Christmas Traditions of Eastern Europe & Eurasia! For over 1000 years Jesus’ birth has been celebrated in good times and in bad, in public and in secret. • •

Mixture of Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant traditions Ethnic Tales, Family Traditions, Decorations, and good Food

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“CHRISTMAS in 10 NATIONS”

TABLE OF CONTENTS

BELARUS  ................................................................................  3   BULGARIA  .............................................................................  4   CENTRAL ASIA  ....................................................................  5   CZECH REPUBLIC  ..............................................................  6   HUNGARY  ..............................................................................  7   POLAND  ..................................................................................  8   ROMANIA  ..............................................................................  9   RUSSIA  ................................................................................  10   SLOVAK REPUBLIC  ........................................................  11   UKRAINE  .............................................................................  12  

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BELARUS Vyaselukh Kalyad! (Merry Christmas)

Christmas Celebrations:

 

G.  Kimmerle,  Germany

Because Belarusian history is divided between the Central European Catholic and the Eastern European Orthodox Christmas, the holiday lasts a long time. Catholics and Protestants choose to celebrate on 25th of December and the Orthodox on January 7th. Secular revelers raised under the Communist tradition focus on New Year’s Day. Christmas Meal: A special dinner consisting of at least twelve dishes is prepared to remind the family of the twelve apostles. Boiled rice with raisins and honey, pies made of gammon and goose. Other dishes feature mushrooms, herring, oat kissel or boiled fruits. Christmas Traditions:  Placing straw on the dinner table on Christmas Eve to remind families of the straw in the stable where Jesus was born.  Many Christmas carols “Kolyady”, special clothes, wishes and treats that are part of Belarusian traditions are based on pagan festivals that were intended to bring good fortune to people during the New Year.  Decorating a tree with straw, star-shaped ornaments. SOURCES: http://www.msichicago.org/scrapbook/scrapbook_exhibits/catw2004/traditions/countries/belarus.html http://travel.mapsofworld.com/belarus/christmas-in-belarus.html

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BULGARIA Честито Коледа! Tchestito Koleda! (Merry Christmas)

Christmas Celebrations:

 

G.  Kimmerle,  Germany

Christmas Eve is as important as Christmas day in Bulgaria. The whole family gathers. Straw is placed on the table to remind everyone that Jesus was born in a stable. In villages a large log or budnik cut in the morning is laid on the fire and kept burning through the night and on Christmas day. Seated around the fire families eat blood sausage and offer Christmas wishes. Christmas Meal: The meal prepared for Christmas Eve has an odd number (7) of Lenten (non-meat) dishes. The dishes consist of beans, different kinds of nuts, dried plums, cakes and the traditional Banitza, a huge round loaf of bread decorated with figures of cattle, the house and pastoral items. On Christmas day dishes may include meat and are served in twelve courses representing 12 months. Christmas Traditions:  A coin is baked into the Banitza. Pieces are broken off and distributed to family members. Getting the coin is good luck.  Boys called Koledari sang carols in the neighborhood and danced the Rkoledaris (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNSyxp-CmP0). They were rewarded with money, food and small gifts. They carried long sticks to collect kravai, which are round breads with holes in them. The sticks doubled as switches they used to playfully “tap” their reluctant neighbors. Sources: www.santas.net http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_around_the_world#Bulgaria

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CENTRAL ASIA Жаңа жыл құтты болсын (Happy New Year--Kazakh)

Yangi yilingiz bilan (Happy New Year--Uzbek)

С Праздником Рождества! (Merry Christmas--Russian)

 

G.  Kimmerle,  Germany

Christmas Celebrations: Central Asia is Muslim by heritage. The long though troubled relationship of these nations with neighboring Russia means that many Orthodox Christians still live here. About 5 million ethnic Russians, Ukrainians and Belorussians live in Kazakhstan with 9 million Muslims. Kazakhstan is an exception in Central Asia. It sets Orthodox Christmas, January 7th as a national holiday. On Christmas Eve people visit friends at home, sing Christmas songs and wish each other well. “Silent Night” is a popular carol. Christmas Meal: Secular Slavs enjoy Christmas pies with bottles of wine or vodka. Then they make toasts, sing songs and dance. On Christmas Eve devout families celebrate the Royal Hours service, then Vespers combined with the Divine Liturgy. The traditional "Holy Supper" is eaten at home. Later, families return to church for the three hour "всеночная" All Night Vigil. On Christmas Morning they attend the "заутренняя" Divine Liturgy of the Nativity and sing hymns and carols Christmas Traditions:  Traditions vary based on ethnic origin. Source: http://christmasspirit.wordpress.com/2006/12/14/christmas-traditions-in-kazakstan/ http://centralasiaonline.com/en_GB/articles/caii/features/main/2010/01/07/feature-01

