Christmas Traditions Extra - December 20, 2017

A Digital Only Supplement To Our Christmas Traditions Feature

In Argentina the weather is warm at Christmas. Preparations for Christmas begin very early in December and even in November. Many people in Argentina are Catholic and they also celebrate Advent.

House are beautifully decorated with lights and wreaths of green, gold, red and white flowers. Red and white garlands are hung on the doors of houses.

Christmas Trees are also very popular and they are often decorated by 8th December (the feast of the Immaculate Conception when Catholics celebrate when Mary was conceived). Some people like to put cotton balls on the Christmas Tree to represent snow! Any tree might be made into a Christmas Tree - not just the traditional fir tree!

The Nativity scene or ‘pesebre’ is also an important Christmas decoration in Argentina. The pesebre is put near to the Christmas tree.

Christmas Cards aren’t common in Argentina and although some people give and receive presents, it’s normally only between close family and friends.

The main Christmas celebrations take place on Christmas Eve. Many Catholics will go to a Mass in the late afternoon.

The main meal Christmas is eaten during the evening of Christmas Eve, often about 10pm or 11pm. It might be served in the garden or be a barbecue!

Some popular dishes include roasted turkey, roasted pork (in northern Argentina, some people will have goat), stuffed tomatoes, salads and Christmas bread and puddings like ‘Pan Dulce’ and Panetone.

At midnight there will be the sound of lots of fireworks! People also like to ‘toast’ the start of Christmas day. Some people like to go to midnight services, but other prefer to stay at home and let off fireworks and then open

their presents under the tree.

Another Christmas Eve night tradition are ‘globos’, paper decorations with a light inside that float into the sky (like Chinese Lanterns). The sky is filled with them on Christmas Eve after midnight.

Some people stay awake all the night chatting and seeing friends and family and then spend most of Christmas Day sleeping.

As in The Netherlands, children in Belgium believe that ‘Sinterklaas/ St. Niklaas’ (Flemish) or ‘Saint Nicholas’ (Walloon) brings them presents on December 6th, St. Nicholas’ Day. Children put their shoes in front of the fireplace, together some for Sinterklaas like a drawing or biscuits; they might also leave a carrot for Sinterklass’s horse and something for Zwarte Piet (Black Peter, Sinterklass’s assistant). Then in the night, Sinterklaas arrives on the roof on his horse with Zwarte Piet.

Zwarte Piet climbs down the chimney and leaves the presents in and around the shoes. Sinterklaas has a book in which he keeps all the names of the children and tells if they’ve been bad or good. Children are told that if they’ve been bad, Zwarte Piet will put you in his sack and take you back to Spain!

Traditional foods that are left for Sinterklaas include tangerines, gingerbread, chocolate and ‘mokjes’ (cookies made in the shapes of letters. There are lots of songs that children sing about Sinterklaas.

Different regions of Belgium have different customs and traditions about St. Nicholas.

The visit of Sinkerlass is a separate occasion than Christmas.

Christmas is a more religious festival.

In Belgium there are three official languages, Dutch (a Belgium version of Dutch is known as Flemish, this is mainly spoken in the northern area of Belgium called Flanders), French (mainly spoken in the southern Walloon Region) and German (spoken by about 1% of Belgiums in the east of the country).

In Belgium Dutch/Flemish Happy/Merry Christmas is ‘Vrolijk Kerstfeest’, French it’s ‘Joyeux Noël’, in German it’s ‘Frohe Weihnachten’ and in the Walloon language (spoken by somepoel in the Walloon Region) it’s ‘djoyeus Noyé’. Happy/ Merry Christmas in lots more languages.

On Christmas Eve (‘Kerstavond’ in Flemish and ‘le réveillion de Noël’ in Walloon), a special meal is eaten by most families. It starts with

a drink (apéritif) and ‘nibbles’, followed by a starter course such as sea-food, and then stuffed turkey.

The dessert is ‘Kerststronk’ (Flemish) or ‘la bûche de Noël’ (Walloon) a chocolate Christmas Log made of sponge roll layered with cream. The outside is covered with chocolate butter cream and made to resemble a bark-covered log.

Some people celebrate Advent and have Advent Wreaths/Crowns made from fir or leylandii greenery.

