Merry Christmas! Peace and joy to everybody!
12/17/2008
12/15/2008
EB1/PE da Ribeira Seca
We wish our school friends a Merry Christmas and lots of presents.EB1/PE Ribeira Seca Students (4ºE)
12/01/2008
CHRISTMAS IN IRELAND
Christmas in Ireland lasts from Christmas Eve to the feast of the Epiphany on January 6, which is referred to as Little Christmas. Ireland's Christmas is more religious than a time of fun.
Lighted candles are placed in windows on Christmas Eve, as a guide that Joseph and Mary might be looking for shelter. The candles are usually red in color, and decorated with sprigs of holly.
Irish women bake a seed cake for each person in the house. They also make three puddings, one for each day of the Epiphany such as Christmas, New Year's Day and the Twelfth Night.
After the Christmas evening meal, bread and milk are left out and the door unlatched as a symbol of hospitality.
St Stephen's Day, the day after Christmas, is almost as important, with football matches and meetings going on. For children, the Wren Boys Procession is their big event. Boys go from door to door with a fake wren on a stick, singing, with violins, accordions, harmonicas and horns to accompany them. The reason for the ceremony is to ask for money 'for the starving wren', that is, for their own pockets.
Children often put out Christmas sacks instead of stockings.
It is tradition to leave mince pies and a bottle of Guinness out as a snack for Santa.
Lighted candles are placed in windows on Christmas Eve, as a guide that Joseph and Mary might be looking for shelter. The candles are usually red in color, and decorated with sprigs of holly.
Irish women bake a seed cake for each person in the house. They also make three puddings, one for each day of the Epiphany such as Christmas, New Year's Day and the Twelfth Night.
After the Christmas evening meal, bread and milk are left out and the door unlatched as a symbol of hospitality.
St Stephen's Day, the day after Christmas, is almost as important, with football matches and meetings going on. For children, the Wren Boys Procession is their big event. Boys go from door to door with a fake wren on a stick, singing, with violins, accordions, harmonicas and horns to accompany them. The reason for the ceremony is to ask for money 'for the starving wren', that is, for their own pockets.
Children often put out Christmas sacks instead of stockings.
It is tradition to leave mince pies and a bottle of Guinness out as a snack for Santa.
Ireland's Cristmas traditions are not dissimilar to those found in many other parts of the world - there is lots of shopping, gifts are exchanged, people eat too much turkey and Santa Claus is the main man for most children!
These are some of the most widely practiced traditions surrounding an Irish Christmas, though of course every family will have their own traditions and will celebrate the festive season in their own way.
A Light in the Window
One old custom that many continue to observe is the placing of a candle in the window on Christmas Eve, a symbol to welcome strangers and to remember those who are far away from home.
Decorating the House
Houses are decorated with natural material such as holly, pine cones and ivy but also glass, wooden or plastic ornaments. Many people place a natural holly wreath on their front doors.
The Crib
Most people will have at least a small crib in the house, with the baby Jesus only placed into the manger on Christmas morning.
Cribs are also erected, some almost life size, in churches, town centres and even shopping malls.
Christmas Trees
Natural Christmas trees, usually Noble Fir, are by far the most popular choice, though fake ones are increasing in popularity. Trees are decorated with lights and trinkets, generally the same ones year after year, though some style conscious people create (or buy) a whole new look for their tree annually. The 8th of December, or around that time, is the usual date for putting up and decorating the tree.
Decorating Puplic Places
Town centre decorations are erected and lights turned in late November or early December - it seems to get even earlier with each passing year. Streets are filled with lights, shops vie to have the most impressive window display and huge trees go up in town squares and shopping centres.
Decorating the outside of houses was a rarity until the last 5-6 years but is now becoming more common, with some people putting on quite lavish displays of lights.
Decorating the outside of houses was a rarity until the last 5-6 years but is now becoming more common, with some people putting on quite lavish displays of lights.
The Christmas Swim
There are some intrepid people who get out in the open air and away from all the excess on Christmas morning, though it can be fairly miserable out there at that time of year.
One long standing tradition in Sandycove, a suburb of South Dublin is the Christmas Day Swim - in the sea. Yes, in Ireland, in December, they swim in the freezing Irish sea - crazy but they say it's fun! Quite a crowd of less brave people - wrapped up in coats, hats and scarves - gather to watch the blue swimmers emerge from the water.
One long standing tradition in Sandycove, a suburb of South Dublin is the Christmas Day Swim - in the sea. Yes, in Ireland, in December, they swim in the freezing Irish sea - crazy but they say it's fun! Quite a crowd of less brave people - wrapped up in coats, hats and scarves - gather to watch the blue swimmers emerge from the water.
St Stephen's Day, the day after Christmas, is the day when the Wren Boys come out, mostly in the South of Ireland but also in certain localities elsewhere.
"Hunting the Wren" is an ancient ritual - in its original form a wren was hunted, killed and hung on a holly bush. The wren had, according to legend, earned this cruel punishment by betraying the hiding place of St Stephen, the first martyr, by chattering on the bush where he was hiding. A betrayal which led to the saint being stoned to death.
Nowadays no birds are killed, instead those engaged in the hunt, the so called 'wren boys', dress in straw suits or other costumes (not unlike Halloween costumes) and go from door to door, beating drums and playing whistles, and repeating the rhyme below while asking for "a penny for the wren".
Little Christmas
Also known as 'Women's Christmas' or Nollaig na mBan this falls on the 6th of January (the Feast of the Epiphany), and marks the official end of the Christmas season. Traditionally the men of the house take over for the day, preparing meals and allowing the women to have a rest.
Little Christmas is also the day when the tree and all the Christmas decorations are taken down and put into storage for another year. It is considered unlucky to take the decorations down prior to this.
Little Christmas is also the day when the tree and all the Christmas decorations are taken down and put into storage for another year. It is considered unlucky to take the decorations down prior to this.
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