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CZECH REPUBLIC Vesele Vanoce! (Merry Christmas) Christmas Celebrations:

 

G.  Kimmerle,  Germany

St. Nicholas, “Svaty Mikuláš”, visits on December 6th. He climbs from heaven down to earth on a golden rope with his two companions: an angel and a whip-carrying devil. St. Nicholas leaves gifts in a shoe left overnight for good children; the bad ones get a piece of wood or coal. Christmas Eve begins three days celebrations that continue through Christmas Day and end on the 26th with the visit of the Three Kings. Christmas Meal: Christmas is a joyful and peaceful religious time here. Christmas dinner has many courses including: breaded roasted carp, fish soup and homemade potato salad. A bell is rung after dinner and children run to see the gifts that Baby Jesus left them while they were eating. Christmas Traditions: 

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King Wenceslas of the famous English Christmas Carol was a real King in Bohemia. His goodness and faith in Christ infuriated his mother. His brother murdered him on the Church steps. Before he died he asked for God's mercy for his brother's evil act. He became the patron saint of Czechs. At midnight, many families go to Holy Mass or Půlnoční as it is known, even though this is the most secular country in Europe. On Christmas Day, the churches are decorated with evergreens and nativity scenes. Czechs tell children they may see a golden pig if they keep the Christmas Eve fast through dinner. Czech Carol: www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqvplnkQ90s Source: www.santas.net, www.portharbor.com/santa/xsatrad.php and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_around_the_world# Czech_Republic_and_Slovakia

 

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HUNGARY Boldog Karácsonyt! (Merry Christmas) G.  Kimmerle,  Germany

  Christmas Celebrations: St. Nicholas, called Mikulás [Mikulash], visits children on December 6th. Children leave boots on their windowsill. If a child was good, Mikulás leaves the boot filled with goodies like candies, tangerines, walnuts and apples. Whoever plays Mikulás invites the children to sit in his lap and tell a poem or sing a song. Most get small toys and books. On Christmas Eve most shops and public transportation close at noon. The tree is decorated on Christmas Eve, never before. Most families decorate the tree together. The tree is lit after dinner. A small bell rings and the family assembles around the tree to say a prayer before the gifts are passed out. Christmas Meal: Food is important on Christmas Eve! Midday: poppy seed filled sweet bread (mákos guba). Dinner: stuffed cabbage, breaded fish, fish soup (halászlé), and turkey filled with chestnut cream. Desserts: strudel, sweet bread with nuts. Anytime: sweet bread with raisins (kalács). Christmas Traditions:  A small evil helper (krampusz) comes with Mikulás on December 6th carrying a bundle of switches. Since no child is all good or all bad, most get a switch and a treat in their boot.  Advent wreaths and candles decorate the inside of stores, schools, offices, and nearly every home, but never outside. Children get Advent calendars with a treat for every day before Christmas.  It is popular during December and especially on Christmas Eve, to 'play Bethlehem' (Betlehemezés). Children and parents act out the birth of the Holy Child and tell stories about the three kings, the shepherds, Mary and Joseph.  Trees are decorated with: gilded nuts, fruit, gingerbread cookies (Mézeskalács), and chocolate covered sweets wrapped in colorful foil and filled with: coconut, chestnut, jelly, marcipan, joghurt, berry, or cocoa-rum. On top is always a peak ornament, never an angel. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_around_the_world#Hungary http://www.msichicago.org/scrapbook/scrapbook_exhibits/catw2004/traditions/countries/hungary.html

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POLAND Wesołych Świąt Bożego Narodzenia! (Merry Christmas)

