Christmas around the world has a number of different holiday traditions and Christmas stories that are told and celebrated. The practices and cultures are as various as the activities and cultures of the lands the holiday is celebrated in.
Let’s start with how Christmas is celebrated in the United States. The US version of Christmas is primarily based on European cultures and traditions. Of course there are some other influences as well since Americans are a melting pot of cultures and ethnic backgrounds.
One major component of Christmas celebrations in America is the Christmas stories of Santa Claus. Santa Claus is widely celebrated and promoted during the holiday season. Charities dress workers up in Santa Claus outfits to raise funds during the holidays. Santa Claus appears on television and in advertising campaigns. Kids can even go to the mall to see Santa Claus and take pictures with him.
In Australia, December is the beginning of the summer season. As a result, Christmas is as much of an outdoor activity as it is an indoor activity. While the Australians do the traditional indoor stuff, like open Christmas presents and eat a big family dinner, outdoor activities like backyard fun and picnics are incorporated as well.
Australians also have a huge population of traditional Roman-Catholic and Protestant worshipers. Many people attend Mass at midnight on Christmas day. When mass is completed, everyone goes home, gets some sleep and wakes up in the morning to open Christmas presents.
Christmas in Japan is very different from many of the other parts of the world. What you have to remember is Christmas is based on the Christian belief of the birth of Jesus Christ, the savior of the world. Less than 1% of the Japanese population professes Christianity as a faith.
Christmas technically is not an official holiday on the Japanese calendar. One contradiction to most holiday traditions are the way the Japanese handle Christmas dinner. While most cultures eat dinner together at home, the Japanese go out to eat. In particular, there is a very popular Christmas Chicken dinner at KFC that many people actually make reservations for on Christmas!
China also celebrates Christmas more for its commercial aspects as opposed to its religious aspects. In China, the Chinese word for Santa literally means “Christmas Old Man” in English. The Chinese do a lot of shopping and other Christmas activities as well.
Christmas is more of a prelude to the Chinese New Year, which is the major holiday in China. However, you can most certainly see celebrations in China for Christmas. Many of the commercial aspects like decorations, bright lights and greeting cards are celebrated and participated in by the Chinese people.
A French Christmas has several aspects of holiday traditions as many of the other countries in the world. However, there are some slight differences. The French do not decorate Christmas trees.
One holiday tradition that is very popular in France is the placing of Christmas scenes outside of the home. These scenes offer an illustration of Christmas stories. In particular, the French populate their scenes with little “santons” or “saints”. Besides the typical Christmas characters that you see in outdoor scenes, it is not uncommon to see figures of local French leaders and personalities as well.
As you can see, holiday traditions and Christmas around the world is as diverse as many of the Christmas activities and traditions of the various nations of the world. Despite the differences, one theme that remains consistent is the value of family and the joy of the holiday season.
Kerry Beck gives free advent calendars with daily Christmas activities to prepare your family for Christmas. Your family will discover more about Christmas around the world with some of the daily activities.
Tags: advent calendars, christmas, Christmas activities, Christmas history, Christmas stories, Christmas symbols, Christmas traditions around the world, Family, holiday traditions, Parenting
