The Swedish Christmas

Christmas in Sweden, as in other countries, is a mixture of old and new, religious and secular, native and foreign, according to the Swedish professor of folklore Jan-Öjvind Swahn.

In Sweden, Christmas is by law a time of civil peace.  Christmas in Sweden includes more days off, both for schoolchildren and for adults, than any other festival, and in some years the number of working days in between public holidays and weekends can be so small that, by docking a couple of days from their year’s holiday, people can be off work from anything up to two weeks.

Swedish Christmas cards (in this day and age more often computer based) are nearly always “white,” with deep snow as a standing invitation to skiing, but the fact is that white Christmases are very few and far between in the southern third of the country.

Christmas food is one of the really ancient elements of Christmas, but this too is changing. Once upon a time the Christmas menu differed a great deal as between coastal and inland communities, north and south, fishing and farming folk, and so on. Nowadays, with most of the raw material coming from factories, local variations have given way to a centrally orchestrated selection of manufactured or semi-manufactured products.

Pork make up a strikingly large proportion of Christmas fare, and visitors sometimes wonder why the Swedes have to celebrate the birth of their Savior by eating pig meat. The historical reason is that, for a long time, salt pork was the meat ration of the Swedes all year round. Pigs were slaughtered in the autumn, when they were fattest, the pork was preserved in brine and would then have to last until the following autumn. One or two “Christmas pigs” were held over from the fall butchering, however, and reprieved until Lucia. Christmas was the only time of year when people could eat fresh meat, which in those days was the height of enjoyment. No such considerations apply nowadays, but so conservative are our habits, especially on festive occasions, that for many people Christmas would not be Christmas without ham, brawn and pork sausage.

Nordstjernan's Eva Stenskär spoke with one of the lecturers at the University of Washington, Seattle about Christmas:

“Sweden had a state church from the year 1500 to 2000, and thus Christmas is steeped in the Lutheran traditions,” says Ia Dübois, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Scandinavian Studies at the University of Washington. “Advent is an important event with the lighting of the four Advent candles each Sunday. Christmas decorations are taken out on the first of Advent and include adventstjärna, a large electrically lit star made of wood, metal, or paper and is placed in the window, little elves, gingerbread houses, tomtar, and julbockar.”

The main meal, explains Dübois, is served on Christmas Eve and consists of a smorgasbord of meatballs, ribs, cold cuts, lutfisk, different kinds of herring and cabbage, and centers around the Christmas ham. And then there’s the dopp i grytan (dipping in the kettle) tradition, when you dip bits of bread in the broth leftover after boiling the ham. For dessert there’s risgrynsgröt (rice porridge) with a hidden almond.

“The one who gets it will have a prosperous year ahead,” Dübois says.

------

Pepparkakor (Ginger Snaps) Recipe
Strongly 'addictive' and a classic in every way around Christmas in Sweden.

10 Oz unsalted butter (2 sticks and a couple of tblsp)

1 ¾ cup sugar

1 cup golden syrup (“ljus sirap”)

1 cup water

1 tbsp baking soda (hjortronsalt or bikarbonat) mixed in with flour

6 1/3 cup flour

½ tbsp ground ginger

½ tbsp ground cinnamon

½ tbsp ground cloves

Mix butter, syrup, sugar and spices

Add water

Mix in flour and baking soda

Refrigerate for 12 hours

Roll the pastry thinly and cut out ginger snaps with a cutter

Bake the ginger snaps at 375-400F in oven.

Frosting (optional)

½ cup confectioners sugar

2 tsp water

Place confectiorners sugar in a bowl and gradually add water until frosting is firm

Decorater the ginger snaps with the frosting, let rest until dry

- from xoxosweden.com

See also these posts on Swedish Christmas traditions:

http://joychristmas.blogspot.com/2010/12/christmas-in-sweden.html

http://joychristmas.blogspot.com/2009/12/christmas-around-world-sweden.html

http://joychristmas.blogspot.com/2010/12/night-time-walks-heavily-round-farm-and.html

http://joychristmas.blogspot.com/2010/12/christmas-santa-lucia-sweden.html

http://joychristmas.blogspot.com/2012/12/swedish-christmas-trivia.html

Christmas at Temple Square

There are many great places for seeing beautiful Christmas lights and feeling the spirit of Christmas.  One of those is at Temple Square in Salt Lake City, including the grounds and visitors centers at the Salt Lake Temple.  Not only lights, but several nativity scenes (including a narrated story), Christmas films, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas Concerts, and a focus on what the holiday is all about - Jesus Christ!