G.  Kimmerle,  Germany

  Christmas Celebrations: Christmas Eve begins with a day of fasting and then a night of feasting. Being invited to attend a Wigilia (Vigil) dinner, a traditional Christmas is considered a high honor. Before eating, everyone exchanges a piece of Christmas wafer (Opłatki), usually blessed by the presiding Bishop, and stamped with a religious image, such as the nativity scene. As each shares the bread, they forgive any hurts that have occurred over the past year and wish the person all the happiness in the coming year. The feast begins when the first star appears, and is followed by the exchange of gifts. Later, people attend Midnight Mass to solemnly celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. The following day is often spent visiting friends. Christmas Meal: A traditional Christmas meal in Poland includes herring and borscht (beetroot soup) with uszka (ravioli). The most common other dishes are fish soup, with potato salad, pierogi, gołąbki filled with kasza, pickled herring and fruit kompot. Christmas Traditions:  The giftbearer varies. In some regions Święty Mikołaj (Saint Nicholas) brings his gifts on 6 December. On Christmas Eve Gwiazdor ("star man"), Aniołek ("little angel") or Dzieciątko ("baby Jesus") may bring gifts.  The four Sundays of Advent are said to represent the 4,000 years of waiting for Christ.  The Gwiadorze (star carriers) used to wander through the towns and villages until Epiphany. Some of the Gwiadorze sang carols, others recited verses or put on Szopke (puppet show), or herody (nativity scenes). Source: www.santas.net and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_around_the_world#Poland

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ROMANIA Sarbatri Fericite! (Merry Christmas)

G.  Kimmerle,  Germany

Christmas Celebrations:   December 25th is Christmas (Crăciun) in Romania and is the second most important religious Romanian holiday after Easter. In Moldova, 7 January is also recognized as an official holiday. Celebrations begin with the decoration of the Christmas tree during on 24 December. In the evening Moş Crăciun (Father Christmas) delivers the presents. Christmas Meal: Romanians prefer to roast a pig for Christmas dinner. At the feast the extended family, friends and neighbors take part. All eat the rind and small pieces of fried pork served with wine or plum brandy. The tradition is based on a pagan, Romanian tale about a boy, Ignat, who accidently killed his father with an axe while slaughtering a pig. The early Orthodox missionaries combined the story of St. Ignatius of Antioch’s martyrdom with this old Romanian legend. Christmas Traditions:  On Christmas Day, young boys parade through the towns and villages carrying a great wooden star (Steaua) decorated with tiny bells, colored paper and ribbons. The star is illuminated with a candle and is decorated with a picture of the Christ Child and the Magi.  Throughout the Christmas season small children go from house to house, singing carols and reciting poems and tales.  According to Romanian tradition the Christmas tree was one of the gifts that the Magi brought to the Christ Child and Romanian families take great pride and receive great joy from the way they decorate their tress.  Romanians enjoy dramatizations of the Nativity story from large theatrical presentations to puppet shows. Source: http://www.the-north-pole.com/around/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_worldwide#Russia http://www.msichicago.org/scrapbook/scrapbook_exhibits/catw2004/traditions/countries/russia.html

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RUSSIA С Праздником Рождества! S Prazdnikom Rozhdestva! (Merry Christmas) G.  Kimmerle,  Germany

Christmas Celebrations:   The Orthodox Church uses the Julian calendar, which is 13 days behind the Gregorian calendar. They celebrate Christmas on January 7th. Churches are decorated with evergreens, flowers and colored lights. On Christmas Eve devout families celebrate the Royal Hours service, then Vespers combined with the Divine Liturgy. The traditional "Holy Supper" is eaten at home. Later, families return to church for the three hour "всеночная" All Night Vigil. On Christmas Morning they attend the "заутренняя" Divine Liturgy of the Nativity and sing hymns and carols. Christmas Meal: "The Holy Supper" begins when the first evening star appears in the sky. The 12 courses honor each of the twelve apostles. Dishes like fish, beet soup or borsch, cabbage stuffed with millet, and cooked dried fruit are eaten. The table is decorated to honor the advent of Christ. A white tablecloth stands for Christ's swaddling clothes. Hay is a reminder of the poverty of the cave where Jesus was born. A white candle stands in the center of the table, symbolic of Christ "the Light of the World." A large round loaf of bread (pagach)" is Christ, the Bread of Life. Christmas Traditions:  St. Nicholas was so popular a saint in Russia that many Czars, boys and churches were named for him. The Soviets banned the December 6th holiday and attempted to replace it with a New Year’s Winter Festival that featured a tree, presents and “Grandfather Frost” with his granddaughter companion, “Snegurochka” the Snow Maiden. Today not much work gets done the first week of January when a lot of alcohol is consumed.  Babouschka (grandmother) brought gifts for the children. The story is told that she failed to give food and shelter to the three wise men that were looking for Jesus. Now she searches everywhere for the baby Jesus, visiting all children giving gifts as she goes. Source: http://www.the-north-pole.com/around/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_worldwide#Russia http://www.msichicago.org/scrapbook/scrapbook_exhibits/catw2004/traditions/countries/russia.html

