An Unconventional Christmas: The Strangest Holiday Traditions Around the World

No matter where one finds oneself around the globe, the thought of Christmas and the holiday season often brings up memories of great food and time-honored traditions revolving around a decorated evergreen tree. Occasionally, however, we find ways of shaking up our customary Christmas celebrations in favor of something a bit more…unique. Here are forty of the strangest holiday celebrations worldwide.

This may seem like an obvious place to begin but did you know that the romantic aura of mistletoe began with first-century Celtic Druids? Mistletoe continued to bloom throughout the winter, so it was seen as a sign of fertility by those early Europeans. 

In a tradition that goes back to a story about a destitute widow who could not afford to decorate her tree, Ukrainians use decorations that look like spider webs in addition to traditional ornaments. 

Every year on Christmas morning, Venezuelans living in Caracas don their roller skates and take off for mass on wheels. This tradition has become so well-entrenched that city streets are shut down each year for the event to ensure safe travel for the skaters.

One of the older traditions on this list is that of Sweden’s Yule Goats. Thought to have begun in the eleventh century, the story goes that a human-sized goat went along with St. Nicholas during his Christmas visits. The goat has gotten much, much bigger since then. Now, beginning each Advent, these mammoth caprine figures tower up to forty feet and are built from straw.

At Christmas in Japan, Kentucky Fried Chicken’s own Colonel Sanders dons a festive Santa suit as the Japanese people file in for their traditional Christmas treat. KFC is so popular in Japan at Christmas that patrons must make reservations ahead of time if they plan to eat in the restaurant on Christmas Day.

In a scene that sounds like it is out of Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, the Thirteen Yule Lads of Iceland roam the countryside causing trouble and mischief. Their hijinks include tormenting sheep (Stekkjarstaurm the Sheep Harasser), stealing pans to eat crust (Stúfur, Stubby), home robbery (Gluggagægir the Window Peeper), and meat thievery (Ketkrókur the Meat Hook). Unsettling to say the very least.

While many focus on spending time with family, in Martinique the holiday celebration extends to neighbors and community. During La Ribote, the people of this French Caribbean island congregate in the streets to sing carols – sometimes going door to door – all while sharing food and drink together.

In a Christian nation, it is strange to find a tradition involving a witch at Christmas, but Italy delivers just that. Befana the Witch, an old woman who brings gifts in the first week of January to children, flies down the chimney just like Santa Claus does. In true Italian fashion, Befana typically leaves behind local treats and wines for those who have been good.

For the brave of heart and stomach, fried caterpillars are served up in South Africa during the Christmas season. These red and green Emperor Moth caterpillars can grow to between four and six inches long when fully mature. They are considered not only a local treat but it is said that if one can swallow one, they will have extra good fortune in the new year.

A topic of debate as to whether it qualifies as a “Christmas movie,” the film Die Hard is regularly viewed during the holidays by its fans. Die Hard takes place on Christmas Eve and sees Bruce Willis (McClane) save dozens of people from a terrorist attack at their holiday party. 

Some say this began in Germany – others in Spain – but wherever it may have come from the custom of hiding a pickle ornament on the Christmas tree is likely to be several centuries old. As the tradition goes, whoever finds the pickle ornament first on Christmas Day receives an extra present from Santa Claus.

When you run up to bed on Christmas Eve, do not forget to hide your broomstick. This Norwegian tradition sees bad witches and spirits scouring homes for a new broom on which to take to the skies. If you live in Norway, and it is Christmas Eve, it is considered “best practice” to stow your broom away if you wish to keep it.

In the frozen north, one finds the glowing tradition of the Bentleyville Tour of Lights in Duluth, MN. The entrance alone contains 45,000 lights in addition to the dozens of fully lit scenes in the park. 

Forget waiting until spring, Guatemalans believe that where there is dirt, there are evil spirits. Each Christmas, they spend the week prior cleaning their home. They pile up what they clear out in a large heap. Once they are done, they top the refuse with a statue of the devil, and they burn it to the ground. This is “La Quema del Diablo,” the Burning of the Devil.

During the Portuguese Christmas feast consoada, the dead are honored by leaving an extra place setting open for them at the table or by leaving extra food on the stove. 

While it is well-documented that the tradition of Christmas trees originated in Germany in the 1500s, the use of popcorn as garland on Christmas trees is a purely American concept today. 

Single adults in the Czech Republic engage in a unique ritual on Christmas Eve that involves footwear and marriage. Taking a shoe, they stand with their back to a door, and they toss the shoe over their shoulder. 