Here are some photos of our recent visits:

Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas Concert

Photos by Ken R. Young

What Christmas Is All About

Without this there would be no Christmas or "holiday" (the word "holiday" comes from "holy day") season as we know it today. The fun and joy of our Christmas holiday has all been derived or added unto, one way or another, because of the advent of Our Savior.

Those who celebrate Santa or some other non-descript holiday fun without recognizing the source are missing the point.

Still, I am glad for all who make merry for any reason at this time.

The Twelve Days of Christmas: How Much it Costs in 2012

An article by Kevin Begos with The Associated Press:

Add seven swans, six geese and five golden rings to the list of Christmas gifts that cost more than they did a year ago.

And if you get all 364 items repeated throughout "The Twelve Days of Christmas" carol, you'll pay 6.1 percent more this year, according to the so-called Christmas Price Index that PNC Wealth Management updates annually.

That comes to $107,300.

"The rise is larger than expected considering the modest economic growth we've had," said Jim Dunigan, managing executive of investments for PNC. He noted the government's Consumer Price Index has risen just 2 percent in the 12 months before September.

Thrifty shoppers may find some reasons for cheer. Six items mentioned in the song haven't gone up in price: maids-a-milking, ladies dancing, lords-a-leaping, calling birds, turtle doves and the partridge. The eight maids-a-milking still cost just $58 because the minimum wage hasn't risen.

Twelve drummers drumming ($2,775.50) and eleven pipers piping ($2,562) might also be considered relative bargains compared to seven swans, which will set you back $7,000. Nine ladies dancing will cost you $6,294.03.

Dunigan said the 2011 drought caused the prices of some birds to soar, partly because of corn and other feed costs.

"The geese were up 29.6 percent, and swans were up 11 percent," Dunigan said, adding that none of the gifts in the song went down in price this year.

The price of a pear tree is $189.99, an 11.8 percent jump from last year's $169.99. Five gold rings jumped 16.3 percent this year, to $750, and three French hens are now $165, instead of $150.

The $15 partridge is the cheapest item, and swans the most expensive, at $1,000 each.

Last-minute shoppers who turn to the Internet will pay a bit more for the gifts. Buying one set of the core items in each verse costs $24,431 in traditional stores this year, but $40,440 online. Part of that difference is the extra expense of shipping live birds, Dunigan said, adding that Internet costs rose 1.5 percent compared to last year.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. checks jewelry stores, dance companies, pet stores and other sources to compile the list. Some of its sources this year include the National Aviary in Pittsburgh and the Philadelphia-based Pennsylvania Ballet Company.

This year's list:

•Partridge, $15; last year: same

•Pear tree, $189.99; last year: 169.99

•Two turtle doves, $125; last year: same

•Three French hens, $165; last year: $150

•Four calling birds (canaries), $519.96; last year: same

•Five gold rings, $750; last year: $645

•Six geese a-laying, $210; last year: $162

•Seven swans a-swimming, $7,000; last year: $6,300

•Eight maids a-milking, $58; last year: same

•Nine ladies dancing (per performance), $6,294; last year: same

•10 lords a-leaping (per performance), $4,767; last year: same

•11 pipers piping (per performance), $2,562; last year: $2,428

•12 drummers drumming (per performance), $2,776; last year: $2,630

See also:

Origins of the Twelve Days of Christmas

The Cost of Twelve Days of Christmas - 2013

Christmas Trivia: True or False?

The answers to the following can be found within the various posts on this blog, as well as below...

Holiday Names and Greetings

1. “X-mas” is an irreverent, non-Christian name for the holiday.

2. “Noel” comes from Old French, meaning “new birth”.

3. “Yule” comes from an ancient Viking celebration of the turning of the sun.

4. “Feliz Navidad” directly translated into English means “Happy Birth”.

5. “Mele Kalikimaka” is Hawaiian for “enjoy the holiday feast”.

The Nativity of Jesus

6. Modern calendar years are based on the verified year of the birth of Christ.

7. The number of visitors, known as Magi, Wise Men or Kings, was three.

8. The Wise Men, or Kings, came to see the newborn baby lying in the manger.

9. Early Christians believed Christ was born on December 25th.

10. Shepherds watched their flocks on the cold winter’s night of Christ’s birth.

The Twelve Days of Christmas
11. The Twelve Days of Christmas begin on December 13th.