The wreaths have four candles and a candle is lit each week counting down to Christmas. These are very popular in Elementary/Primary Schools where an Advent song is sung when the candles are lit. Lots of children also have paper Advent Calendars with chocolate behind the doors for each day!

In the weeks before Christmas, people also like to go to Christmas Markets. You might spot Santa Claus at the market! People go to buy Christmas presents, decorations and food. You can also drink jenever (gin) or Glühwein (hot wine) and eat some Smoutebollen/oliebollen (deep fried sweet dumplings) are also very popular. Going ice skating with friends is also something very common

In Bulgaria, Christmas is celebrated on December 25th. Many countries in Eastern Europe celebrate Christmas on January 7th as most Orthodox Churches use the old Julian Calendar, but the Bulgarian Orthodox Church uses the Gregorian calendar Christmas in on the 25th December.

For many Bulgarians, the preparations for Christmas start with Advent which lasts 40 days in the Orthodox Church and starts on November 15th.

One legend in Bulgaria is that Mary started her labor on ‘Ignazhden’, December 20th (Saint Ignatius of Antioch’s Day) and she gave birth of Christmas Eve but the birth of Jesus wasn’t announced until Christmas Day. The 20th is also the traditional ‘new year’ in Bulgarian culture. It’s traditional to eat a special ring shaped caked called ‘kolaks’ on this day.

Christmas Eve (called ‘Badni Veche’) is a very important day and the main Christmas meal is eaten in the evening of Christmas Eve. The meal should traditionally have an odd number of dishes in it (normally 7, 9 or 11) and an odd number of people sitting around the table. (Salt, pepper and sugar can count as separate dishes!)

Straw is often put under the tablecloth and you might even bring a wooden plough into the house and

put it behind the door! These are meant to help you have good crops during the next year.

There’s a special round and decorated loaf of bread called ‘pita’ which has a coin baked in it. If you find the good you’re meant to have good luck for the next year! The bread is normally cut by the oldest person at the meal and hands it around the table.

It’s normally a rich vegetarian meal and includes dishes made of different such as beans soup, ‘sarmi’ cabbage leaves stuffed with rice, peppers stuffed with rice, boiled wheat with sugar and walnuts, different kinds of pastries (cheese, pumpkin and sweets pastries soaked in syrup), some kolaks, lots of fruits and nuts like dried plums, dried apricots, oranges and tangerines and ‘oshav’ a dried fruit compote.

Walnuts are especially popular. If you walnut is delicious you will have a good year, but if it’s empty or has a small nut you’ll have a bad year!

It’s traditional that the table is left with all the food on it until the morning of Christmas Day. Some people think their ancestors might like something to eat during the night!

On Christmas Day some families will have another big meal, but this time there will be meat, normally some kind of pork.

Following the meal some people will go to a Midnight Mass service.

You might also hear Koledari (carol singers) which are normally young men who go carol singing dressed it traditional clothing. The singing can only start after midnight. The singers often go round singing all night, so the sun never catches them! When they reach a house they sing ‘the house song’ praising and wishing the house well. Having the Koledari visit your home is meant to be good luck.

The songs are often in two parts with half of the singers singing the song and then the other half repeating it back. After the singing, the head of the house will give the Koledari food to thank them for singing. The special foods include ‘Koledni gevreci’ (round buns) and ‘banitsa’ (a layered pastry filled with cheese).

Santa is known as ‘Dyado Koleda’ (Дядо Коледа) which means Grandfather Christmas.

In Bulgarian Merry Christmas is ‘Vesela Koleda’.

Christmas in Chile is very warm as it’s in the middle of summer! However, it shares many of the same Christmas customs as the USA. People like to decorate their houses with Christmas Trees and lights. Having Christmas lights is a fairly recent development with more people being able to afford them. Sometimes neighbors compete to see who can have the best and most lights!

Nativity Scenes are also an important decoration. They have little clay figures (called ‘pesebre’) in them.

Many Catholics in Chile celebrate Advent and also go to special church services for nine days before Christmas, known as a Novena.

Christmas Eve is the most important day over Christmas.

Families and friends gather together for a big meal in the evening, eaten about 9pm or 10pm. Many people like to have ‘asado’ (barbecue) and chicken, turkey and pork. The Chilean Christmas Cake is ‘Pan de Pascua’ which is quite like Panettone.

