Swiss Christmas Traditions

Christmas is a great festival enjoyed through out the world. This is time of year when people enjoy quality time with their families and friends. Families come together to have parties and feast with Christmas traditional food and music. The preparations for Christmas begin well in advance. Homes are cleaned and decorated with evergreen twigs, wreaths and garlands with festive Christmas lights. A Christmas tree is brought home and decorated with tinsel, lights and ornaments. Christmas has universal appeal. Christmas traditions differ from one nation to other. Culture plays a big role in Christmas Traditions. Swiss Christmas traditions are a mixture of religious sentiments and modernity.

Christmas in Switzerland is full of festive spirit and gusto. People thoroughly enjoy the festival. Before Christmas, Swiss people traditionally celebrate the fest of St. Nicholas on the dusk of December 6. There is a huge procession of lifetrager who wear huge, lighted lanterns on their heads. The lantern is in shape of Bishop’s mitre. A lot of people gather to watch the proceedings. It is an old Swiss tradition where the kids go from one house to other with gifts and ringing of bells. On Christmas Eve, people attend Midnight mass at the church and then have traditional Christmas dinner. Ringing of Christmas bell is an important tradition followed by Swiss people in churches during the Christmas season.

Christkindli is an angel who comes in white robes on his reindeer-drawn sleigh. His face is covered with veil and has a crown on his head. He comes to every Swiss home during Christmas to give gifts to small children. He announces his arrival by ringing silver bells. Once, he enters the house, Swiss people light candles on trees and then exchange presents. Christkindli is a Swiss version of Santa Claus. Children all over the country curiously wait for him and his gifts. The Christmas day is spent singing carols and listening to Christmas music. The Star singers sing carols and folk songs in traditional attire and parade in towns and cities of Switzerland during Christmas.

In Zurich, Santa Claus comes in a decorated fairytale tram. He takes all the children for a ride of the city, sings carols and gives them sweets. On Christmas Eve after the mass, everyone has a traditional doughnut called as Ringli with hot chocolate. For the traditional Christmas dinner, Swiss people have different types of meat, bread, baked vegetables with cakes and cookies as deserts. Various cookies lie Swiss brownie, Anise cookies, Milano Cookies are prepared for Christmas in Swiss homes. Swiss people go out and enjoy the festival with dine and wine. Music and dance are two integral parts of Swiss Christmas celebration.