My friend and former colleague Alexandra Stefaniw describes some of the unique Christmas traditions of her Ukrainian culture as well as their religious significance. I love her reference to caroling, a beautiful way to herald the birth of Our Lord.
"Ukrainian Christmas festivities begin on Christmas Eve (January 6 on the Julian Calendar) and end on the Feast of Epiphany. However, as a child, (and I would wager for most Ukrainian children), they really began on December 19, St. Nicholas Day. This is the day we received our gifts, not on Christmas Day.
The Christmas Eve Supper, Свята Вечера (Holy Supper), brings the family together and the rituals of Christmas Eve are dedicated to God, to the welfare of the family, and to the remembrance of the ancestors. With the appearance of the first star which is believed to be the star of Bethlehem, the family gathers to begin supper. (Growing up in Toronto, we waited for it to get dark, since it was not always easy to see that first star.)
The meal begins with a prayer and the head of the household extends best wishes to everyone with the greeting Христос Раждається (Christ is born) and the family sits down to a twelve course meatless Christmas Eve Supper. There are twelve courses, because according to the Christian tradition, each course is dedicated to one of Christ’s Apostles. The first course is kutia (boiled wheat mixed with poppy seeds, honey and walnuts). Then comes borscht (beet soup) with vushka (mushroom dumplings). This is followed by fish, varenyky (commonly known as pierogy) and holubtsi (cabbage rolls).The supper ends with uzvar (a dried fruit cocktail).
While many of the Christmas Eve traditions are of a solemn nature, the custom of caroling is joyful and merry. There are two types of Christmas songs: the koliadky which are sung starting on Christmas Eve and shchedrivky which are sung during the Feast of Epiphany. I fondly remember caroling as a child (probably from the age of seven). In groups of about four, we would happily visit Ukrainian homes in the neighbourhood who would welcome us and offer sweet treats afterward. (This would all be arranged by the Ukrainian school we attended three evenings a week.)
These are some of the highlights of our Christmas traditions."
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