In this thread, post the greetings as per your personal mood, local time zone, and official calendar, to reflect the festive spirit

Today: Χριστός ἀνέστη

Which one of the three? Not this Lucia video, it cropped up on my Twitter feed, I just passed it on (if it hadn't been for Twitter I probably wouldn't have kept track of those local holidays). I did once post a quip about candle-scorched hair though.

In the last couple years feminism has finally caught up with the Lucia celebration. While not on the level of controversy of the Dutch black-face tradition, the question has been: why should the Lucia have to be a girl, why can't it be a boy?

Swedish schoolboy in female saint role row

Staff at the Ödeshög primary school broke with tradition when selecting this year's Lucia (or Saint Lucy as she is known in English).

Instead of the usual voting process they put the names of all the interested parties into a hat and selected the winning candidate in a lottery.

Among the names were three boys and when the new Lucia was announced it turned out to be one of the trio. The school said the random selection was done in the interests of democracy and equality.

But traditionalists weren't too impressed. Usually Lucia is portrayed by a girl, who sports candles on her head to represent Saint Lucia.

"Pretty soon it became sweaty. Outraged emails and text messages came flooding in. Almost all were negative, some were clear personal attacks," said school teacher Anna Wissman to local newspaper Corren.

The reaction in the classroom was rather different with most of the boy's classmates supporting the gesture, although not all their parents agreed with the plan.

"Some people think it was a ploy to choose a boy to play Lucia. But we followed the teaching plan. We're supposed to teach equality and democracy," added Wissman.

Some protestors contacted the school's headmaster to explain their anger.

As well as being unhappy that a boy was representing the saint, many were hacked off that ceremony was being moved from a church to the school gymnasium instead.

The school is standing by its decision and has invited the town's official Lucia, who is female, to the school to take part in the ceremony.

In a compromise gesture, the boy will lead the procession for the pupils' parents in the morning while the official Lucia will take over in the afternoon.

Peace on Earth.

I was thinking of the other couple Christmas period traditions depicted, not including others like Krampus, or the illicit burning of the giant Gävle goat.

Since 1986 there have been two Yule Goats built in Gävle: the Gävle Goat by the Southern Merchants and the Yule Goat built by the Natural Science Club of the School of Vasa.

Until 1985 the Southern Merchants held the world record for the largest Yule Goat, but over the years the Natural Science Club's goat increased in size, and in 1985 their Yule Goat made it into the Guinness Book of Records with an official height of 12.5 metres (41 ft). The creator of the original 1966 goat, Stig Gavlén, thought that the Natural Science Club's goat had unfairly won the title of the largest Yule Goat because the goat was not as attractive as the Southern Merchants' goat and the neck was excessively long. The next year there was a Goat war: the Southern Merchants understood the publicity value, and erected a huge goat, the Natural Science Club erected a smaller one in protest. The Southern Merchants had intended that their huge goat would reclaim the world record, but the measurement of the goat showed it fell short. Over the following seven years there were no further attempts on the world record, but there was some bad feeling between the Natural Science Club and the Southern Merchants, evidenced by the fact that the Natural Science Club put up a sign near their goat wishing a Merry Christmas to everyone, except the Southern Merchants.[6]

In 1993 the Southern Merchants again announced that they were going to attempt the world record. The goat stood 10.5 metres (34 ft) when completed. The Natural Science Club's Yule Goat that year measured 14.9 metres (49 ft), which earned them another place in the Guinness Book of World Records.[6]