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SLOVAK REPUBLIC Vesele Vianoce! (Merry Christmas) Christmas Celebrations:

 

G.  Kimmerle,  Germany

Christmas trees in Slovakia go up on Christmas Eve. Christians go to church on Christmas Eve and break their fast when they return that evening to a traditional meal. After dinner they go to the Christmas tree where they find Christmas presents. Christmas Meal: The meal usually includes sauerkraut soup, fish and potato salad. After dinner people eat a dish called Lok'e, which is made from pieces of bread baked with raisins and poppy seeds. They may also eat fruit such as apples, oranges, pineapples, bananas, and nuts and cakes. Christmas Traditions:  St. Nicholas (Mikulas) visits homes on December 6th. Gifts are placed in the children's shoes. If the children were good, they are given candies, chocolates, nuts and special fruits. If the children were bad, they get a lump of coal.  The Christmas season is a time for reconciliation. Borrowed items are returned and forgiveness is asked from family, friends and neighbors.  When twilight arrives on Christmas Eve (Vilija), the mother places a white tablecloth on the table, a symbol of the Christ Child's swaddling clothes. The table centerpiece is a round loaf of bread symbolizing Jesus, the Bread of Life. A candle placed next to the bread recalls the star of Bethlehem. The father spreads clean straw on the floor as was in the stable. Before supper the family goes out to a well or stream to wash their faces and hands imitating the story about the shepherds who washed themselves before going to see the Christ Child.  Pictures of Catholic traditional foods and trimmings: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Slovak-Christmas-VeseléVianoce/250419734990987 Source: www.santas.net http://www.msichicago.org/scrapbook/scrapbook_exhibits/catw2004/traditions/countries/slovak.html

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UKRAINE Z Rizdvom Khrystovym! (Merry Christmas)

G.  Kimmerle,  Germany

Christmas Celebrations:   St. Nicholas Day, December 19th, was the usual gift-giving day in Ukraine. Now Christmas Eve (Sviata Vechera or "Holy Night") is the central celebration. It takes place in most regions on 6 January. To honor the Three Wise Men Sviata Vechera begins when the youngest child sees the first star in the eastern evening sky. Many attend a joyful service at midnight on Christmas Eve and on Christmas morning. In Western Ukraine, Christmas can be observed twice—on 25 December and 7 January, irrespective of whether the family belongs to Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, the (Roman) Catholic Church, one of the Ukrainian Orthodox Churches, or one of the Protestant denominations. Christmas Meal: The dinner table sometimes has a few wisps of hay on the embroidered tablecloth as a reminder of the manger in Bethlehem. Before starting to eat the 12 Lenten dishes, a prayer is said and the father says the traditional Christmas greeting, "Chrystos rodyvsya!" (Christ is born), which is answered by the family with "Slavite Yoho!" (Let us glorify him). At the end of the Sviata Vechera the family often sings Ukrainian Christmas Carols. Christmas Traditions:  Groups of young people and members of churches sing carols and call at homes to collect donations.  On St. Nicholas Day guests were invited over and sleighs would be ridden around the village.  "St. Nicholas" was often accompanied by "angels" and might quiz the children on their catechism. The “angels” bring presents and leave them near the Christmas tree, while everyone is at the table Christmas Eve,  In preparation for Christmas, the house is cleaned from top to bottom and the outside of the house is whitewashed. Source: http://www.santas.net and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_worldwide#Ukraine http://www.msichicago.org/scrapbook/scrapbook_exhibits/catw2004/traditions/countries/russia.html

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ABOUT US Our mission is to increase the capacity of Christian leaders in Eurasia who are rebuilding communities of faith founded on relationships of love and trust. We value servant leaders who implement long term, sustainable strategies that are locally devised, controlled and resourced. We aim to bring Christ up close over time in the communities of Eastern Europe and Eurasia.

“They will be called oaks of righteousness… They will rebuild the ancient ruins....” Isaiah 61:3-4

PO Box 1893 • Noblesville, IN 46060 +1 (317) 490-6536 • [email protected] • www.leadedge.org EIN: 23-7376155 501(c)3 registered charity

Learn more about the gospel in Eurasia. “Like” Leading Edge International on Facebook. Register for "Leading Edge Acorn" newsletter. Research a Partner or Project. (www.leadedge.org/partners) Help Eurasians tell the story of Jesus: Make your online deductible gift by clicking here. >> - 13 -