Top 10 Christmas Traditions From Around The World That Are Super Weird

Christmas is the most widely celebrated holiday in the world. And when an occasion is globally popular, naturally every country will have its own take on the festivities. Apart from the snug cozy morning traditions of opening gifts while sipping on eggnogs, decorating Christmas trees, and families coming together to enjoy the holiday, Christmas is not without its weird traditions. From the mildly funny to the wildly terrorizing, there are many Christmas practices that are worth knowing.

Here are the top 10 jaw-dropping Christmas traditions from around the world that you should know about (or are guilty of following too).

Austria

Where I am from, like in most parts of the world, the naughty kids on Santa’s list simply get a bag of coal. If children get bummed out for that, wait till you know what Austrian’s do as part of their pre-Christmas festivities. Kids on the naughty list are visited by Krampus, horned and hairy beasts that prowl the streets and snatch naughty kids. The alpine villages in Austria celebrate Krampusnatch on 5th December where a number of men dressed as Krampus (half-goat, half-demon) take the streets to terrorize children.

South Wales

Climbing up on the creep-o-ladder, we have South Wales next up on the list. In a tradition that supposedly dates back to Celtic times, a few residents of the villages in South Wales attach a horse’s skull to a pole, cover it up with clothes and fit the skull with eyes, nose, and other sensory organs. They then take the “undead” horse up to everyone’s homes and sing songs about the happiest season of the year. In return, residents gift these signers with fruits, money, and food. And here a few of you thought your regular carolers were annoying.

Japan

Here’s a breather for you from the all horrific stuff you’ve read so far. Christmas in Japan is celebrated by having the main meal of the day in KFC. We’re not sure which marketing manager of KFC deserves the credit for this but it’s a modern yet compulsory tradition to have the Christmas meal in KFC across the country. Now, who else wants to head out to Japan to be all merry?

Caracas

Now here’s something we don’t mind getting on board with. In the weeks that lead up to December 25th, Venezuelans attend an early morning mass called Misa de Aguinaldo. In the capital Caracas, it is customary to attend this mass on roller skates. Irrespective of age, everyone is encouraged to slide into the doors of the church in sick roller blades. In fact, the tradition is so popular that roads that lead up to the main churches are blocked for motor vehicles till 8 am.

Catalonia

If there is one Christmas tradition that I wonder how the rest of the world has not adopted, it’s this one. In this incredulous tradition, families in Catalonia dress up a log of wood with eyes, nose and a mouth and cover it in red fabric. Over a period of 10 days, the families “feed” the log of wood with fruits, seeds and other nutritious food. And on Christmas Eve, they beat the log till it “poops” out the presents. They even sing a song that translates to “If you don’t poop the presents out, we will beat you with a stick”. Talk about high metabolism, huh?

Greenland

If you think Brussels sprouts are the nastiest things to put in your mouth, wait till you know what the people of Greenland feed themselves during the holidays. They eat a traditional Christmas dish called Mattak, which is raw whale skin with a little blubber, and Kiviak, which is an arctic bird wrapped in sealskin. The Kiviak is buried for several months and on Christmas day, its decomposed leftover is eaten by everyone in the family.

Portugal

Going off the weird track for a bit, we’re landing in Portugal with its beautiful tradition. Christmas in Portugal is a time of celebration but also a time of remembering the dead family members. During the feast, they leave empty space around the dining tables to symbolize that the dead family members join them for a Christmas meal. They even leave bread crumbs around the hearth.

Czech Republic

In this fun little Christmas tradition, unmarried women in a community make use of a shoe to determine their relationship status for the next year. They have their backs to the door and throw a shoe above their shoulders. If the shoe lands with the toe facing the door, then it means that the woman would get married within the next year. On the other hand, if it falls with the heel facing the door, then the woman stays unmarried (lucky bugs).

Finland

Most of the Finnish homes are equipped with saunas and during Christmas, it becomes a sacred abode for a family’s ancestors. On Christmas Eve, it is customary to strip naked and enjoy a long time in the sauna. Once you leave for the Christmas Mass, it is believed that your family’s ancestors will take your spot in the sauna (I am all for tradition on this one).

United States Of America

The biggest prelude to Christmas in the world is Black Friday, America’s own Christmas tradition. With online shopping taking over recently, Black Friday is also followed by Cyber Monday. Even though it is inspired by capitalism, the tradition is on par with decorating Christmas trees, drinking egg nog and anything else that is traditionally done during Christmas in the American household. After all, nothing says Christmas like elbowing another person for the last of the sunglass, does it?

Whether you are guilty of following these traditions or not, it is undeniable that every form of celebration is beautiful in its own way. If you really think about it, Christmas traditions widely differ even from one family to another. For example, in mine, we drop subtle hints about what presents we want but end up getting books about how an MBA in finance is the only key to financial freedom (followed by a lecture on how writers are at the bottom of the professional food chain). What is something that is native to your family when it comes to Christmas? Do let us know in the comments.