09/12/2024
What Does Christmas Look Like In Your Country? 🤔🎄🎁
A LITTLE INSIGHT FOR THOSE WHO MIGHT BE THINKING TO SPEND SOME TIME IN KOS OR OTHER GREEK ISLAND OVER CHRISTMAS & NEW YEAR HOLIDAY! 🎉🇬🇷💙
If the Greek festival foods, cookies, cakes & treats don't entice you, we don't know what will! 😍😋🍩🥨🍪🥟🥧
Curious to learn about how Greeks & Greek Orthodox Christians Celebrate Christmas?
For much of the Western world, Christmas is celebrated on December 25, according to the Gregorian calendar. Yet interestingly, information that dates back centuries say, Orthodox Christians follow the Julian calendar and mark the festival on January 7 instead.
The Revised Julian or New Calendar is now followed by the Greek Orthodox and most of the other Eastern Orthodox Churches. At least since 1900, there has been a difference of 13 days between the Julian and Gregorian calendars.
So, How do the Greeks celebrate Christmas?
🎄Religious Observance: Greeks attend church services, with the most significant being the midnight liturgy on Christmas Eve. The service is known as the "Divine Liturgy of the Nativity," and it celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ.
🎄Christmas lent: Many people fast for 40 days leading up to Christmas, breaking their fast with a festive meal after the church service on Christmas Eve.
🎄Public Events and Festivities: Many towns and cities organise public events and festivities, much like many other countries during the holiday season. Public spaces are often decorated, and Christmas markets may be set up, providing a festive atmosphere for locals and visitors.
🎄Decorations: Homes, public spaces, and streets are adorned with festive decorations, including Christmas trees and lights, ornaments, and nativity scenes. You may also see a Christmas tree placed in the town square, much like you would in many other western countries.
✨ DID YOU kNOW - Decorating Christmas trees is not a traditional custom in Greece. The first Christmas tree was decorated in Greece by Otto, a Greek King of Bavarian origin, in 1833 at his palace. The custom caught on in the mid 1900s.
Traditionally, Greeks decorate Christmas boat ornaments. The "karavaki" (small ship) is a traditional Greek Christmas decoration resembling a small boat or ship. It symbolises the boats used in the Epiphany tradition of blessing the waters on January 6th. Greek homes often decorate these small boats with lights, ornaments, and sometimes even small gifts. They're placed prominently in homes as a reminder of the maritime traditions and the blessings associated with the sea.
🎄Carol singing and Music: Groups of children and sometimes adults go door-to-door singing Christmas carols, known as "kalanda." It is customary for households to offer treats, coins or small gifts to the carol singers.
🎄Family Gatherings: Christmas is a time for families to come together. Family members often travel long distances to spend the holiday with their loved ones. The emphasis is on unity and togetherness.
🎄Gift-Giving: The tradition of exchanging gifts is an essential part of Greek Christmas celebrations. Children eagerly anticipate the arrival of "Agios Vasilis" (Saint Basil), who is somewhat equivalent to Santa Claus in Greek tradition.
**Gifts are traditionally exchanged on New Year's Day on the feast of St. Basil. However In modern times exchanging gifts on Christmas day (25th Dec.) is very common these days.
**New Year's Day Celebrations in Greece
Greeks celebrate New Year's eve like everyone else - counting down to midnight to welcome the New calendar year. 🎆
**But actually, there's more to it and St. Basil is what it's really about. New Year's Day, January 1st, marks the feast of St. Basil and it's a significant part of the Greek holiday season. Families gather for a special meal, and it is customary to cut a cake known as "Vasilopita," which contains a hidden coin. Read on to find out more about Vasilopita.
**The tradition of smashing a pomegranate on New Year's Day dates back to ancient times and originates in the Peloponnese or Serres
**Did you know - In Greece it is customary to break a Pomegranate for good luck at New Year as they say it bares many good wishes!
In Greek mythology the pomegranate symbolizes fortune, fertility and prosperity. Traditionally, pomegranates are displayed as Christmas decorations around the home and on the doors of houses to invite fortune.
After the clock strikes midnight at New Year, it's customary to break a pomegranate by throwing it on the entrance doorstep. And yes, it's another messy custom, but according to belief if the seeds spread out on to the floor it signifies happiness and health to the family.
**GREEK CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY FOODS
Christmas Day is marked by a festive feast that includes various traditional dishes. Roast meats, sweets, and other special treats are prepared and shared with family and friends. Greek Christmas cuisine is rich in traditional dishes that are enjoyed by families during the festive season. Here are some common traditional Greek Christmas foods:
✨Christopsomo (Christ's Bread): This is a sweet, festive bread prepared for Christmas. It is often enriched with honey, orange zest, and various spices. The bread is usually decorated with a cross or other symbolic patterns.
✨Melomakarona: These are honey and walnut cookies, shaped like ovals and soaked in honey syrup. Melomakarona are a favourite sweet treat during the Christmas season and are often homemade.
✨Kourabiedes: These are buttery shortbread cookies, typically shaped into crescents or rounds and dusted with powdered sugar (much like the Turkish cookies we know and love). Kourabiedes are often made with almonds or walnuts and are a favorite Greek Christmas cookie.
✨Roast Lamb, Turkey or Pork: Roast meats, such as lamb, turkey or pork, are commonly featured in Greek Christmas feasts.
✨Spanakopita and Tyropita: These are savory pastries filled with spinach and feta cheese (spanakopita) or a mixture of cheeses (tyropita). They are often served as part of the Christmas meal.
✨Avgolemono Soup: While not exclusive to Christmas, avgolemono soup (egg-lemon soup) is a comforting dish that may be served during the holiday season. Soup is a great way to gently break the 40-day lent. It is made with chicken or lamb broth, eggs, and lemon juice, creating a velvety and tangy soup.
✨Vasilopita: A special cake prepared for New Year's Day, Vasilopita is named after Saint Basil (Agios Vasilis), and a coin is hidden inside the cake. The cake is cut and pieces assigned as follows: 1 for Christ, 1 for Virgin Mary and then 1 each for family members and guests from the oldest to the youngest. If someone isn't there you can assign them a piece. The person who finds the coin is believed to have good luck for the coming year, similar to the English Christmas pudding, but served on Christmas Day, where a silver coin is added to the mixture during the making of the pudding (sixpence) then one lucky person will find it in their serving and will make a wish.
These dishes, along with regional specialties, contribute to the festive and delicious Christmas celebrations in Greece. Families often gather to enjoy these traditional foods and share the joy of the holiday season.
**While much of the Western world looks to SANTA CLAUS, otherwise known as SAINT NICHOLAS, for gift giving at Christmas, Greek’s turn to SAINT BASIL the GREAT!
**SAINT NICHOLAS (Santa Claus) or SAINT BASIL?
Saint Nicholas of Myra, (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of GREEK descent from the maritime city of Patara in Anatolia (in modern-day Antalya Province, Turkey) during the time of the Roman Empire.
Santa Claus is a modernised version of Saint Nicholas, who was of Greek origin from Lycia and lived during the 4th century. Saint Nicholas was a devoted bishop known for his secret gifts, creating the model for the beloved Santa Claus.
However, in GREECE, Saint Nicholas was not the prominent figure related to gift giving. Instead, it was SAINT BASIL (Agios Vasilis), who was the bishop of Caesarea in CAPPADOCIA. Saint Basil is known for his care for the poor and underprivileged, especially around Christmas time where he would present gifts to young children.
**SAINT BASIL'S feast day falls on January 1st, and is the saint responsible for the Greek tradition of eating a Vasilopita on New Years Day.