A popular Christmas drink is ‘Cola de Mono’ (or monkey’s tail) which is made from coffee, milk, liquor, cinnamon and sugar.

After the meal, some people like to go to a church service.

At midnight everyone opens their presents! Children sometimes go round each others houses with their new toys - even in the middle of the night!

In Chile, Santa is called ‘Viejito Pascuero’ (Old Man Christmas) or sometimes ‘Papa Noel’ (Father Christmas).

Christmas Day is a more relaxed day which is spent with family and friends. If you live near the coast, many people will go to the beach.

In Colombia, Christmas celebrations and preparations start on the evening of the 7th December which is known as ‘Día de las Velitas’ or ‘Day of the little Candles’. Houses and streets are decorated with candles, lanterns and lots of lights. There are also big firework displays and music to dance to and foods like ‘buñuelos’ and ‘empanadas’. This day is celebrated by Catholics around the world as The Feast of the Immaculate Conception but is especially popular in Colombia.

From December 16 until Christmas Eve, many Colombians take part in ‘novenas’. These are special times when family, friends and neighbors come together to pray in the days leading up to Christmas.

They are known as the ‘Novena de Aguinaldos’ (Christmas Novena) and often a different house hosts the meeting every night. As well as the prayers, people sing carols and eat lots of yummy foods! You can find out more about Novena de Aguinaldos on the Hispanic Culture online site.

People like to decorate their

homes with Christmas Trees and other decorations. It’s very common for there to be candles (normally red and white) and other lights displayed in windows or on balconies. Another very important Christmas decoration in Colombia is a nativity scene or ‘el pesebre’. In early December, children write a ‘Carta al Niño Dios’ (letter to the baby Jesus) asking for what presents they would like. The letter is placed in the pesebre. They hope that Jesus will bring them presents on Christmas Eve. The main Christmas meal is eaten on Christmas Eve night and it’s called ‘Cena de Navidad’.

The dishes often include ‘lechona’ (pork stuffed with rice and peas), ham, turkey or a chicken soup called ‘Ajiaco Bogotano’.

Other popular foods around Christmas are ‘Buñuelos’ (cheesy fritters), arepas (a thick dish made from corn) and ‘hojuelas’ (a fried pastry with sugar and jam). A very popular Christmas dessert is ‘Natilla’ which is a set custard.

After the Christmas Meal, many people will go to a Midnight mass Church Service.

Some people stay up all night, so Christmas Day is a day for relaxing and eating up leftovers!

On the 28th December people celebrate Innocents Day, which is like April Fools Day, with lots of jokes and fun. TV stations often show bloopers and funny mistakes people have made in the previous year.

Christmas in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is more of a religious festival than being commercial. Most people won’t have any presents.

Christmas Eve is very important with Churches having big musical evenings (many churches have at least 5 or 6 choirs) and a nativity play. These plays last a very long time. They start at the beginning of the evening with the creation and the Garden of Eden and end with the story of King Herod killing the baby boys.

People taking part in the play really like to show off their ‘best’ acting skills and tend to go over the top and ‘ham it up’! King Herod and the soldiers are often figures of fun (like pantomime ‘baddies’) and Mary is often well advanced in labor before she arrives!

The birth of Jesus is timed to happen as close to midnight as possible and after that come the shepherds, the wise men and the slaughter of the innocents. This means the play normally finishes about 1am. However, in some places there will be further sing-

ing until dawn! The Christmas day service then starts at 9am with lots more singing.

On Christmas day, most families try to have a better meal than usual. If they can afford it, they will have some meat (normally chicken or pork). The rest of the day is spent quite quietly, maybe sleeping after a busy and late night on Christmas Eve! People go back to work on the 26th (Boxing Day).

In the Lingala language, which is spoken in the DRC and some other African countries, Happy/ Merry Christmas is ‘Mbotama Malamu’.

In Croatia, preparations for Christmas start on 25th November which is St Catherine’s day. People also celebrate Advent. Over 85% of people in Croatia are Catholics so Advent is an important time for them.

