Christmas is right around the corner where the majority of us Scots will be spending the day with family, exchanging presents and eating as much of our turkey dinners as possible. However, have you ever wondered how Christmas is spent in other countries? With traditions old and new, the festive season is one of the most diversely celebrated times of the year. Traditionally, Christmas is a Christian holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. However with a little help from commercialism, Christmas has pretty much turned into a holiday for everyone no matter what your beliefs.
In Japan, less than 1% of the country’s population are of Christian faith so you could assume they don’t celebrate the holiday. However although the Japanese don’t take December 25th as a holiday, they still celebrate in the traditions of gift giving and the one and only Santa Clause. Check out this adorable video of penguins in an aquarium in Tokyo. I promise it’s got something to do with Christmas.
In Hungary, they celebrate Christmas twice. Not bad, eh? December 6 is known as St Nicholas (Mikolas Dat,) Day where they feast on glorious banquets and receive gifts from a man dressed in red – I wonder who that could be! They then celebrate Christmas again on 25 December where they visit friends and family and decorate Christmas trees. While many of us Scots hang up our stockings on the fireplace, Hungarian children put out a boot to be filled with sweets and small presents. One of Hungary’s specialities are Szaloncukors – if you don’t know what they are, watch this video and see how they tie into the Hungarian Christmas experience.
When we think of Christmas, we often think of the many seasonal songs sung at this time of year, and I don’t mean the latest X Factor winner’s single. Christmas carols are a tradition that date back as far as the 13th century and every country who celebrates Christmas has their own carols. In Ethiopia, Africa, singing is part of times of celebration and remembrance and their carols sound very different to the classic Jingle Bell Rock that fills our Christmas playlists this time of year. Watch this video of a traditional Ethiopian Orthodox Church song:
Heading to South America, Brazil has the world’s largest floating Christmas tree (it’s not a real tree though, just a metal structure) which stands at a massive 85m tall and is decorated with over 3 million light bulbs. That’s quite the electricity bill. Brazil celebrates Christmas just like the UK with exchanging gifts, visiting family and eating lots of food. However, because Brazil is south of the equator (remembering Standard Grade geography here) December is a summer month and so unlike the harsh winter weather we Scottish embrace, the people of Brazil like to hit the beach and enjoy BBQ’s in the sizzling sun. Thinking of heading abroad next Christmas? Me too. See Rio’s tree in action here;
No matter where you’re spending Christmas, there’s one festive craze that is soon becoming a Christmas tradition of its own and is taking the world by storm. Creating spectacular light shows with Christmas lights around your house is taking festive decorations to a whole new level. Check out LMFAO’s Sexy and I Know It, Christmas light style, from California (warning – contains flashing lights):
With so many different Christmas traditions from all over the globe, it’s difficult not to get excited about this festive season. Whether you’ll be spending the holidays with your family, stuffing your face with chocolates, or frolicking in the snow (weather permitting), we hope you have an amazing Christmas!
