Food has the special quality to bring people together for a bonding experience and create everlasting memories. All over the world, Christmas is a time for holidays as people return home to spend time with their families and for the traditional Christmas dinner. However, the traditions that make Christmas the celebration we all know and love have been adapted from the winter solstice festivities all over Europe.
“Christmas is the day that holds all times together.” - Alexander Smith
Roots of Christmas Traditions
Before the spread of Christianity, there were diverse pagan groups all over Europe from the Latin religion to the Celtics, Norse, Druids and Germanic tribes. The early missionaries were fascinated by the ways and customs of different groups of people with varying religious systems and beliefs. At the time, all of these different groups shared one big celebration that just happened to coincide around Christmas time – the winter solstice, a celebration of the shortest day of the year as a tribute to the gods of the sun or the gods of agriculture. Things like kissing under a mistletoe, caroling, wreaths, decorating trees, feasting with loved ones, hanging up socks by the fireplace, and even gift-giving were all aspects of pagan holiday celebrations.
Saturnalia
The Romans celebrated Saturnalia around the winter solstice as an ode to Saturn, the god of agriculture. The Romans exchanged small gifts as a token of good luck in the hope of bringing a bountiful harvest the next year. They spent the week feasting, drinking, giving gifts and being merry. The Roman feasts were a spread of roasted pig and sausages along with dishes made from winter root vegetables, fresh fruits and nuts along with spiced bread. The holiday drink was made from fresh wine and honey infused with spices called Mulsum. The people of Rome hung small metal ornaments on trees outside their houses as symbols representing gods or family’s patron saints.
Holly was a holy plant associated with the god Saturn and the Romans made holly wreaths as a symbol of good luck and prosperity. In the early beginnings of Christianity in Rome, when they were persecuted for celebrating Christmas, they started practising their festivities on the same days as the Saturnalia and hanging holly wreaths around their home to pretend they were celebrating Saturnalia.
Pagan Traditions
The early Nordic and Germanic tribes celebrated Yule during the winter solstice which has become another word for Christmas. They spent Yule by feasting, drinking, singing, dancing and holding games or sacrifices. The feasts would be centred around spit-roasted boars, geese or rabbits. They decorated the trees around the villages with fruits and candles to honour the god Odin. The deity was portrayed as an old man with a long white beard who rode an eight-legged horse who would fly by and reward children with small gifts.
While the carols we sing for Christmas are undeniably Christian, the tradition itself of going door-to-door singing to your neighbours comes from another pagan tradition called wassailing. The Anglo-Saxon phrase ‘waes hael’ translates to ‘good health’. The wassailers would roam through their villages in small groups while drinking mulled ale, singing loudly with the aim of banishing evil spirits and wishing good health and prosperity to those around them.
Bûche de Noël
The Yuletide or Christmas Eve was celebrated by bringing a large wooden log called the Yule Log inside the house and pouring wine on top. The log would burn slowly over the course of the evening festivities and warm the house while spreading the sweet scent of the wine. While the tradition has become outdated, it is celebrated through the quintessential French Christmas dessert, the Bûche de Noël or Yule Log, a rolled sponge cake with chocolate buttercream and sprinkled icing sugar to resemble the snow on a wooden log.
Traditional Christmas Dinner
The dinner feasts on Christmas Eve have always been a joyous occasion to celebrate the family’s good health and the abundance of the harvest with seasonal winter vegetables and wild game such as rabbit, boar, goose or sometimes even beef or pork. Meat had always been an expensive commodity making hunting for game the only choice for the common populace. Queen Victoria of England was known for enjoying the tender meat of turkey which led to turkey farms becoming common all over England. The abundance made turkey meat an affordable option and a popular choice to celebrate feasts with family.
During the Victorian Era, Potatoes were also brought to Europe from South America. Being easy to grow and abundant, they became increasingly popular among the poor and the nobles alike where some preferred a creamy mash while others preferred them simply roasted and salted.
Christmas Around the World
Every culture has its own unique Christmas traditions. In the Philippines, a pig is roasted over an open fire pit for 6 hours while in Hawaii it is cooked in an underground earthen oven overnight. The German feast is centred around a roasted goose while Italians enjoy an abundance of fish. In Bulgaria and Poland, people observe a strict plant-based diet on Christmas Eve before an indulgent feast on Christmas Day. While the traditions differ among communities, the joy of the season is shared by all. The tradition of having a meal together during the holidays is a true expression of the spirit of Christmas.