It’s traditional to have an Advent wreath made of straw or evergreen twigs which has four candles. The wreath symbolizes endlessness and the four candles symbolize different parts of history and life: • First Candle (purple): creation - hope; • Second Candle (purple): embodiment - peace; • Third Candle (pink): redemption - joy; • Fourth Candle (purple): ending - love; A fifth candle is sometimes added in the center which is lit on Christmas Day! You can buy wreaths, but many people like to make them. People also often have a paper Advent Calendar.

As well as St Catherine’s day, other saints days are celebrated in Advent in Croatia. On the 4th December it’s St Barbara’s Day; on the 6th December it’s St Nicholas’s Day and on 13th December it’s St Lucia’s/Lucy’s day.

On St Nicholas’s Eve (5th), chil-

dren clean their shoes/boots and leave them in the window. They hope that St Nicholas will leave them chocolates and small presents in their boot. If children have been naughty, Krampus (a big monster with horns who sometimes travels with St Nicholas!) leaves them golden twigs to remind them to behave.

On St Lucia’s Day people often sow wheat onto small plates. The grassy sprouts that grow (called Christmas wheat) are put underneath the Christmas Tree on Christmas Eve. Christmas Trees are very popular and are normally decorated on Christmas Eve but some put them up and decorate them on St Nicholas’s Day. In Croatia they’re traditionally decorated with ornaments in the shapes of fruits. They used to be real fruits or persevered candied fruits that were sometimes covered in

gold!

There’s an old Croatian tradition that young men gave their girlfriends a decorated apple at Christmas.

In rural parts of the country, it is still customary to bring straw into the house on Christmas Eve as a symbol of future good crops. A yule logs called a ‘badnjak’ (also the word for Christmas Eve) was traditionally brought into the house and lit on Christmas Eve. But not many people have fireplaces these days!

Presents are normally exchanged on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. Many people like to go to a Midnight Mass service.

In Croatian Happy/Merry Christmas is ‘Sretan Božić’. Happy/ Merry Christmas in lots more languages.

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are mostly celebrated with close family. On Boxing day friends and extended family visit each other.

On Christmas Eve, most people eat dried-cod called ‘bakalar’ or some other kind of fish as it’s considered as meat fast (so you can’t eat meat).

The main Christmas Day is often turkey, goose or duck. A popular side dish is sarma (cabbage rolls filled with minced pork meat).

During the evening of the 5th December, children are very excited and watch for St. Nicholas (Svatý Mikuláš) to arrive. He normally is accompanied by one or more angels and one or more devils. He asks the children if they’ve been good all year and also asks them to sing a song or recite a poem, and gives them a basket of presents, often containing chocolate and fruit. If you’ve been naughty, the devil might give you a lump of coal. Like in the The Netherlands and some other European countries, St Nicholas’ Day is a very separate holiday than Christmas.

In the Czech language Happy/ Merry Christmas is ‘Veselé Vá noce’.

Happy/ Mer r y Christmas in lots more languages.

The main Christmas celebrations are on Christmas Eve. Some people fast during Christmas Eve in the hope that they will see a vision of ‘the golden pig’ appear on the wall before dinner! This is meant to be a sign of good luck!

The Czech traditional Christmas dinner is eaten during

night or on Christmas Day. There’s a superstition in the Czech Republic that says if you throw a shoe over your shoulder on Christmas day, if the toe points towards the door, you will be married soon!

the evening of Christmas Eve. The meal often consists of fish soup (made of carp), and fried carp with potato salad.

Ježíšek ‘Little Jesus’ (the Czech version of Christkindl) brings presents during the Christmas Eve dinner and leaves them under the Christmas Tree. Czech children have their dinner in a different from where the tree is located. When they hear the bell ring (usually after the children have finished eating their main meal but when they are still at the table), that means that Ježíšek had been and has left their presents under the tree. The presents are normally opened right after dinner.

Religious families also usually sing Christmas carols by the tree, and go to church either at mid-

Some people in Denmark give and receive extra Advent presents on the four Sundays of Advent.

Different types of Advent candles and calendars are popular in Denmark. A Kalenderlys (calendar-candle) is an Advent candle and most people have one of these types of candles. A Pakkekalender (gift calendar) is also a fun way to countdown to Christmas Eve. There are 24 small gifts for the children in the calendar, one for each day until Christmas Eve. Julekalender (christmas calendar) is a television series with 24 episodes. One episode is shown each day in December with the last one being aired on Christmas Eve. The first Julekalender was shown on TV in Denmark in 1962. The two main Danish TV channels DR and TV2 both show different versions of Julekalender each year.

