Christmas traditions of Estonia: They have their own unique character, but their roots are in pagan customs
Estonia can boast a unique tradition that is inspired by original pagan rituals. Christmas in Estonia is a time full of precious moments, especially beloved by children, as they can place their slippers on the windowsill in hope that Christmas elves will bless them with a small gift. They receive candies, toys, and sometimes even books. The Christmas season continues through December, New Year's, and sometimes into early January, when Christmas markets end, Christmas trees are undressed, and decorations are stored for the following year.
Why is the winter solstice (talvine pööripäev) important for Estonians
The winter solstice, when the day is shortest and the night is longest, is celebrated from December 21 to 25. In Estonian, it is known as talvine pööripäev. The winter solstice and Christmas are two related holidays in Estonia, and people celebrate them in all parts of the country. Pagans celebrated these days even before the advent of Christianity. During this period, when Estonia has only a few hours of daylight, people in the past, when they did not have electricity, celebrated from daylight until sunset.
The winter solstice has roots in paganism. There are very few written records about the religious beliefs of pagan ancestors and in places where paganism once flourished in northern Europe, it was replaced by Christianity. As a result, we only know small fragments of pre-Christian traditions that have been reflected in folk culture.
However, the Estonians are traditionally quite resistant to external influences and stubbornly rejected them, which is their advantage that helped them survive. Therefore, the pagan roots in Estonian culture are still strongly evident and remarkably manifested in the celebrations of Estonian holidays.
In old Estonian tradition, the focus was on talvine pööripäev (evergreen tree), which was taken from the forest and then ceremoniously burned. The evergreen tree thus lit up in the middle of the winter as the centerpiece of the celebrations. Does this sound familiar? When Tallinn became a Hanseatic city, the incoming German traders familiarized themselves with this Estonian custom and slightly adapted it for their own Christmas tradition. Instead of burning the tree, they decorated it. This is why Estonians claim that the very first Christmas tree was created in Tallinn. Interestingly, Latvians have an almost identical story to support their claim that it was they who introduced the first Christmas tree.
The connection with Christ's birth is relatively recent compared to local ancient pagan Christmas traditions, and it has come to the fore only in the last centuries. Furthermore, it is believed that Christmas traditions, especially those of Christmas Eve, reflect the customs and most essential needs of the local rural population. The Christmas season, with its specific tasks and prohibitions of various work, began on St. Thomas's Day (the first day of the winter solstice), after a three to four week preparation period.
In winter, farmers had plenty of time to celebrate long holidays. Pigs were slaughtered and beer was brewed in preparation for Saint Thomas's day. Some activities such as milling in the mill, spinning and horse riding were prohibited because they were noisy and could disturb the "good spirits".
Christmas Eve and Christmas night were the most sacred times of the year and were often accompanied by divination. With the help of stars and frost, the weather for the next year was predicted.
Christmas food was not to be cleared from the table (as part of ancestor worship) and the fire in the fireplace had to be kept all night (likely a relic of sun worship). It was believed that on Christmas Eve, both good and evil forces were in motion and that the ancestors would visit the house.
People in Estonia believe that the first person to enter their home at Christmas will influence how the family will fare throughout the upcoming year. It is customary that if a woman or man with light or red hair crosses the threshold of the house first, it will bring misfortune to the family. On the contrary, a man with black hair or a man with dark brown hair is welcomed. He will bring luck, comfort, and success to the family.
Christmas Eve – Štědrý večer
On Štědrý večer (Christmas Eve), Estonians always go to mass. Before going to church, they go to the sauna. The tradition of steam baths is common throughout the country. This was also done during the day of the summer solstice.
In the past, children were given clothing so that they would look festive during the evening mass. After returning from the church, a large table awaited them, on which there was food and a lit candle. Symbolically, it was also set for relatives who could not be present or who had gone forever.
On Christmas Eve, gifts appear under the tree, discreetly placed there by Jőuluvana - St. Nicholas. The tradition of St. Nicholas bringing gifts is relatively new, but it has definitely become firmly established here. St. Nicholas comes to Estonia from Lapland with a huge sack full of gifts on a large sleigh pulled by reindeer. Gifts are opened right after Christmas Eve dinner. Children and adults must sing, recite or dance to get their gift. Another tradition in Estonia is the Christmas Eve fireworks that light up the sky.
Christmas Eve is a day full of mystery, miracles, and magic. One of the old stories says that somewhere at the bottom of the sea is a great kingdom, which was sunk for its sins just like the ancient Atlantis. The fairy tale says that when a ship sails to this place on Christmas Eve, sailors can hear the ringing of a sunken funeral bell. It's the same sound we can hear from the steeples of churches on land.
Jõulud - Christmas
In the traditional folk calendar, the Christmas time in Estonia began with St. Thomas' feast on December 21 and lasted until the Epiphany on January 6. The most significant event was Christmas Eve on December 24.
The Christmas period in Estonia starts on December 24 with the traditional holiday of Jõulud, which means "Christmas". In the country's folk tradition, Christmas has a dual meaning: on the one hand, it signifies the birth of Christ, on the other hand the entire holiday season amidst winter. Magic and mysticism are tied with the sacred and spiritual.