Three weeks prior to Christmas, German children set their boots and shoes outside their bedroom doors in hopes of receiving treats. If they have not been good, a small tree branch will be left in their shoes in place of the sweets.

Another one of the scarier traditions on this list, Mari Lwyd in Wales includes singers sporting masks of skeletal horses coming to your door or to the local pub. This tradition has been around since the 1800s and is primarily found in South Wales. Using an eponymous hobby horse made from a horse’s skull and mounted on a pole, it is then carried under a sackcloth that is hidden. 

One of the most…perishable…traditions in circulation, the carving of radishes on December 23rd in Oaxaca, Mexico sees hundreds of artists creating elaborate art from these tiny taproots. This holiday even is held annually on the 23rd of December in Oaxaca, Mexico.

Each year, the city of Chandler, AZ collects 1,000 tumbleweeds to construct their massive Christmas tree. They are stacked in a tree shape, doused in a flame-retardant white material, and then sixty-five pounds of glitter are dumped onto it. 

Christmas is not Christmas in Sweden without the annual televised message from the one and only Donald Duck. Every year on Christmas Eve at 3:00 PM, the country pauses to watch a collection of old-time Disney cartoons from the thirties, forties, and fifties. Despite streaming services continuing to grow, this TV tradition is holding its own with over four million viewers in 2020.

Tradition holds that on Christmas Day, the brave in Ireland will head out to their local beach for a swim. Many do this for a charity fundraiser, like those that do the Polar Plunge in the United States. 

Mummering is an ancient Christmas tradition in Newfoundland and Labrador. Roving groups of men and women don masks and elaborate costumes and head over to their neighbor’s homes. This tradition is primarily an old Christmas custom from England and Ireland.

Occurring a month ahead of Christmas, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are holiday traditions that began in the United States and now span the globe. 

Jolabokaflod, the “Christmas Book Flood,” is a Christmas Eve tradition where Icelandic families trade books with each other and spend the rest of the night reading. 

Nisse is a gnome who is hungry. Danish families leave him porridge on Christmas Eve in return for good fortune in the coming year. If no food is left for Nisse, he will play tricks in the house and make your life difficult.

Fruitcake, or Christmas Cake, is a tradition that began in England but only included the serving of said cake at holiday parties. In the United States, the holiday food has been given as a gift to friends and family for generations…much to the chagrin of those receiving it. 

Sinterklaas arrives a full three weeks early in the Netherlands for St. Nicholas’ day. In this Dutch tradition, children leave their shoes by the fireplace in hopes of receiving a gift from Sinterklaas. 

People either love or hate this next tradition – eggnog. Thought to be started by the British upper class centuries ago, this seasonal beverage came across the pond sometime during the American Revolution. 

Unknown until about a decade ago, Santa’s arch nemesis Krampus is Austria’s one-man enforcer of good behavior. Said to punish bad children with sticks, Krampus is a hairy, goat-like beast that has burst out of obscurity only for us to find out his story dates to the sixth century.

In a celebration not so different than Carnevale in Italy during Lent, Christmastide in Russia is a time for people to cut loose and really go for it. 

It is always Christmas in the town of Christmas, FL! Each street in the town is named with a Christmas theme like Comet Street or St. Nicholas Avenue. 

From time to time, lottery draws will garner some attention but none so much as the one that takes place each December 22nd in Spain. 

Bagpipes are not typically associated with Italy however when in Rome you just might hear them. 

Taking place on December 26th, St. Stephen’s Day, the tradition of the Wren Boys involves the hunting down of a fake wren and setting it on top of a pole. 

In the Cajun tradition, it is said that bonfires help Papa Noel to find his way in the dark on Christmas Eve. 

Switzerland, known for its wonderfully sweet and smooth chocolate, has a sinister Santa sidekick in its Christmas tradition – Schmutzli. Consider him to be the anti-Santa. 

Originating from Denmark in the 1970s, the concept of SantaCons and Santarchy expanded into the United States in the 1990s and has not let go. 

A final tradition, uniquely American in its origin, is the viewing of the film A Christmas Story. Each year, multiple television channels will stream this 1983 Christmas classic for twenty-four hours beginning on Christmas Eve. 

As with any shared holiday, Christmas is celebrated in diverse ways around the world. From eating fried caterpillars to entering a lottery with your entire town, strange Christmas traditions continue to stand the test of time in all their wild, whacky, and unorthodox ways.