-like character dressed in dark clothes covered with bells and a dirty beard. Knecht Ruprecht carries a stick or a small whip in hand to punish any children who misbehave.
German families prepare for Christmas throughout December. Four Sundays before Christmas, they make an Advent wreath of fir or pine branches with four coloured candles. They light a candle on the wreath each Sunday, sing Christmas songs, and eat Christmas cookies. In the weeks leading up to Christmas, homes are filled with the delightful smells of baking loaves of sweet bread, cakes filled with candied fruits, and spicy cookies called lebkuchen.
Towns and cities across Germany hold traditional Christmas markets offering mulled wine (glühwein), cakes, meats, gifts, toys and local arts and crafts. If you haven’t been, it’s certainly worth a visit.
At 400 years old, the tradition of the decorated Christmas tree is a comparatively young German custom. Historically, families decorated their living rooms with evergreen branches at Christmas. This custom eventually evolved into bringing in entire trees. In the 17th century, people started decorating their trees with ripe red apples, gingerbread and silk flowers to create the illusion of a tree brilliantly blooming in winter. By the 19th century, the Christmas tree had even replaced the nativity scene as the focal point of German Christmas festivities. The Christmas carol ‘Oh Tannenbaum’ is an ode to the Christmas tree.
Noël in France
In France, a Nativity crib is often used to help decorate homes. As well as having the normal Nativity figures in them, French scenes also have figures such as a butcher, a baker, a policeman and a priest. During December many towns and cities have wonderful Christmas markets, selling festive fare and gifts.
In French, Happy/Merry Christmas is ‘Joyeux Noël’. In Breton (spoken by some people in Brittany, Northern France) it’s ‘Nedeleg Laouen’ and in Corsican, it’s ‘Bon Natale’. Father Christmas is called Père Noël.
Yule Logs made from cherry wood are often burned in French homes. The log is carried into the home on Christmas Eve and is sprinkled with red wine to make the log smell nice when it’s burning. There is a custom that the log and candles are left burning all night with some food and drinks left out in case Mary and the baby Jesus come past during the night.
The main Christmas meal is often eaten on Christmas Eve. Dishes might include roast turkey with chestnuts or roast goose, oysters, foie gras, lobster, venison and cheeses with a chocolate sponge cake log called a bûche de Noël. The French are big on eating well at Christmas!
One main difference from the UK is that there is no Boxing Day in France, so it’s business as usual after the day and the meal before.
Christmas in Spain
Most people in Spain go to Midnight Mass or ‘La Misa Del Gallo’ (The Mass of the Rooster). It is called this because a rooster is supposed to have crowed the night that Jesus was born.
Most families eat their main Christmas meal on Christmas Eve before the service. The traditional Spanish Christmas dinner is ‘Pavo Trufado de Navidad’ which is turkey stuffed with truffles (the mushrooms, not the chocolate ones!). After the midnight service, people walk through the streets carrying torches, playing guitars and beating on tambourines and drums. One Spanish saying is ‘Esta noche es Noche-Buena, Y no es noche de dormir’ which means ‘Tonight is the good night and it is not meant for sleeping!’
A few different languages are spoken in different regions in Spain. In Spanish, Happy/Merry Christmas is ‘Feliz Navidad’; in Catalan it’s ‘Bon Nadal’; in Galician, it’s ‘Bo Nadal’; and in the Basque country, it’s ‘Eguberri on’.
New Year’s Eve is a night for throwing fiestas called ‘cotillones’ or for gathering in town squares under the old clock tower waiting for it to strike twelve. According to tradition, observers must then wolf down 12 grapes to guarantee good fortune for the New Year. Afterward, revellers toast the New Year with glasses of cava. The festive spirit continues until the early hours of the morning and January 1st is a day of rest for those who have partied too much.
Apart from Christmas, another festival celebrated in Spain is about the Christmas story. Epiphany is celebrated on 6th January. In Spanish, Epiphany is called ‘Fiesta de Los tres Reyes Mages’ meaning ‘The festival of the three magic kings’ and celebrates when the kings, or wise men, brought gifts to the baby Jesus.
Children have some presents on Christmas Day, but most are opened at Epiphany as some children believe that the kings bring presents to them at Epiphany. They write letters to the kings on Boxing Day asking for toys and presents. And on Epiphany Eve (January 5th) they leave shoes on windowsills, balconies or under the Christmas tree to be filled. Gifts are often left by children for the kings: a glass of cognac for each king, a satsuma and some walnuts. Sometimes a bucket of water is left for the camels that bring the kings. If the children have been bad, the kings might leave pieces of coal made from sugar in the presents!
Last posting dates for Christmas 2017 – UK and international
Here’s some useful information for everyone posting abroad:
http://www.royalmail.com/sites/default/files/rm-latest-posting-dates-christmas-2017.pdf
With thanks for the information to:
https://www.whychristmas.com/cultures/
https://www.momondo.co.uk/inspiration/christmas-traditions-around-the-world/
http://www.donquijote.org/culture/spain/society/holidays/christmas-in-spain