In Japan, millions of families eat KFC for Christmas dinner, and people must often pre-order their meal weeks in advance., The Philippines has the longest Christmas season in the world, starting in September and featuring giant lanterns the size of houses., In Mexico, people carve giant radishes into elaborate Christmas scenes during the Night of the Radishes festival., In Germany, some families hide a pickle ornament in the Christmas tree and the first child to find it gets an extra gift., In Finland, families take a hot Christmas Eve sauna to cleanse themselves before celebrating., In the Czech Republic, single women throw a shoe over their shoulder on Christmas Eve to predict whether they will get married soon., In Australia, Santa often arrives on a surfboard and families celebrate Christmas with barbecues on the beach., In Norway, people hide their brooms on Christmas Eve so witches and evil spirits cannot steal them., In Poland, families leave one empty seat at the Christmas table for an unexpected guest or in honor of a deceased loved one., In Ethiopia, people celebrate Ganna on January 7 by wearing white robes and attending church very early in the morning., In Catalonia, Spain, children beat a smiling wooden log called Tió de Nadal so that it “poops” presents on Christmas Eve., In Ukraine, Christmas trees are decorated with sparkly spider webs to bring good luck., In Romania, people perform the Bear Dance wearing real bear skins to chase away evil spirits for the new year., In Italy, children receive gifts from Befana on 6th January, a friendly old witch who flies on a broomstick., In Greece, it is believed that mischievous goblins called Kallikantzaroi come out to cause trouble during the twelve days of Christmas., In India, people often decorate banana or mango trees instead of traditional pine Christmas trees., In Austria, people dress as the horned demon Krampus, who roams the streets frightening naughty children., In Argentina, families celebrate Christmas Eve with fireworks at midnight and open gifts right afterward., In Brazil, many towns create huge and detailed Nativity scenes, some the size of miniature villages., In Jamaica, Christmas includes the lively Jonkanoo parade where people wear colorful and spooky masks while dancing to drums., In Latvia, children must recite a poem, sing a song, or perform something before they are allowed to take their present from under the tree., In Colombia, the start of the Christmas season is marked by the Day of the Little Candles, when streets and homes are lit with thousands of candles., In Russia, children receive gifts from Grandfather Frost (Ded Moroz) and his granddaughter, the Snow Maiden., In Denmark, families serve rice pudding with one whole almond hidden inside, and whoever finds it wins a small gift., In Switzerland, villages create “living advent calendars,” decorating and revealing one new festive window display each day of December., In Sweden, a giant straw Gävle Goat is built every year for Christmas, and despite security it is frequently burned down by pranksters., In France’s Provence region, families traditionally eat thirteen different desserts symbolizing Jesus and His twelve disciples., In Portugal, some families leave food on the table on Christmas morning for the spirits of deceased relatives., In Belgium, children leave carrots and sugar in their shoes for St. Nicholas’s horse and wake up to small gifts in return., In Slovakia, the head of the family throws a spoonful of bread pudding at the ceiling, and if it sticks, it means good luck for the coming year., In Estonia, people visit a sauna on Christmas Eve and leave it clean afterward because it is believed that sauna spirits come later., In South Africa, some people eat fried emperor moth caterpillars as a traditional Christmas delicacy., In Hong Kong, families often celebrate Christmas by eating dim sum and watching spectacular harbor light shows., In Hungary, children receive sweets from Mikulás on December 6 and presents from Baby Jesus (Jézuska) on December 24., In Uganda, Christmas focuses on gathering with family, sharing food, and roasting a goat rather than exchanging gifts., In Fiji, groups of people go door-to-door singing and dancing, and each household gives them food or small gifts., In Serbia, families celebrate two Christmases—Catholic and Orthodox—and children tie up their parents with rope until they “pay” with small treats., In Ireland, people place a candle in the window on Christmas Eve to welcome Mary and Joseph and to show hospitality to travelers., Venezuela – In Caracas, many people roller-skate to early morning Christmas church services, and roads are even closed so everyone can skate safely., Iceland celebrates Christmas with 13 Santa-like Yule Lads, each with a quirky personality, and a giant Yule Cat, Spain – Spaniards eat twelve grapes at midnight, one for each clock chime, to bring good luck for all twelve months., Italy – Italians wear red underwear on New Year’s Eve because it is believed to attract love and good fortune., Greece – Greeks hang an onion on their door as a symbol of rebirth and tap children with it on New Year’s Day for luck., Denmark – Danes smash plates on friends’ and neighbors’ doorsteps to show affection and bring good luck., Turkey – People in Turkey sprinkle salt on their doorstep at midnight to invite peace and prosperity., Japan – Japanese temples ring their bells 108 times to cleanse people of the 108 earthly sins., Finland – Finns melt tiny horseshoes and pour the metal into cold water to predict their future by the shapes formed., Russia – Russians write a wish on paper, burn it, mix the ashes into champagne, and drink it before midnight., Chile – In parts of Chile, families spend New Year’s Eve in cemeteries to welcome the new year alongside their ancestors., Japan (food tradition) – Many Japanese people eat long soba noodles at midnight to symbolize a long life and cutting off misfortune., Brazil – Brazilians wear white for peace and jump seven ocean waves, making a wish with each leap., Philippines – Filipinos wear polka dots and display round fruits because circles are believed to attract prosperity., Colombia – Colombians carry empty suitcases around the block at midnight to ensure a year filled with travel., Mexico – Mexicans sweep their homes toward the street to clear out bad energy for a fresh start., USA (New York) – Americans watch the Times Square ball drop, a tradition that has taken place since 1907., Czech Republic – Czechs cut apples in half to predict whether the coming year will be healthy or difficult based on the seed pattern., Queen Victoria and her German husband, Prince Albert, popularized the Christmas tree tradition in Britain and America after an 1848 Illustrated London News engraving showed the royal family gathered around their decorated tree, making it a must-have for Victorian households, featuring candles, trinkets, and eventually mass-produced ornaments, cementing the tree as central to modern Christmas celebrations..

Christmas and New Year's Eve traditions from all over the world :)

Print
Embed

Leaderboard

Speaking cards is an open-ended template. It does not generate scores for a leaderboard.

Visual style

Options

Switch template

Continue editing: ?