Timeline

1966 Stig Gavlén came up with the idea of a giant goat made out of straw. But it turned out that Gavlén organisation did not have enough funding for the goat. Then Harry Ström, who at that time was the chairman of the Södra Kungsgatan Ideella Förening (a non-profit society), decided to pay the whole cost for the goat out of his own pocket. The goat stood until midnight of New Year's Eve, when it went up in flames. The perpetrator, who was from Hofors, Gästrikland, was found and convicted of vandalism. The first goat was insured and Ström got all his money back.[7][14][19]
1967 Nothing happened.[7]
1968 The goat survived. A fence was built around the goat. Previously it was popular for children to play hide-and-seek inside and around the goat. There was also a rumor that one night a couple had sex inside the goat. In subsequent years the inside of the goat was protected by a chicken-wire net.[14]
1969 The goat was burnt down on New Year's Eve.[7]
1970 The goat was burnt down only six hours after it was assembled. Two very drunk teenagers were connected with the crime. With help from several financial contributors the goat was reassembled out of lake reed.[20]
1971 The Southern Merchants got tired of their goats being burned and stopped building the goat. The Natural Science Club (Naturvetenskapliga Föreningen:NF) from the School of Vasa (Vasaskolan) took over. [20]
1972 The goat collapsed because of sabotage.[7]
1973 N/A
1974 Burnt.[7]
1975 N/A
1976 Hit by a car.[21][22]
1977 N/A
1978 Again, the goat was kicked to pieces.[7]
1979 The goat was burnt even before it was erected. A new one was built and fireproofed. It was destroyed and broken into pieces.[20]
1980 Burnt down on Christmas Eve.[7]
1981 Nothing happened.[7]
1982 Burnt down on Lucia (13 December).[7]
1983 The legs were destroyed.[7]
1984 Burnt down on 12 December, the night before Lucia.[7]
1985 The 12.5 metre (41 ft) tall goat of the Natural Science Club was featured in the Guinness Book of Records for the first time. Even though the goat was enclosed by a 2 metres (6.6 ft) high metal fence, guarded by Securitas and even soldiers from the Gävle I 14 Infantry Regiment, it was burnt down in January.[7][14]
1986 The merchants of Gävle decided they were willing to build the goat once again. From 1986 on two goats were built, the Southern Merchants' and the School of Vasa's. The big goat burnt down the night before Christmas Eve.[7]
1987 A heavily fireproofed goat was built. It got burnt down a week before Christmas.[23]
1988 Nothing happened to the goat, but gamblers were for the first time able to gamble on the fate of the goat with English bookmakers.[20]
1989 Again, the goat burnt down before it was assembled. Financial contributions from the public were raised to rebuild a goat that was burnt down in January. In March 1990 another goat was built, this time for the shooting of a Swedish motion picture called Black Jack.[7]
1990 Nothing happened. The goat was guarded by many volunteers.[7]
1991 The goat was joined by an advertising sled, that turned out to be illegally built. On the morning of Christmas Eve the goat was burnt down. It was later rebuilt to be taken to Stockholm as a part of a protest campaign against the closing of the I 14 Infantry Regiment.[7][14]
1992 The goat was burnt down eight days after it was built. The Natural Science Club's goat burnt down the same night. The Southern Merchants' goat was rebuilt, but burned down on 20 December. The perpetrator of the three attacks was caught and sent to jail. The Goat Committee was founded in 1992.[7][14]
1993 Once more the goat was featured in the Guinness Book of Records, the School of Vasa's goat measured 14.9 metres (49 ft). The goat was guarded by taxis and the Swedish Home Guard. Nothing happened.[7][14]
1994 Nothing happened. The goat followed the Swedish national hockey team to Italy for the World Championship in hockey.[7][14]
1995 A Norwegian was arrested for attempting to burn down the goat. Burnt down on the morning of Christmas Day. Rebuilt to be standing before the 550th anniversary of Gävle county.[7][14]
1996 The first time the goat was guarded by webcams, nothing happened.[7]
1997 Damaged by fireworks. The Natural Science Club's goat was attacked too, but survived with minor damage.[21]
1998 Burnt down on 11 December, even though there was a major blizzard. Was rebuilt.[7]
1999 Burnt down only a couple of hours after it was erected. Rebuilt again before Lucia. The Natural Science Club's goat was burnt down as well.[7]
2000 Burnt down a couple of days before New Year's Eve. The Natural Science Club's goat got tossed in the Gävle river.[7]
