Christmas Gift Traditions Around the World!
Christmas Gift Traditions Around the World
One of the things we love abut Christmas is the spirit of giving! Yes, it may be more commercialised now than it was hundreds of years ago, but it is still deeply steeped in tradition and underpinned by the values of love and kindness.
Despite similarities across the globe when it comes to festive presents, there are also some interesting cultural differences at this time of year. We share some of our favourite ones below:
The Role of Shoes in Christmas Gift Traditions
Don’t underestimate the presence of shoes in European Christmas gift giving traditions!
France: Père Noël (Father Christmas) is a legendary gift-bringer during Christmas. According to tradition, children must leave their shoes by the fireplace filled with carrots and other treats (like sugar lumps) for his donkey, “Gui” – which is French for “Mistletoe”.
The tasty offerings will be eaten by Gui and replaced by Father Christmas with presents that can fit in the shoe (money, candy, small toys, etc.). Apparently, many children choose gumboots for this occasion to maximum their return! It beats crossing your fingers for a growth spurt that results in needing bigger shoes before Christmas!
The Netherlands has a similar Christmas gift giving tradition, and on the evening of December 5th (Sinterklaas), children leave their wooden clogs out with treats for St. Nicholas’ horse (which in turn are filled with treats).
Spain celebrates Epiphany (Day of The Three Kings), and on the eve before, children can leave their shoes on windowsills, balconies or by the front door for the Magi/wise men to fill with small gifts.
Icelandic Christmas Gift Tradition
Iceland is one of the most literate countries in the world, so it’s unsurprising that books are the single most popular Christmas gift in the country! They have a Christmas gift-giving tradition known as Jólabókaflóð (“Yule Book Flood”).
It is a not-for-profit national campaign that dates back to 1944, when Iceland gained its independence from Denmark. During this time paper was one of the few resources not rationed during the war, so naturally books became popular gifts.
Jólabókaflóð keeps this tradition alive by enabling gift-givers to choose books for their loved ones from a free national catalogue. These books can then be gifted to the recipients on Christmas Eve; a time most often spent staying warm and cosy indoors, whilst indulging in some relaxed reading!
British, Australian and New Zealand Christmas Gift Traditions
England is one of the biggest markets for buying and giving lottery tickets during Christmas, in the hopes of making someone’s new year even more lucky and prosperous.
This is a common theme for gifting, as the UK are also big fans of a traditional Christmas Pudding (which will often have special silver coins inserted into it as a symbol for luck too).
As Commonwealth countries, those of us in Australia and New Zealand are no stranger to a moist, rich and delicious Christmas Cake or traditional-style Christmas Pudding as a centrepiece on the Christmas table. Despite our warmer weather at Christmas, these are nostalgic treats that many of us grew up with and love to share with our own families to keep this tradition going for the many years and generations to come.
To have your own taste of special, indulgent Christmas cheer, discover our range of beautiful festive foods, complementary decadent sauces and gift packages here.
