The country begins to sparkle both spiritually and literally - the excitement crescendoes and towns and cities are draped with decorative light. Candles glow in windows, trees twinkle in gardens, and despite the chill of winter, it is impossible not to be touched by a warmth that emanates from every corner.
Sweden provides the perfect backdrop for fairytale festivities, with its red wooden cottages and fir tree forests heavily dusted with snow. Decked in winter garb – long coats, woolly hats and high boots – people swarm in shops and through Christmas markets, and stop for a glass of glögg (mulled wine) with friends. Food is gathered, and homes are cleaned and hung with decorations.
The Christmas countdown begins
Four weeks before Christmas, the liturgical Advent period begins, and it is customary in Sweden to light a candle each Sunday. The children’s excitement mounts as windows pop open on their Advent calendars. It is customary to hang a star fashioned from paper or straw in your window, symbolising the guiding star of the Three Wise Men.
December is frenzied. There is much to do before everyone can settle down and snuggle into a happy hibernation. Christmas is also a significant time for family in Sweden. Owing to the vast scale of the country, people begin making plans early to travel far and wide to be with relatives.
How do you solve a problem like Lucia?
December 13 is Lucia Day, and the longest night of the year. Lucia is associated both with light (through the martyr, Saint Lucia of Syracuse), and also with Lucifer (through Lucia, Adam’s first wife who is said to have consorted with the Devil). Although both stories are remembered, Lucia seems to have taken on, above all, the more positive role as a symbol of light in the dark Swedish winters, and as a symbol of growth for man and beast. She is a figure who emerged from obscurity at a time when light and nourishment were most needed.
Each year, a Lucia (Queen of Light) is chosen from every establishment country-wide (schools, clubs, etc). The elected girl is dressed in a white gown with a crown of candles in her hair, and she delivers coffee, cat-shaped buns (’lussekatter’) and glögg. She is usually accompanied by a train of handmaidens, also dressed in white. The girls wear glitter in their hair and the boys wear tall paper cone hats decorated with stars and, while handing out the food and wine, they sing traditional Lucia carols.
Lucia elections are a seriously competitive business. A national Lucia is selected and announced on television, and every town and village has its own contenders who appear in the local newspaper some time in advance. With Sweden’s staunchly socialist mentality, this process is surprisingly beauty contest-esque, but then exceptions are made on exceptional days. The winners are paraded around towns, spreading joy and song in supermarkets, factories and hospitals. The Lucia songs are commonly known, so everyone can join in. The angelic tone of children’s voices and the gentle glow of candlelight make this day an emotive one.
Felling for flawlessness
The custom of having a Christmas came across from Germany in the 1880s. There’s no settling for any straggly Christmas tree in Sweden. On the day before Christmas Eve, when Swedes search for their tree, perfection is prerequisite – its branches must be bushy and evenly spread, and it must be straight – any lopsidedness simply will not do. Whether you buy the tree in a city, or whether you fell it yourself in the country, great importance is placed on its shape.
Bedecked with baubles, flying with flags, trimmed with tinsel or laden with lights…families each have their individual ways of adorning their trees, and indeed their homes in general. One thing that will be common to most houses is the pungent fragrance of hyacinths, a Swedish favourite.
On this same day, at three o’clock, once every decoration has its place, Sweden officially puts its feet up in front of the TV to enjoy reams of Disney scenes – a tradition dating back to the sixties. This national sit down marks the end of the preparations and the start of the settling in.
The Smörgåsbord – a delightful departure from turkey
Variety is indeed the spice of life, and don’t the Swedes know it! Their scrumptious smorgasbords offer unusual treats such as jellied pigs feet, ’lutfisk’ (air-dried white fish soaked in a salt solution), ’gubbröra’ (an egg and anchovy mixture), pickled herring, and rice porridge that oozes with cream, sugar and cinnamon. Superstition has it that whoever finds the whole almond in their porridge will marry within the year.
After the meal, the ’tomte’ comes. This Christmas elf belonging to Scandinavian folklore lives beneath the floorboards and takes care of a farmer's home and barn, in particular at night, when the housefolk are sleeping. Children leave a bowl of porridge out for this impish creature, and hope that he brings them presents.
