Ukrainian Christmas

    The origins of Ukrainian Christmas are deeply rooted in pre-Christian times. Many of the traditions have been adapted from long held traditions of Eastern Orthodoxy and agrarian customs, and fit seamlessly together. With the introduction of Christianity, the Church adopted a policy of tolerance towards the existing, deeply rooted traditions and customs that are unique and deeply symbolic.

    Christmas is a special time that is considered “betwixt and between”.  The harvest is over and it is a new season and a new year.  Christmas is considered magical: ancestors return to earth, animals can talk with human voices and it is a time for fortune telling.

    On Christmas Eve carolers go from house to house, dressed in costumes, singing carols.  Traditionally, the carolers represent a goat (from pagan times when the goat symbolized fertility), a bag carrier (the collector of gifts) and someone carrying a six- pointed star attached to a long stick with a light at its centre, symbolizing the Star of Bethlehem. Caroling is not simple song singing; it is like a folk opera that includes a skit and ends with the blessing of all those present.

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    The favourite Ukrainian carol is Boh predvichnyi (God Eternal) and the most well known, world wide is “Carol of the Bells”.

    A sheaf of wheat, called a didukh, is bound around the middle with elaborate ribbons, and brought into the house by the father or head of the household. He walks around the inside of the home three times and then places the wheat in a corner of the kitchen or dining room near the family’s holy icon. This sheaf represents the entire family,  including departed ancestors and the generations to come. The souls of the family are thought to be in the sheaf, and it represents both the Christian belief in an afterlife and the bountiful fertility of the land.

    The floor under the table is strewn with straw to represent the birthing place of Christ.  The mother or the grandmother traditionally hides nuts in the straw for the children to find after supper.   It is supposed to be a surprise, but of course the children know and expect it each year.

    Holy Supper or Sviata Vechera, combines agrarian and Christian symbols: twelve dishes are served to represent the twelve disciples and the cycles of the moon. The twelve dishes also represent the most valuable products of the field, garden, and orchard. There is no meat or milk served as a sign of respect for the farm animals that are depended upon all year long.

    The first course is always kutia. It is the main dish of the whole supper and is made of cooked wheat kernels, poppy seed, walnuts and honey. Then comes borshch (beet soup) with vushka (boiled dumplings filled with chopped mushrooms and onions). This is followed by a variety of fish –baked, broiled, fried, cold in aspic, fish balls or marinated herring. Varenyky are boiled dumplings filled with either cabbage or  potatoes or buckwheat grains or prunes. There are also holubtsi (stuffed cabbage), and the supper ends with uzvar (fruit compote).

    Next the hay from under the table is taken outside the gate.  It is spread in the shape of a cross and lit on fire.   This ritual ensures good health.  Cows are walked through the fire and children leap across to purify themselves.

    The proper Christmas greeting is Khrystos Razhdaietsia (Christ is Born!), and the response people give is Slavite Yoho (Glorify Him!).

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