What is an annual Christmas tradition celebrated in towns across Europe: in France, Germany, and Austria?
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Christkindelsmärik, Strasbourg Christkindelsmärik is a Christmas market (French: "Marché de Noël") held annually in Strasbourg, France, near Strasbourg Cathedral. It draws in approximately 2 million visitors each year and since the arrival of TGV service in Strasbourg in 2007, the number of visitors has been on the rise. Hotels are booked a year in advance and some receive between 15-17% of their yearly income thanks to the Christkindelsmarik's visitors. It is considered one of the most famous Christmas markets throughout Europe. It is estimated that the city benefits of a 16 million Euros profit from this 38-day-long tradition. It is mostly famous for its fragrance of warm wine and spices which travels throughout the cold, winter streets.
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Christmas market A Christmas market, also known as Christkindlmarkt, Marché de Noël, Christkindlesmarkt, Christkindlmarket, Christkindlimarkt, and Weihnachtsmarkt, is a street market associated with the celebration of Christmas during the four weeks of Advent. These markets originated in Germany, but are now being held in many other countries. The history of Christmas markets goes back to the Late Middle Ages in the German-speaking part of Europe, and in many parts of the former Holy Roman Empire that includes many eastern regions of France. The Christmas markets of Bautzen were first held in 1384. Dresden's Striezelmarkt was first held in 1434. Frankfurt was first mentioned in 1393, Munich in 1310 and Augsburg in 1498. In Austria, Vienna's "December market" can be considered a forerunner of Christmas markets and dates back to 1298.
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Twelve Days of Christmas The Twelve Days of Christmas, also known as Twelvetide, is a festive Christian season celebrating the Nativity of Jesus Christ. In most Western ecclesiastical traditions, "Christmas Day" is considered the "First Day of Christmas" and the Twelve Days are 25 December – 5 January, inclusive. For many Christian denominations; for example, the Anglican Communion and Lutheran Church, the Twelve Days are identical to Christmastide, but for others, e.g., the Roman Catholic Church, "Christmastide" lasts longer than the Twelve Days of Christmas.
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Father Christmas Father Christmas is the traditional English name for the personification of Christmas. Although now known as a Christmas gift-bringer, and normally considered to be synonymous with Western culture's Santa Claus which is now known worldwide, he was originally part of an unrelated and much older English folkloric tradition. The recognisably modern figure of the English Father Christmas developed in the late Victorian period, but Christmas had been personified for centuries before then.
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Last White Christmas The Last White Christmas festival was held in Pisa on Dec. 4, 1983, the day of Saint Barbara, organized by the Gran Ducato Hard Core (GDHC), in the deconsecrated church of San Zeno. The church had been occupied a few months prior to the closing of the self-managed social center Victor Charlie. Shortly after GDHC occupied the Macchia Nera, historical Pisan self-managed social center active from 1988 to 1999.
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Mustacciuoli Mustacciuoli (also known as mustaccioli or mostaccioli) are traditional pastries from Naples, usually served at Christmas time.
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Speculaas Speculaas or speculoos (Dutch: "Speculaas" ] , Flemish: "speculoos", French: "spéculoos" ] , German: "Spekulatius") is a type of spiced shortcrust biscuit, traditionally baked for consumption on or just before St Nicholas' day in the Netherlands (5 December), Belgium (6 December), and around Christmas in Germany. Speculaas are thin, very crunchy, caramelized, slightly browned and, most significantly, have some image or figure (often from the traditional stories about St. Nicholas) stamped on the front side before baking; the back is flat.
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Serbian Christmas traditions Serbian Christmas traditions are customs and practices of the Serbs associated with Christmas and a period encompassing it, between the third Sunday before Christmas Day and Epiphany. There are many, complex traditions connected with this period. They vary from place to place, and in many areas have been updated or watered down to suit modern living. The Serbian name for Christmas is "Božić" (Cyrillic: Божић, ] ), which is the diminutive form of the word "bog" ("god"), and can be translated as "young god". Christmas is celebrated for three consecutive days, starting with Christmas Day, which the Serbs call the first day of Christmas. On these days, one is to greet another person by saying "Christ is Born," which should be responded to with "Truly He is Born," or in Serbian: „"Hristos se rodi"“ ] – „"Vaistinu se rodi"“ ] .