2001 Goat set on fire on 23 December by Lawrence Jones, a 51-year-old visitor from Cleveland, Ohio, who spent 18 days in jail and was subsequently convicted and ordered to pay 100,000 Swedish kronor in damages. The court confiscated Jones's cigarette lighter with the argument that he clearly was not able to handle it. Jones stated in court that he was no "goat burner", and believed that he was taking part in a completely legal goat-burning tradition. After Jones was released from jail he went straight back to the US without paying his fine. As of 2006 it was still unpaid. The Natural Science Club's goat was also burnt down.[10][14][21][24][25]
2002 A 22 year old from Stockholm tried to set the Southern Merchants' goat on fire, but failed, the goat receiving only minor damage. On Lucia the goat was guarded by Swedish radio and TV personality Gert Fylking.[26]
2003 Burnt down on 12 December.[7]
2004 Burnt 21 December, only three days before Christmas Eve. The fire brigade quickly arrived on the scene, but the goat could not be saved. No new goat was built.[7]
2005 Burnt by unknown vandals reportedly dressed as Santa and the gingerbread man, by shooting a flaming arrow at the goat at 21:00 on 3 December.[21][27] Reconstructed on 5 December. The hunt for the arsonist responsible for the goat-burning in 2005 was featured on the weekly Swedish live broadcast TV3's "Most Wanted" ("Efterlyst") on 8 December.
2006 On the night of 15 December at 03:00, someone tried to set fire to the goat by dousing the right front leg in petrol (gasoline). The red ribbon on that leg was slightly burned and fell off. The lower part of the right leg was scorched, but the rest of the goat failed to light. The leg was repaired that morning.[28][29] The Natural Science Club's goat was burned at about 00:40 on 20 December; the vandals were not seen and got away.[30][31] On the night of 25 December, a drunken man managed to climb up on the goat. Before the police arrived on the scene the man climbed down and disappeared.[32] He did not try to set fire to the goat. The Southern Merchants' goat survived New Year's Eve and was taken down on 2 January. It is now stored in a secret location.[33]
2007 The Natural Science Club's goat was toppled on 13 December and was burned on the night of 24 December.[34] The Southern Merchants' goat survived.
2008 10,000 people turned out for the inauguration of one of the goats. No back-up goat was built to replace the main goat should the worst happen, nor was the goat treated with flame repellent (Anna Östman, spokesperson of the Goat-committee said the repellent made it look ugly in the previous years, like a brown terrier).[35] On 16 December the Natural Science Club's Goat was vandalised and later removed. On 26 December there was an attempt to burn down the Southern Merchants' Goat but patriotic passers-by managed to extinguish the fire. The following day the goat finally succumbed to the flames ignited by an unknown assailant at 03:50 CET.
2009 A person attempted to set the Southern Merchants' goat on fire the night of 7 December.[36] An unsuccessful attempt was made to throw the Natural Science Club's goat into the river the weekend of 11 December. The culprit then tried, again without success, to set the goat on fire.[37] Someone stole the Natural Science Club's goat utilizing a truck the night of 14 December.[38] On the night of 23 December before 04:00 the South Merchant goat was set on fire and was burned to the frame, even though it had a thick layer of snow on its back.[39] The goat had two online webcams which were put out of service by a DoS attack, instigated by computer hackers just before the burning.[40]
2010 On the night of 2 December, arsonists made an unsuccessful attempt to burn the Natural Science Club's goat.[41] On 17 December, a Swedish news site reported that one of the guards tasked with protecting the Southern Merchants' goat had been offered payment to leave his post so that the goat could be stolen via helicopter and transported to Stockholm.[42] Both goats survived and were dismantled and returned to storage in early January 2011.[43]
2011 The inauguration of the goat took place on 27 November. The fire-fighters of Gävle sprayed the goat with water to create a coating of ice in the hope of protecting it from arson.[44] The goat was burnt down in the early morning of 2 December.[45]
2012 The inauguration of the goat took place on 2 December. It was burnt just ten days later in the hours before midnight of 12 December, one day before Lucia.[46][47]
2013 As in 2006 and 2007, the straw used to build the goat has been soaked in anti-flammable liquid to prevent it from burning in the event of an arson attack.[48] The inauguration ceremony took place on 1 December. On 21 December the goat was burned down.[49]