12. The gifts given on each day in the song represent items at a Christmas party.

13. The “Two Turtle Doves” represented the Old and New Testaments.

14. The last two gifts were 11 lords a leaping and 12 drummers drumming.

Santa Claus

15. St. Nicholas, who preceded Santa Claus, was born in Germany in 1622.

16. Santa’s flying sleigh and reindeer originated from stories in the 1800’s.

17. Although he’s known by many names in many places, Santa is always a man.

18. Kris Kringle was the name of an early Dutch Santa Claus figure.

19. Santa Claus is largely unknown in places like Japan and China.

Reindeer

20. Rudolph’s story was a promotional creation of Montgomery Ward stores.

21. Blixen is the name of Santa’s eighth reindeer.

22. Donner, the seventh reindeer, is sometimes incorrectly called Donder.

23. The reindeer were first named in “Twas the Night Before Christmas”.

24. Instead of reindeer, in Sweden, a goat pulls Santa’s (Tomten’s) sled.

Christmas Trees

25. The custom of decorating trees for Christmas originated in Germany.

26. Before the 1500’s, Christmas trees were considered a pagan custom.

27. Martin Luther is credited with first putting candles, or lights, on the tree.

28. There is no mention of a Christmas tree in Dicken’s “A Christmas Carol.”

29. Hanging the tree upside down from the ceiling used to be popular.

Miscellaneous
30. The first Christmas card was created and sent in London in 1840.

31. The most popular selling Christmas Carol of all time is “Silent Night”.

32. Mistletoe used to be hung for enemies to meet under and call a truce.

33. Poinsettias were first brought to the U.S. from Mexico by Mr. Poinsett.

34. Christmas mince pie contained rabbit, pheasant and partridge meat.

35. “Nog” in eggnog refers to a heavy noggin (head) from drinking too much.

36. The tradition of filling stockings originated in the country of Turkey.

37. Sleigh rides with jingle bells is a favorite Christmas activity in Australia.

38. Celebrating Christmas was once outlawed in Merry Olde England.

39. Candy canes were created to keep children quiet during church services.

40. Swedish Christmas celebrates St. Lucia, who helped needy people in Italy.

Answers:

1. False. “X” comes from the Greek letter that start’s Christ’s name and represents Christ.
2. True. Oui, oui. Noel is tres French, an old word which is related to the nouvelle, meaning “new”.
3. True. The word “yule” is old Norse for wheel, meaning the wheel in the sky that turns to give more light.
4. True. “Feliz” means “happy”. “Navidad” translates to nativity, which also means birth.
5. False. It means nothing in Hawaiian. It is an attempt to spell English “Merry Christmas” using Hawaiian letters.
6. False. There is no historical verification to the year of Christ’s birth. Some scholars believe it was in 2 to 4 B.C.
7. False. Three gifts are mentioned, but no number of the visitors is given. Some believe there were 12 or more.
8. False. They arrived well after Christ was born, and most likely saw him inside a home in a regular bed.
9. False. No exact date was known. When Romans became Christian, the Dec. 25th date replaced a pagan holiday.
10. False. Shepherds were not in the fields with their flocks during winter. This most likely occurred in the spring.
11. False. They start on Christmas Day, Dec. 25th, and last until Jan. 6th, the Eastern Orthodox Christmas Day.
12. True. In Old England, a party was held on “12th Night”. All the gifts were represented through food or fun.
13. True. The gifts and numbers were created to represent / disguise gospel principles for early persecuted believers.
14. False. There are 10 lords a leaping, not 11. Correct answer: 11 pipers piping, 12 drummers drumming.
15. False. St. Nicholas was born in Asia Minor, now known as Turkey, sometime during the 3rd Century.
16. False. The idea originated from early legends of Viking gods flying through the skies on animal-pulled sleighs.
17. False. In Italy, the gift giver is an old woman known as La Befana. In parts of Russia, she is known as Babushka.
18. False. Kris Kringle is an Americanization of the German gift giver “Christ-kindl”, or “Christ Child”.
19. False. Santa Claus has become a popular holiday figure in both Japan and China, not necessarily for Christmas.
20. True. It was a 1939 promotional gimmick given to those who did Christmas shopping at Montgomery Ward.
21. False. The name of the eighth reindeer is spelled Blitzen, not Blixen.
22. False. The original text of “Twas the Night Before Christmas” spells the seventh reindeer’s name as Donder.
23. True. “Twas the Night Before Christmas” by Clement C. Moore was the first text that named the eight reindeer.
24. True. Although many reindeer are in Northern Sweden, Tomten rides a sled through the forest pulled by a goat.
25. False. The Germans adapted modern tree traditions from customs of the ancient Romans and Celtic druids.
26. False. 7th Century Catholic monk St. Boniface used the indoor evergreen’s triangle shape to teach of the Godhead.
27. True. Legend claims Martin Luther first put candles on his tree, to represent the light of Christ for his children.
28. True. Christmas trees did not become popular in England until after Dickens wrote “A Christmas Carol”.
29. True. Many trees were originally hung upside down in Old Europe and in early Pennsylvania settlements.
30. True. John C. Horsley created his own card in 1840. The idea caught on, and his card was re-printed in 1843.
31. False. Although “Silent Night” is popular in many countries, Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas” is the top seller.
32. True. Used for many things, mistletoe brought people together, including those who needed to kiss and make-up.
33. True. Joel Roberts Poinsett, Ambassador to Mexico, introduced the “Holy Night Flowers” to the U.S. in 1825.
34. True. Originally, mince pie was a meat pie. Fruits and spices were later added, and then the meat was dropped.
35. False. “Nog” is another term for “grog”, which is a rum-based drink. Eggnog is sometimes served with rum.
36. True. St. Nicholas, who lived in Turkey, is claimed to have assisted the needy by leaving gold coins in stockings.
37. False. Christmas in Australia occurs during summertime. A beach barbecue is a popular Christmas Day event.
38. True. From 1645 to 1660, because of Oliver Cromwell and the Puritans, celebrating Christmas was illegal.
39. True. A Cologne Cathedral Choirmaster gave shepherds crook-shaped candy to kids during long nativity services.
40. True. Though celebrated in Sweden, Lucia’s legend began with her Christian services and martyrdom in Italy.

