Meta: A look at Christmas traditions in Canada.

 

Now while Canada might be right next to the USA, the home of maple syrup managed to put their own creative spin on Christmas as well just to make sure they stand out from the pack. We decided to chronicle as many of the weird and wonderful Christmas traditions straight out of Canada for you to compare with your own families Christmas celebrations.

Canadians like to propagate the fact that since their country is so far up north that they are in fact home to Santa Clause; however whether or not this is true remains to be seen.

Canadians like to show off their festive spirit with the annual Santa Clause Parade, if you are lucky enough to visit Toronto during this time of the year make sure to check it out as it one of the first Santa Clause Parades to be started throughout the world. The historic event consists of children happily trudging along in the snow after Santa Clause, however now it’s not only aired on television but also has many float processions and other spectacles guaranteed to get you in the spirit for Christmas.

Canada is known for its vast wilderness and stunning array of trees, especially its pine trees, which it uses to decorate for the family Christmas trees. One way Canada engages in the spirit of giving is to send Boston in the USA a Christmas tree each year in order to express their gratitude for the aid offered by America during the Halifax Explosion. A further tradition centered around a love for Christmas trees is that in order to show the beginning of the annual Christmas festivities, the grandest fir tree is erected right in the center of town, decorated and strewn with lights and lit up on the first day of festivities.

If you’re wondering if there are any commonalities with the USA, Canada starts off the day with the ripping open of presents like so many other households around the world, my families included. Then if breakfast is being served it will typically be something easy, like pancakes or scrambled eggs, before the big lunch where all the trimmings will be served. For dessert we can expect puddings, such as plum pudding. However, trifle is a firm favorite of mine, and there are so many ways to jazz it up for Christmas that it should definitely be included at least once on your menu.

However, due to the fact that Canada has such a diverse heritage of cultures among its people there is a wide variety of ways that Christmas can be experienced. For example, the French Canadians have a famous Midnight Mass in which the nativity scene is elaborately displayed underneath a Christmas tree and then, of course, there is a huge feast. The German Canadianshave a tannenbaum, which is basically a Christmas tree, but it must be a fir tree and not just any tree. Indigenous Canadians also have celebrations, which include many communal celebrations, including gift giving, dancing, and drumming.

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Canada flag link:

https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2017/04/26/15/02/canada-2262774_960_720.jpg

Canadians north pole link:

https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2016/03/05/20/53/arrow-1238842_960_720.jpg

Stocking on fir tree link:

https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2016/06/25/23/00/christmas-1479700_960_720.jpg