Lithuanian Christmas Traditions

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You will spend Christmas in Lithuania? Lucky you! It is one of the most special feasts of the calender and we will tell you everything you need to know about it to make it part of your ERASMUS Experience in Lithuania.
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Preparations

Christmas Eve (24th of December) is the most important day of Christmas celebrations. But before everything can start, there is a lot to do. The whole house is cleaned, everyone washes and puts on clean clothes for dinner.

The traditional christmas decoration consists of a clean and white tablecloth, candles, straw and fir branches. Sometimes, one spare seat is arranged at the table for the loved ones who died during the year.
The feast is normally made with the family. But because Lithuanians are nice people, they also invite those who would stay alone otherwise.

The Christmas Dinner (Kūčios)

At the center of the dinner table there is a plate with one Christmas wafer for each person, in some parts of Lithuania even with a scene of Jesus' birth on it.

The meal usually consists of 12 dishes - symbolically one for each of Jesus' followers. Popular dishes are or include:
dish: kūčiukai
  • fish (often herring)
  • kūčiukai, a small sweet pastry, often soaked in poppy milk
  • kisielius, a drink made from cranberries
  • dried fruit soup
  • vegetable salad
  • mushrooms
  • of course, beloved potatoes (boiled or baked)
  • sauerkraut
  • Often, water or homemade cider is served as a drink for the dinner.

None of the dishes contains meat on this evening. Only in the days after, the fasting is broken and plenty of meat is served.

What about presents and a Christmas tree?


Presents are brought by the "Old Man of Christmas" during or after the dinner, but they can also be exchanged directly between the guests.

Last but not least, of course there is a Christmas tree. Traditionally it is decorated with white paper straws, often in the shape of stars or snow flakes.


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 The ERASMUS Experience Lithuania wishes you a merry Christmas:
"Linksmų Kalėdų"

 If you want to learn more about the Christmas traditions of the homecountries of your fellow international students, check out this site:

 www.whychristmas.com

Do you have any questions? Just ask in the comments! Or are you Lithuanian and want to add something from your personal experience? Feel free to comment!

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