December 13th is celebrated in honor of the young girl martyr, Santa Lucia. Processions are led by a young "Lucia" in a white robe with a crown of lights on her head and a candle in her hand.
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For the last century, the Philippines has celebrated the Christmas season with elaborate lanterns. In recent years, the kaleidoscope-like lanterns have grown to almost 20’ and include thousands of lights.
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Every year since 1966, a tall straw Yule Goat exceeding 40’ has been built in the Gävle Castle Square. Pranksters have developed an even newer tradition: burning the goat down. They’ve been successful 37 times. It has also been subject to an attempted helicopter heist.
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Kristkindl is a golden-haired baby with wings that symbolizes Jesus. It is credited with delivering presents for children, as well as decorating and distributing Christmas trees in Austria.
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In Scotland, the Christmas season was discouraged in 1560 and officially banned from 1640 to 1958. Because of this, Scottish people are passionate about a holiday called Hogmanay.
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Yule never believe how crazy some Icelandic traditions are! In Iceland, if you don’t get new clothes before Christmas Eve, you’ll get eaten by the Yule Cat.
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The story of the Christmas spider that decorated a poor widow's tree is popular in Ukraine. It has become a tradition there to decorate trees with artificial spider webs.
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The Krampus, a horned demon goat man, appears on the night before the Feast of St. Nicholas on December 5th. His job is to scare kids into being good.
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