Category: HOLIDAYS
Twelfth Night, Epiphany, or Three Kings Day
Don’t Forget to Leave Out Some Food for the Camels!
January 6th is the twelfth day after Christmas, celebrated as Epiphany or the Feast of the Three Kings in many countries with strong Christian traditions, such as Germany, Austria, Poland, France, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Argentina. It commemorates the visit of the Three Wise Men, or [...] Read More »
Eid Celebrations: Shopping for Sacrificial Animals
For Eid-Ul-Adha, the Muslim Feast of Sacrifice, families purchase a sacrificial goat or other animal, if they can afford to do so, and then share the feast with their family and friends, and with those who are less fortunate. This photo is part of a post from an Islamabad blogger, who describes her trip [...] Read More »
Eid-Ul-Adha, The Festival of Sacrifice
Eid-Ul-Adha is a three-day Muslim holiday and celebration. It begins on the 10th day of the month of Dhul Hijjah, the last month of the Islamic calendar, and falls at the end of the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.
The Eid-Ul-Adha celebrations start with attendance at the Eid Prayer and sermon in the morning. [...] Read More »
The Christmas Tree or Tannenbaum
During the Christmas season, families bring home small evergreen trees and decorate them with ornaments and lights. Presents are placed under the tree, and, on Christmas, the families gather around the tree to open presents. The origins of the Christmas tree tradition are another example of the intermingling of pagan traditions with religious holidays.
One of [...] Read More »
The Yule Log and La Bûche de Noël
At Christmas time, people all over France and Belgium serve the “Bûche de Noël” – a cake shaped and decorated to look like a tree trunk. In Anglo-Saxon cultures, many people still burn a “yule log” in their fireplace at Christmas. There is even a television station in New York that shows a [...] Read More »
Chanukah (Hanukkah or Hanukah), the Jewish Festival of Lights
Chanukah, the eight-day Jewish festival of lights, begins on the evening of Kislev 25, in the 9th month of the Jewish calendar. Similar to other festivals centered around lanterns, candles or lights, the holiday celebrates the triumph of light over darkness and of spirituality over materialism.
At the heart of the festival is the nightly [...] Read More »
Lucyfest: Santa Lucia’s Festival
On December 13th, one of the shortest, darkest days of winter, Sweden celebrates Lucyfest, in honor of Saint Lucia, the Queen of Lights, in a festival that also has roots in Italy, Germany and Norway. Traditionally, each village had its own Santa Lucia: a young woman, dressed in a white gown, wearing a red [...] Read More »
Our Lady of Guadalupe: the Virgin Morena, or la Reina de Mexico
December 12 is one of the most important dates in the Mexican calendar: the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mexico’s patron saint. Thousands of faithful make the pilgrimage to the Basilica of Guadalupe in Mexico City, which houses the cloak of the "Virgen Morena," the "Dark Virgin." Festivals are held all around the [...] Read More »
Yuletide: The Viking Origins of Santa Claus
The word “yuletide,” referring to the Christmas season, was passed to the British through the Vikings. The word originated with the Viking god Odin, whose persona associated with the month of December was Jul, and the month of December was called “Jultid.” The Vikings believed that Odin would come to earth during the [...] Read More »
