ROMÉNIA: Romanian Christmas, a joyful spirit celebration

Christmas is, for Romanians, family soul merriment and one of the few occasions on which their customs are reborn. Carols, specific dishes and sweets, the Christmas tree and a lot of superstitions made a traditional winter holiday.

Romanians started preparing for Christmas on the 20th of December. On that day they celebrated Ignat’s Day, a solar divinity which has its name from Saint Ignatie Teofanul, by sacrificing the pigs raised for the Christmas meals. The animal killed on this day is a symbol of the Zeus who dies and rebirths, together with the time, at the winter solstice. It is the time when Romanians make the ‘pig’s alms’. The families give to the man who sacrificed the animal one piece of every part of the pig, so they could enjoy their red meat meals. After that, they start preparing the traditional pork dishes, which they eat during the winter holidays.

On the 24th of December, Romanians prepared the traditional sweets and decorated the Christmas tree with candies, coloured globes, red garlands, figures, gold thread, tinsel and lights. In the past, people put candles, nuts wrapped in tinfoil and apples. It is said that each one of us must put at least one ornament, in order to have luck.  Also, it is believed that for the wealth of the whole family, the tree must have new, but also old decorations. On Christmas Eve, Romanians ate a special sweet tart, called ‘Jesus swaddling clothes’. This is a desert of thin flat cakes, made of a mixture of water and corn meal and baked on the kitchen range, filled with a cream made of sugar and almonds, nuts or hemp seeds.
The 24th of December is the day when people announce the start of the celebration, by going from house to house and singing traditional carols, called ‘colinde’. The lyrics remind of the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, the star that revealed the three magi about the stable where the Son of God was born or Santa Claus. One of the most appreciated are ‘O, ce veste minunata’, ‘Deschide usa, crestine’, ‘Sus la poarta Raiului’ or ‘Noi umblam sa colindam’. Mainly in the past, but still in some country regions, the people welcome the singers with bread and salt. It is believed that the ones who receive them will be lucky and healthy. Also, the carol singers, called ‘colindatori’, come dressed with traditional clothes and with special bells and obtain apples, nuts, pumpkin little pies, and a slice of ‘Jesus Swaddling clothes’ cake, knot-shaped bread, candies and money.

On the 25th of December, Romanians opened the gifts they have found under the tree and had a whole family meeting at lunch. They eat special pork dishes with pickled cabbage salad, a variety of cheese products, fruits and sweets. As an appetizer, Romanians drink natural plum brandy, boiled with black pepper, and red wine from clay jugs with the meals. As usually, they lighted up red candles and listened to carols.