A Holiday Tradition Discovery

Once again, the Holiday Season is upon us. The store displays, twinkling lights and decorations, majestic Christmas trees, delicious foods and treats, festive music, and the never-ending stream of holiday movies are making their annual appearances. Family and friends from near and far are sharing yule-tide cheer and good wishes with everyone they meet. To borrow a line from a famous Christmas Carol, “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!”

But, have we ever stopped to think about some of the lesser-known traditions that make this time of year so special for people all over the world? So, I decided to take a page from Santa’s playbook and visit countries from all over the globe on a voyage of Holiday Tradition Discovery.

The first stop on this whirlwind tour is a short visit with our Friends from Downunder, Australia, for their Annual Carols by Candlelight services. On Christmas Eve, famous and unknown Australian performers participate in nationwide Christmas pageants held in each state capital and broadcast across the country. Since it is the middle of their hot summer, the words to the carols about snow and cold are changed to summer activities such as swimming and surfing.

From Australia, we will be heading north to the Giant Lantern Festival in the Philippines. Every year on the Saturday before Christmas Eve, the festival is held in San Fernando, the Christmas Capital of the Philippines. Participants from eleven villages compete to build the most elaborate lantern. Originally the lanterns were made from Japanese origami paper and lit by candles but now are illuminated by electric lights.

Next, let’s take a short hop across the Pacific to the Land of the Rising Sun, Japan. Other than the usual gift exchange, Christmas is not a big holiday in Japan. That is, until recently. Thank a new, quirky Christmas Day tradition has emerged in which people feast on Kentucky Fried Chicken. The menu ranges from festive buckets of extra crispy to a full bird feast!

Japan: KFC Feast

In India, families decorate banana or mango trees with lights, handmade ornaments, and cotton wool that looks like snow instead of traditional pine trees. Spicy sweets called kuswar are baked and given to friends and family.

India: Giant Lantern Festival

Our next stop is Africa. Out of the 54 countries and territories, 38 celebrate the holiday season. Going to church and spending time with family are the most common activities. But there are a few traditions that stand out. For example, Egyptians and Ethiopians follow the Julian calendar, so they don’t celebrate Christmas until January 7th. In Gambia, the people march in massive parades carrying large boat-shaped lanterns called fanal. The people of Senegal, a predominantly Muslim country, celebrate Christmas by decorating mosques with Christmas trees.

As we leave Africa, we head north to Europe. From the jolly and traditional to the dark and supernatural, European customs showcase the rich and diverse cultures that make the Holidays in Europe unique and memorable. One of the more recent traditions is Pepperkakebyen, the construction of the largest gingerbread village in the world. Started by school children in 1991, this annual event takes place in Bergen, Norway, from mid-November to the end of December. Mummers’ Holiday Plays can be seen all over the United Kingdom. Ordinary people perform these dramatizations of folk tales as a fun way to break away from the stress of the holidays. Perhaps one of the darkest traditions takes place on the night of December 5th in many of the Alpine Countries. On this night, St. Nicholas leaves candy in the homes of the good children and a birch switch in the homes of the naughty. His evil assistant, Krampus, a half-goat–half-demon monster, punishes naughty children with the birch switch.

Similarly, in Iceland, the Yule Lads are giant trolls that live on a desolate mountain. During the 13 days before Christmas, the lads leave candy and toys in the shoes of well-behaved children. But watch out if you’re naughty – you’ll get a rotten potato instead. In Italy with La Befana, a broom-riding old woman in a black shawl delivers gifts to good children and lumps of coal to the bad. Fortunately for them, the coal is lumps of sugar candy coated in black food coloring.

Our voyage of discovery takes a turn back to North America and the annual Cavalcade of Lights in Toronto, Canada. This event, which first took place in 1967, marks the start of the Holiday Season as nearly 300,000 lights illuminate City Hall and Nathan Phillips Square from the end of November to New Year’s Eve.

Not to be outdone by our neighbors to the north, there are many unique holiday celebrations in the United States. For example, the Lighting of the National Hanukkah Menorah has taken place annually since 1979 on the grounds of the White House in Washington DC. But, I feel it is especially significant to share one that is in our own backyard, the 28th Annual Night of Lights in St. Augustine. Based upon the Spanish tradition of displaying a white candle in the window during the holiday season, spectators can view a wonderland of millions of twinkling white lights adorning the buildings of America’s oldest city.

St. Augustine, FL: Night of Lights

The Holiday Season is a time for thankful reflection, celebration, and growth. I hope you enjoyed the mini-tour of the world and the ways in which people of all cultures and countries celebrate this most wonderful time of the year. Happy Holidays!

Vince Philip moved from Staten Island, New York to DeLand, Florida over 20 years ago. When he is not working as a marketing and graphic design professional, Vince enjoys traveling, writing and boardgaming.