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Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the day before Christmas Day, the festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation of Christmas Day. Together, both days are considered one of the most culturally significant celebrations in Christendom and Western society.
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Ozmas Ozmas is a Christmas celebration in the Australian winter.
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Miner's figure A miner's figure (German: "Bergmannsfigur" ) is a traditional Christmas decoration from the Ore Mountains of central Europe. Miners' figures are turned or carved out of wood, and often bear two candles. They are usually displayed together with an angelic figure, also bearing a candle. This pair is intended to symbolize the relationship between man and woman or the worldly and spiritual aspects of life.
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Day of the German-speaking Community The Day of the German-speaking Community is a holiday in Belgium celebrated on November 15 each year. It is a public holiday for the German-speaking Community of Belgium but it is not celebrated elsewhere in the country. The equivalents of the other communities are the Day of the Flemish Community (July 11) and the Day of the French-speaking Community (September 27). The ceremony coincides with the King's Feast.
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Frankfurt Christmas Market, Birmingham The Frankfurt Christmas Market and Craft Market is an annual outdoor Christmas market and craft fair held in central Birmingham, England. The market started in 2001 with 24 stalls and has slowly expanded every year. It opens in mid November and continues until late December, closing just before Christmas.
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Christmas gift-bringer A number of Midwinter or Christmas traditions in European folklore involve gift-bringers. Mostly involving the figure of a bearded old man, the traditions have mutually influenced one another, and have adopted aspects from Christian hagiography, even before the modern period.
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Réveillon In Belgium, Brazil, France, Portugal, Romania, in the Canadian provinces of Quebec, Ontario and New Brunswick, the city of New Orleans, and some other French-speaking places, a réveillon (] ) is a long dinner held on the evenings preceding Christmas Day and New Year's Day. The name of this dinner is based on the word "réveil" (meaning "waking"), because participation involves staying awake until midnight and beyond. In Portuguese-speaking countries, it is also a designation for the party preceding to the New Year's Day. In the United States, the "réveillon" tradition is still observed in New Orleans due to the city's strong French heritage, with a number of the city's restaurants offering special "réveillon" menus on Christmas Eve.
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Père Noël Père Noël (] ), "Father Christmas", sometimes called Papa Noël ("Daddy Christmas"), is a legendary gift-bringer at Christmas in France and other French-speaking areas, identified with the Father Christmas and/or Santa Claus of English-speaking territories. Though they were traditionally different, all of them are now the same character, with different names, and the shared characteristics of a red outfit, workshop at the North Pole, and team of reindeer.
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Silent Night "Silent Night" (German: "Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht" ) is a popular Christmas carol, composed in 1818 by Franz Xaver Gruber to lyrics by Joseph Mohr in the small town of Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria. It was declared an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO in 2011. The song has been recorded by a large number of singers from every music genre. The version sung by Bing Crosby is the third best-selling single of all-time.
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Easter egg tree A German tradition of decorating trees and bushes with Easter eggs is known as the Ostereierbaum, or Easter egg tree. A notable example is the "Saalfelder Ostereierbaum" (Saalfeld Easter egg tree) in Saalfeld, Thuringia.
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Święconka Święconka (), meaning "the blessing of the Easter baskets," is one of the most enduring and beloved Polish traditions on Holy Saturday. With roots dating back to the early history of Poland, it is also observed by expatriate and their descendants Poles in the U.S., Canada, the UK, and other Polish Parish communities.
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Blue Christmas (holiday) Blue Christmas, also called the Longest Night in the Western Christian tradition, is a day in the Advent season marking the longest night of the year. On this day, some churches hold a church service that honours people who have lost loved ones in that year. The Holy Eucharist is traditionally a part of the service of worship on this day. Some churches hold a service of worship on the longest night of the year, which falls on or about December 21st, the Winter Solstice. There is an interesting convergence for this day as it is also the traditional feast day for Saint Thomas the Apostle. This linkage invites making some connections between Thomas's struggle to believe the tale of Jesus' resurrection, the long nights just before Christmas, and the struggle with darkness and grief faced by those living with loss.
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We Wish You a Merry Christmas "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" is a popular English Christmas carol from the West Country of England.
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Koliada Koliada or koleda (Cyrillic: коляда, коледа, колада, коледе) is an ancient pre-Christian Slavic winter festival. It was later incorporated into Christmas.