Book Description

Sleighs pulled by eight legs, Bellsnicklers, Christmas gnomes called Skirt Blower and Window Peeper, bagpipes made from cats, mean Knecht Ruprecht, “Dames” played by men, furry, ugly Naliyuk, a village nut fight, carved radishes, lanterns the size of a house, boiled moose nose…What do these all spell? They say Merry Christmas somewhere in the world. Christians and non-Christians worldwide celebrate Christmas. As the world becomes a smaller place, these celebrations will become increasingly similar. It is important to document the varying ethnic differences before they disappear into sameness. Each section for the sixty-seven countries covered describes how to say the greeting Merry Christmas in each language, when the season begins and ends, the special days that are included in the holiday season, the church services that are celebrated, the Santa Claus figure and the gift-giving traditions, the food and drink, the decorations and Christmas trees, and the unique happenings, events, legends and superstitions of each country. The book includes the usual countries such as England, France, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Sweden, Australia, Spain, and Ireland, but an attempt has been made to cover countries for which there is little or no written information: Ethiopia, Cayman Islands, Grenada, Haiti, India, Jordan, Malta, Mauritius, Myanmar, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Swaziland, Turkey, Sudan, Antigua & Barbuda, Cuba, Cyprus, Ghana, Japan, Martinique, Jamaica, Netherlands Antilles, Romania, Somalia, and Egypt, among many others. Years of work have gone into researching, conducting interviews, corresponding with embassies, priests, anthropologists, and teachers. The book was written out of a sense of urgency by a practicing school media specialist who tired of not being able to help students find the information needed in written form or via the Internet. It is hoped that this endeavor will fill in the many gaps in this field of study.