Christmas Traditions in Great Britain


A tradition is a specific practice of long standing in which unwritten customs and practices are passed from one generation to the next. Traditions and customs form part of a country's culture and heritage. The following information provides some fast, interesting facts about customs and Christmas traditions in Great Britain:


Christmas Traditions in Great Britain, Wales and Northern Ireland often vary from those in Scotland whose strong Protestant religious roots led to greater celebrations in the New Year

Xmas Trees and other traditional decorations and ornaments decorate British homes. These usually start to go up on December 1st. They are all taken down by Twelfth Night, 6th January, as it is deemed to be bad luck to show decorations after this date

Popular festive plants include holly, ivy, mistletoe, the Christmas amaryllis and poinsettias

The season starts in Great Britain with elaborate lighting being switched on in famous shopping areas such as Oxford Street in London

In the last few years many British homes have also adopted the American custom of decorating the outside of their houses with various decorations and lights

Santa Claus is commonly known as Father Christmas in Great Britain and delivers the presents and fills the stockings on Christmas Eve

Christmas Day is a Bank holiday when very few people work and when people all get together for a great celebratory meal and open gifts

Many British people go to church in the morning and after the main meal families relax by --- -

-playing games or simply watching the TV

-26th December which is known as Boxing Day in Great Britain and is traditionally a day for many sporting events especially British football (soccer) matches and horse racing events

Christmas Traditions in Great Britain - The Food!

What do people eat in other countries at this special time of the year?

Festive feasts and recipes are traditional for special occasions including family dinners and meals. Interesting facts about the special food eaten as part of the customs and Christmas traditions in Great Britain:

-Traditions - A typical Christmas dinner in Great Britain would be a roast dinner (usually roast turkey or chicken) with a great variety of vegetables including Brussels sprouts, carrots, cauliflower cheese, parsnips and roast potatoes with stuffing and other trimmings such as small sausages wrapped in bacon

-Traditions - Christmas Pudding, or Plum pudding or mince pies are a traditional dessert served with brandy butter

-Traditions - Festive Xmas crackers are used to decorate the table