OUR FAVOURITE CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

Christmas traditions are a wonderful thing to introduce to your family especially when you have a baby.

Many families already have their own traditions but if this is your first Christmas with your little one then why not introduce some new traditions into your Christmas. Here, we’ve listed some of our favourites from all over the world that might inspire you to create something special for your family.

Christmas traditions in Switzerland

Many Swiss families make their own advent calendars. Parents often create calendars for their children or use it as a fun activity to do together. Each day’s bag reveals a new treat, with the biggest gift on Christmas Eve.

Christmas traditions in Italy

Christmas in Italy is magical as it’s one of the most celebrated festivities in the country. In addition to the Christmas tree, it is common to set up the nativity scene, invented in Italy in the Middle Ages. In fact, the city of Naples is famous all over the world for its precious Nativity scene, called Presepe Napoletano.

In Italy, children don’t just believe in Santa Claus, but also in Befana. She is a very old woman, flying on a broomstick, who visits children on the night between the 5th and 6th of January. She brings candy to good children and charcoal to bad ones, putting it in a sock that has to be hung the night before.

Christmas traditions in the Philippines

The giant Lantern Festival (known as Ligligan Parul Sampernandu) is held the Saturday before Christmas in San Fernando. It is classed as the “Christmas Capital of the Philippines”. 11 villages take part in the festival which leads to fierce competition as everyone tries to build the most elaborate lantern. They are around six metres in size and are meant to be a symbol of the Star of Bethlehem.

Christmas traditions in Germany

In Germany, the 6th of December is the second most important day of the Christmas season right after Christmas Eve – at least for children. On the previous evening, they put their polished shoes outside the front door and overnight Nikolaus (St. Nicholas) filled them with sweets, fruits, and small presents. The main presents will be gifted on Christmas eve though – officially brought from the Weihnachtsmann (Santa Claus).

Another very common tradition in Germany is the Advent wreath – you’ll find one in almost every house. It has four candles, and every Sunday in Advent a new candle is lit. Then finally on Christmas eve, the Christmas tree is brought to the house.

Christmas traditions in Iceland

In the 13 days leading up to Christmas in Iceland, 13 trolls called the Yule Lads visit children across the country each night during Yuletide. Different Yule Lads visit leaving gifts for nice boys and girls and rotting potatoes for the naughty kids.

The citizens of Iceland also take part in Jolabokflod translated as “Christmas Book Flood”. On Christmas Eve, people gift each other a book and spend the evening cosying up and reading their new gift. This tradition dates back to World War II. Paper was one of the only commodities that was not rationed at the time. Iceland is a nation of book lovers and in late September, a free catalogue of the newest books called the Bokatidindi is sent to each home and then people hit the bookshops.

Christmas traditions in Portugal

One of the local traditions in Portugal is the “Christmas bonfire” made of fir tree trunks. It is lit before the beginning of the Christmas Eve Mass (called the “rooster mass” because the legend says that the rooster sang a bit after the birth of baby Jesus). The longer the bonfire will last, the more luck you will have!

Christmas traditions in Poland

On Christmas Eve, many families share an unleavened religious wafer (also known as oplatek). Each person breaks off a piece as they wish each other Merry Christmas. Dinner is not allowed to start until the first star appears in the night sky. It is also another Polish tradition that an additional setting is placed at the table just in case someone uninvited arrives.

Christmas traditions in France

In France, one region in particular represents the Christmas spirit the best: Alsace. Usually, each year millions of tourists admire the giant Christmas Tree in Strasbourg after buying some bredele (traditional Christmas butter biscuits), and a glass of hot wine at the Christmas market.

Another region that stands out for having its own Christmas tradition is Provence, in the southeast of France. In Provence, you can taste no less than 13 desserts during the Christmas season. They typically include nuts, dried fruits, olive oil bread, nougat… It can vary and each family has its favourite, but they have to be 13!

This content is sponsored by Pampers®