The theme of the stories in the Julekalender normally follow a similar storyline, with someone trying to ruin Christmas and the main characters saving Christmas!

As well as the TV series, both DR and TV2 produce paper advent calendars to go along with the stories! DR is the oldest TV channel in Denmark and it’s paper calendar is called Børnenes U-landskalender

(Children’s U-Country Calendar).

It’s been making the calendars for over 50 years and profits from the sale of the calendar go to help poor children in a developing country.

The calendar made by TV2 is called julekalender and profits from that calendar go to help Julemærkefonden, a children’s charity in Denmark.

You can also support Julemærkefonden when you send Christmas Cards in Denmark.

Every year a set of Christmas stamps /stickers /seals called julemærket are sold in December to help raise money for the charity.

You use a normal postage stamp as well, the julemærket stickers just make the post look more Christmassy! You can out more about julemærket on https://www. julemaerket.dk Christmas Parties are held from

1st November to 24th December where everyone has a good time!

Making cakes and biscuits is popular in the time before Christmas.

Gingerbread cookies and vanilla ones are often favorites.

In Denmark most people go to a Church Service on Christmas Eve about 4.00pm to hear the Christmas sermon or talk. It’s also an old, traditional custom to give animals a treat on Christmas Eve, so some people go for a walk in the park or woods and they might take some food to give the animals and birds.

You might also go for a walk to give you an appetite for the Christmas meal!

When they get home the main Christmas meal is eaten between 6.00pm and 8.00pm. It’s served on a beautifully decorated table.

Popular Christmas foods include roast duck, goose or pork. They are served with boiled and sweet potatoes, red cabbage, beetroot and cranberry jam/sauce.

St. Lucia’s Day (or St. Lucy’s Day) is also celebrated on December 13th, although it’s more famous for being celebrated in Denmark’s neighbor, Sweden.

In Danish Happy/Merry Christmas is ‘Glædelig Jul’.

In France, a Nativity crib is often used to help decorate the house. French cribs have clay figures in them. During December some towns and cities, such as Marseilles, have fairs that sell Nativity figures. 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.

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’.

Happy/Merry Christmas in lots more languages.

Yule Logs made out of 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 is 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.

In France, Father Christmas / Santa Claus / St. Nicholas is

types of Fruit, Nuts and Pastries.

Epiphany, called Fête des Rois in French, is also celebrated in France on January 6th. A flat Almond cake is eaten called ‘Galette des Rois’. The cake has a toy crown inside and is decorated on top with a gold paper crown.

called Père Noël (Father Christmas). In eastern France he is accompanied by Le Pere Fouettard, a man dressed in black. He might be the same person as Zwarte Piet in The Netherlands.

The main Christmas meal, called Réveillon, is eaten on Christmas Eve/early Christmas morning after people have returned from the midnight Church Service. Dishes might include roast turkey with chestnuts or roast goose, oysters, foie gras, lobster, venison and cheeses. For dessert, a chocolate sponge cake log called a bûche de Noël is normally eaten.

Another celebration, in some parts of France, is that 13 different desserts are eaten! All the desserts are made from different

In France, a Nativity crib is often used to help decorate the house. French cribs have clay figures in them. During December some towns and cities, such as Marseilles, have fairs that sell Nativity figures. 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.

In French Happy/Merry Christmas is ‘Joyeux Noël’. In Breton (spoken by some people in Britta-ny, Northern France) it’s ‘Nedeleg Laouen’ and in Corsican it’s ‘Bon Natale’.

Happy/Merry Christmas in lots more languages.

Yule Logs made out of 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 is 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.

In France, Father Christmas / Santa Claus / St. Nicholas is

types of Fruit, Nuts and Pastries.

Epiphany, called Fête des Rois in French, is also celebrated in France on January 6th. A flat Almond cake is eaten called ‘Galette des Rois’. The cake has a toy crown inside and is decorated on top with a gold paper crown.

called Père Noël (Father Christmas). In eastern France he is accompanied by Le Pere Fouettard, a man dressed in black. He might be the same person as Zwarte Piet in The Netherlands.