The Estonian word jõulud has old Scandinavian origins, it comes directly from the word jul and has no real connection to Christianity. Scandinavia, together with Estonia, forms the only area of contemporary Europe where the birth of Jesus Christ is still denoted by the pre-Christian word jul – jõulud. Nevertheless, in some places in southern Estonia, the term talvistepüha (winter holiday) is used to designate the Christmas holidays, which is considered a result of the influence of neighboring Latvia, where Christmas is known as Ziemas svētki (winter holidays).
Every year on December 24, the President of Estonia declares Christmas a time of peace and participates in a festive service. This tradition has a 350-year history and was first introduced in the 17th century by a decree of the Swedish Queen Christina.
From Christmas Eve to Epiphany, young people dressed as various characters go caroling from house to house - just as carolers do in Poland. Dressed in inverted sheepskins, they wish the entire family all the best. In return, they receive small gifts.
Christmas Symbols
In Estonia, Santa Claus usually delivers gifts on the night of December 24th. One of the most important and widespread Estonian peasant traditions, similar to those in other countries of Northern and Central Europe, was the custom of bringing Christmas straw into the home. Although the tradition of Christmas straw is associated with the biblical legend of the birth of Jesus Christ, it may also be of pre-Christian pagan origin. In Estonia, straw (or sometimes hay in southern Estonia) was brought into the house for the entire holidays and became a playground for children's games. In addition to bringing straw into the house, a widespread tradition among the Estonians and their neighbors was the making of special Christmas crowns, reminiscent of church chandeliers. The custom likely came to Estonia from western and southern Finland and was initially especially popular among the local Swedish-speaking population, particularly on the island of Vormsi, where residents maintained close contact with their relatives in Sweden and Finland.
The tradition of making Christmas crowns and bringing straw into the house disappeared at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries and was replaced by other Christmas symbols. The revival of the old tradition occurred in the 70s, when it became very popular again to make Christmas crowns.
Christmas Food
The traditional Estonian Christmas food is pork with sauerkraut (hapukapsas), blood sausage (verivorst), jelly-like cheese (sült) and oven-baked potatoes. On Christmas Eve, it was customary to eat large meals. Having enough Christmas food at home symbolically meant having enough food for the entire upcoming year.
According to an old tradition, seven to twelve different dishes were served on Christmas Eve. The 12 dishes include beetroot soup, herring, apricots, potatoes, sauerkraut, mushrooms, Christmas bread, poppy seed milk, oatmeal pudding, cranberry pudding, cookies, nuts, dried fruit, and apples. No alcoholic beverages were served.
A special Christmas bread was baked. On Holy night, this Christmas bread was also offered to the domestic animals in the stable. The food always had to remain on the table overnight and it was forbidden to peek under the table. There was a sacred place for spirits, so any food that fell down there stayed there until the next day.
On the Estonian Christmas table, there must not be a lack of roasted goose or turkey with apples. As a dessert, Christmas cookies sprinkled with cocoa and cinnamon are served - pipparkogid.
Homemade beer and honey wine were the most popular Christmas beverages. The Christmas feast often differed between inland farming areas and fishing communities on the coast.
In recent years
Christmas as an official holiday was banned during the Soviet occupation. The traditional Christmas period was limited to New Year's and New Year's Eve celebrations.
Despite these restrictions, Christmas was celebrated unofficially, and many Estonians attended Christmas Eve services. After attending the Christmas Mass, it was customary to light candles on the graves of relatives. This became a quiet nationwide protest against Soviet ideology and atheistic propaganda in general. Christmas Eve itself, which was a usual working day, was celebrated at home in privacy with family and close friends. As a result of political changes at the end of the 80s, Christmas and the traditions associated with it again came into public awareness. A few years later, after regaining independence, Christmas again became an official holiday. Alongside ancient Estonian Christmas traditions, some new ones began to take hold, especially Finnish and Scandinavian elements. One of the most popular of these is the custom of celebrating the pre-Christmas or "small Christmas" during the first weeks of December. Pre-Christmas festivities with food and drink, usually mulled wine, are celebrated among colleagues in offices and elsewhere.
Every year on December 24, the leadership of Tallinn announces the so-called Christmas peace from the balcony of the medieval town hall. The proclamation of Christmas peace is a 350-year-old tradition in Estonia, which began in the seventeenth century at the command of the Swedish Queen Christina.
Pagan rituals at Christmas in Estonia
While some of the old Estonian pagan traditions have survived in the context of modern celebrations, others are talked and known about, but many are no longer practiced or believed in today. This includes bringing Christmas straw into the house, fortune-telling, dressing in animal skins, caroling, and preparing for the visit of "ghosts".
Star Hour
The Christmas period ends on January 6 with Star Hour day. On this day, children dress in traditional Estonian costumes and go around houses caroling, for which they receive money or sweets. The children also dance and sing songs known as "star hour".
And what to add in the end? The Christmas market in Tallinn is the crowning jewel of Christmas in Estonia. After all, in 2019 it was proclaimed as the best Christmas market in Europe and thus made the list of Christmas markets from all over the continent that are worth visiting.
Source: original text, Estonianworld.com, Thenorthernvox.com, Golookexplore.com, Diaryofawannabeworldtraveler.com, Eesti.pl, Balticguide.ee