The Spring Festival has begun.


Chinese New Year 2015: 6 things you need to know about the Year of the Goat (or Sheep)

International women's day

International No Diet Day (a rest day for all the hysterical weightwatchers out there)

We just passed three holidays in Sweden April 30, Valborg (Walpurgisnight), a day of choir singing, drinking, and burning of witches, May 1, May Day (solidarity with the working people of the world), and May 5, the international don't-commute-to-work day. The last one is not officially celebrated.

Happy Falafel Day!

Happy Chinese New Year!

Midsummer Night (a major ancient feast surprisingly well survived in Sweden, Finland, and Estonia) in theory and in practice.

That's today already? I thought the solstice wasn't for a few more days.

That's today already? I thought the solstice wasn't for a few more days.

It's not on the actual solstice. In Estonia it's the night between June 23rd and 24th (i.e. a fixed date) and in Sweden and Finland it's the weekend closest to the solstice - on weekend, not the solstice. But yes, the original idea was of course the solstice, the astronomical thing.

Norway and Denmark celebrate every June 23, like Estonia. Sweden-Finland, as mentioned, on the nearest Friday. Sweden takes it more seriously, and true to form it is raining. Or to be exact it is raining in the Stockholm area, the area that matters (to people living here), sun elsewhere in Scandinavia is irrelevant.

This year Midsummer Eve nearly coincide with the Dragonboat Festival tomorrow, another moveable feast. Sweden doesn't have the bonfires though, they are lit here on Walpurgis night, while the Maypole is erected today.

And a few words from the sponsors, IKEA and Abba (not ABBA). The first one originally used German/Swedish words, here English/Swedish, the second sticks to Swedish:

In a few minutes it will be 11/11 a.k.a. Singles' Day or internet shopping day, the biggest shopping event on the planet.

Fire detector day in the Nordic countries

Brandvarnardagen är en temadag som infaller den 1 december varje år. Hela Norden uppmärksammar brandvarnaren den här dagen. Medborgare runt om i Norden påminns alltså om att testa brandvarnaren så att man vet att den fungerar. 2010 beslutade nordiska ministerrådet att 1 december ska vara nationell brandvarnardag.

We just passed three holidays in Sweden April 30, Valborg (Walpurgisnight), a day of choir singing, drinking, and burning of witches, May 1, May Day (solidarity with the working people of the world), and May 5, the international don't-commute-to-work day. The last one is not officially celebrated.

New year, old celebrations.

We just passed three holidays in Sweden April 30, Valborg (Walpurgisnight), a day of choir singing, drinking, and burning of witches, May 1, May Day (solidarity with the working people of the world), and May 5, the international don't-commute-to-work day. The last one is not officially celebrated.

New year, old celebrations.

Wasn't there a king too this time turning 70 or something?

Oh drat, I forgot to wish you guys a happy King's Day on April 27. It kind of passed me by, given that I'm only used to Queen's Day on April 30 and of course also me not living in the Netherlands, but it was the third one already.

Happy Singles' Day 11/11 everyone! Shop early, shop often!

Singles Day: Alibaba closes in on record sales

As has now become tradition, Singles Day was kicked off with a televised gala event which this year included a performances by One Republic and appearances by basketball legend Kobe Bryant, English football legend David Beckham and singer-turned designer Victoria Beckham. But pop star Katy Perry, who had been scheduled to perform, withdrew citing a family emergency.

Analysts have predicted this year's event could see Alibaba rack up sales of $20bn despite a slowdown in China's economy, partly due to the event having a broader audience. "We're seeing an even bigger shift from offline shopping to online shopping," Kitty Fok, managing director of IDC China told the BBC.

"And there is also more of a focus on rural areas. People in the villages who could not do online shopping now have mobile phones and so can do that."

Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday celebrated in Canada and the United States. It was originally celebrated as a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. Several other places around the world observe similar celebrations. Although Thanksgiving has historical roots in religious and cultural traditions, it has long been celebrated in a secular manner as well.

Sounds like some general-purpose no-guarantees-for-any-particular-purpose thing that could be easily outclassed. Except when it comes with American marketing, it cannot be outclassed. It would be terrible if this would be the next holiday to push aside one or some of our local feasts, like Halloween has.

Head uut aastat!

Trump is known to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. Stay tuned for the wall opening celebration.