The main Christmas meal, called Réveillon, is eaten on Christmas Eve/early Christmas morning after people have returned from the midnight Church Service. Dishes might include roast turkey with chestnuts or roast goose, oysters, foie gras, lobster, venison and cheeses. For dessert, a chocolate sponge cake log called a bûche de Noël is normally eaten.

Another celebration, in some parts of France, is that 13 different desserts are eaten! All the desserts are made from different

People in Ghana celebrate Christmas from the 20th of December to the first week in January with lots of different activities. Many people travel to visit their relatives and friends in other parts of the country. Over 66 languages are spoken in Ghana and all these language groups have their own traditions and customs!

December is also the start of the cocoa harvest (the bean that make chocolate) in Ghana.

Ghana is the worlds second biggest cocoa producer. I really like some fair-trade chocolate that’s made with cocoa from Ghana!

Christmas Eve night is the time when the celebrations really start with Church services that have drumming and dancing.

Children often put on a Nativity Play or other drama. Then choirs come out to sing and people come out in front of the priests to dance. Songs are mostly sang in the languages that the people understand best. This makes them feels that God speaks their language. Sometimes these services and dancing go on all night long!

to pray for a good and safe New Year. People may also use that time to remember those who died during the previous year and pray that the difficulties that they may have encountered over the year don’t carry on into the New Year.

Other people celebrate Christmas Eve with fireworks and parties.

On Christmas day the Churches are very full. People come out dressed in their colorful traditional clothes. After the Church service on Christmas morning, people quickly go back to their houses to sTraditional food includes stew or okra soup, porridge and meats, rice and a yam paste called ‘fufu’.

During the Christmas period children’s parties, employees’ end of year parties, etc. are mostly celebrated in the hotels, at the beaches, school parks and community centers with good wishes for all people on earth.

Some Ghanaians also go to Church on the 31st December to thank God for sending Jesus and

• Christmas in Canada has many different customs and traditions because of the country’s diverse population. Most people celebrate on December 25th.

• The Santa Claus parade has been held every Christmas in Toronto since 1905. Almost 1,800 people take part in the parade, and about 500,000 people line the parade route.

• Every Christmas, homes in Labrador City in Newfoundland have a Christmas lights competition. Homeowners also try to outdo each other with huge ice sculptures and light displays in their gardens.

• Also popular is the festival of lights at Niagara Falls. The waterfalls are decorated with over 2 million lights, and visitors can also enjoy concerts and fireworks over the falls.

• Turkey or ham is the traditional Christmas meal for most English speaking Canadians.

Other popular seasonal foods include mince pies, plum pudding and a rich Christmas fruit cake.

• Attending midnight mass is customary among French speaking Canadians, as well as attending feasts on Christmas Eve. A stew made from pigs’ feet is a traditional Christmas meal in parts of Quebec.

• Every year, the Canadian province of Nova Scotia gives a Christmas tree to the US city of Boston. The tree is in appreciation for help given by Boston residents after a ship exploded in Halifax in 1917.

• Mummering is a popular tradition at Christmas in Canada, in parts of Newfoundland. Children go from door to door, sing and dance, and are given snacks and a drink.

• Cookie, or biscuit baking parties are very popular in Canada around Christmas. Cookies are baked and recipes are exchanged, and each person at the party leaves with a selection of cookies.

• In Quebec, people celebrate Epiphany on January 6th.

One tradition is baking a cake with a bean in it, and whoever finds the bean is named the king or queen of

the feast.

“Hot cockles” was a popular game at Christmas in medieval times. It was a game in which the other players took turns striking the blindfolded player, who had to guess the name of the person delivering each blow. “Hot cockles” was still a Christmas pastime until the Victorian era.

“White Christmas” (1954), starring Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye, was the first movie to be made in Vista Vision, a deep-focus process.

“The Nutcracker” is the name for the ballet performed around Christmas time each year. “The Nutcracker Suite” is the title of the music Tchaikovsky wrote. ”Wassail” comes from the Old Norse “ves heill”--to be of good health. This evolved into the tradition of visiting neighbors on Christmas Eve and drinking to their health.

A traditional Christmas dinner in early England was the head of a pig prepared with mustard.

According to a 1995 survey, 7 out of 10 British dogs get Christmas gifts from their doting owners.