Correct Answers Rating:40 - Cheater, you peeked! Not even Santa knew all of these.
35 to 39 - Next in line to be Santa. How’s your “ho, ho, ho”?
30 to 34 - A true Christmas elf. Santa’s looking to promote you.
25 to 29 - On Santa’s Nice List, but you could do better.
20 to 24 - Rockin’ around the Christmas tree, but you’re missing some good stuff.
15 to 19 - You like Christmas, but your favorite holiday is Halloween, right?
10 to 14 - Christmas is coming, and you haven’t got a ha’penny. God bless you.
Less than 10 - Bah humbug. You need to pay more attention if you want more than coal in your stocking. Better watch out or you’ll get run over by a reindeer.

Ben Stein: A Jew's Confession About Christmas

The following was written by Ben Stein, an American actor, writer, lawyer, and commentator on political and economic issues.  This was recited by him on television on a CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.

My confession:

I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejewelled trees, Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are, Christmas trees.

It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, “Merry Christmas” to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu. If people want a crib, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.

I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians.

- Ben Stein

The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree

The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree is a large Christmas tree placed annually in Rockefeller Center in mid-town Manhattan in New York City. The tree is erected and lit in late November or early December. In recent years, the lighting has been broadcast live nationwide on NBC's Christmas in Rockefeller Center show. The tree, usually a Norway spruce 69 to 100 feet (21 to 30 m) tall, has been put up every year since 1933.

An 80-foot Norway spruce that made it through Superstorm Sandy was transformed into a beacon of shimmering glory Wednesday Nov. 28th when New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and others turned its lights on at Rockefeller Center for the 80th Christmas tree lighting. 

Officials turned on the lights just before 9 p.m. Wednesday in the 80th annual celebration. Prior to that, the tree-lighting event include performances from Rod Stewart, CeeLo Green, Scotty McCreery, Il Volo, Victoria Justice, Brooke White, Mariah Carey, Trace Adkins and Tony Bennett, along with appearances by Billy Crystal and Bette Midler.
The tree, which weighs 10 tons and is 50 feet in diameter, was loaded on a 115-foot-long flatbed truck and erected at Rockefeller Center on Wednesday, November 14. Workers then strung 45,000 lights on the branches.

The unofficial tradition began during the Depression-era construction of Rockefeller Center, when workers decorated a smaller 20 feet (6.1 m) balsam fir tree with "strings of cranberries, garlands of paper, and even a few tin cans" on Christmas Eve (December 24, 1931), as recounted by Daniel Okrent in his history of Rockefeller Center. Some accounts have the tree decorated with the tin foil ends of blasting caps. There was no Rockefeller Center Christmas tree in 1932.

The tallest Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center was a 100 feet (30 m) spruce erected on November 11, 1999.

The decorated Christmas tree remains lit at Rockefeller Center through January 6, which is the Christian feast of The Epiphany.  After its stint in the spotlight, it will be turned into lumber for Habitat for Humanity.