Christmas Around the World

Christmas Around the World

Now the clocks have gone back and the winter chill is in the air, Christmas will be with us quicker than we think! But while we spend November dreaming of mince pies, turkey and warm Christmas puds, what festivities are the rest of the world dreaming about?

Italy In Italy, the festive celebrations begin in early December and last until 6^th January, the day of Epiphany. While ‘Babbo Natale’, as Italian children know him, delivers Christmas gifts on the 25^th December. Italians traditionally exchange gifts on the day of Epiphany, when a good witch named La Befana rides on her broomstick to bring children presents and naughty children lumps of coal. Though kind, La Befana is said to be old in ragged clothes – a symbol of the old year that has passed.

Australia While Father Christmas is in Australia, he swaps his reindeer for kangaroos or ‘six white boomers’, as the Aussie children sing!  As Christmas falls in the heat of Australian summer, it is tradition to enjoy a barbecue on the beach, complete with yummy seafood such as prawns, lobster and squid. Children can make the most of their new toys, as they are off school for summer until February.

India Compared to India’s other religious festivals, Christmas is relatively small, as under 3% of the country’s population are Christian. Nevertheless, this still equates to around 25 million people. As you can imagine, pine and fir trees aren't commonplace in India! Instead, banana and mango trees are decorated with lights and colourful ornaments. Christmas Day itself is celebrated with midnight mass before gifts are exchanged. Children can count on ‘Baba Christmas’ or ‘Christmas Thatha’ to deliver their gifts by horse and cart.

Japan The Japanese do not let the fact that Christmas isn’t a national holiday for them get in the way of their celebrations. Due to a highly successful 1970s advertising campaign, fried chicken is a popular choice of Christmas dinner in Japan, often followed by a fruity cake made with strawberries, sponge and cream. Parties are thrown for children and families; while Santa Kurohsu kindly delivers Christmas gifts, he is believed to have eyes in the back of his head to keep an eye on naughty children.

Ghana Christmas celebrations in Ghana are at their liveliest on Christmas Eve; after the children have performed a nativity play, church services have drumming, singing and dancing – this often continues way into the early hours of Christmas morning. Alternatively, there are parties with music and fireworks. On Christmas Day, the churches are full again until the afternoon, when people hurry home to exchange gifts and tuck into okra soup and a yam paste called ‘fufu’.

Easy2name Regardless of where you are in the world, Christmas always means, gifts, decorations and lots of food! If you need labels for presents, boxes or containers, take a look at our range of Personalised Ribbons here.