COMMON ELEMENTS AMONG EUROPEAN CUSTOMS CUSTOMS- TITLES UNITED KINGDOM GERMANY FRANCE SPAIN GREECE ESTONIA CZECH REPUBLIC 1. JANUARY SCOTLAND «BURNS DAY» 2. JANUARY SPAIN «THE THREE WISE MEN IN SPAIN» 3. JANUARY GREECE «CUSTOM OF THE FIRST DAY OF THE YEAR» On New Year's Day in the UK families usually eat together. In Germany the 6 th of January is a religious day. Believing children dress up as the three wise men and sing for the people ( star singers ). They money they get is donated to poor children. There are a lot of comparable celebrations, but only on a regional scale. Celebrated on the 6 th of January with the traditional Galette des Rois The tradition is to visit older family memers to exchange best wishes for the New Year Families usually have lunch together in Spain on New Year s Day. On January 6 th children dress up as the Three Kings Kaspar, Melchior and Balthazar: they go to the neigbouring houses and sing limerics. They get sweets and biscuits. On New Year s Day families eat lentil soup this is supposed to mean they will have money all year. 4. JANUARY ESTONIA «EPIPHANY» In Germany it s not an exact date, but Celebrated the first Sunday of the We celebrate epiphany on 6 th January in Epiphany is also Greece on 6th See comment for custom 2.
5. JANUARY FRANCE «FÊTE DE L ÉPIPHANIE. EPIPHANY» This is traditionally the day when we take our Christmas decorations down in the UK. during this period the decorations are taken down and the Christmas tree is taken outside. year, Spain. Days before children write letters asking for presents. The evening before the 6 th, there are street parades with the Wise Men and their pages on floats carrying presents that they bring for the children in commemoration of the presents that the Three Wise Men brought baby Jesus. January but with a different custom. The priest throws a cross into the sea and boys jump in to find it. The boy that finds the cross is blessed throughout the year. See comment for custom 4. See comment for custom 2. 6. FEBRUARY «MAKING A Children also make snowmen in German children love to make The favorite game of all children, Children also make snowmen in Greece when In Estonia children make
SNOWMAN» 7. FEBRUARY FRANCE «LA CHANDELEUR. CANDELMAS» 8. FEBRUARY SCOTLAND «VALENTINE S DAY» the UK if there is enough snow. snowmen during the winter. They build it in a similar way to the Czech children. Valentine s day is Germany in a manner very similar to the Scottish custom. Couples show each other their love with cards, presents and romantic dinners. whenever it snows. The tradition is not to send cards, but for a man to offer a red rose to his beloved girl-friend or wife. Valentine s day is also Spain. It s a custom imported from the UK. Couples have romantic dinners and exchange presents. its snows. But that doesn t happen very often! Valentine s day is also Greece. It s a custom imported from the UK. snowmen in wintertime. Valentine s day is also Estonia in the same way as in England. It is an imported custom. In CR the palačinky are prepared throughout the year and are considered as deserts in restaurants. They are not as thin as the French pancakes. Valentine s day has not really spread in CR. It was very recently imported from the UK. On March 8 th the Czechs celebrate the International Woman s Day : men bring flowers to
9. FEBRUARY ESTONIA «SHROVE TUESDAY» 10. FEBRUARY GREECE «CLEAN MONDAY» 11. MARCH ESTONIA «ESTONIAN LANGUAGE DAY» In the UK we also make pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, but we do not hold a coin. In Germany there is a German Language Day in September, but it s not very Celebrated as well at the eve of Lent, people go out on a spree on Mardi Gras That Monday stands on the eve of Mardi Gras to mark the end of the Carnival festivities. There are a lot of Regional Language days, but not a National one. In Spain we celebrate the last day before carnival. It s the day before Ash Wednesday. It is a celebration among Catholics that heralds the season of Lent, forty days long penitentiary period, preceding Easter. Some people follow it by not eating meat on Fridays during this period. 23 rd April is the Spanish language day. It is the anniversary of Miguel de women. See comment for custom 7. Masopust is a carnival at the beginning of Lent. Usually celebrated on the snowy hills in fancy costumes with parades on skis.
12. MARCH SCOTLAND «MOTHER S DAY» 13. MARCH GERMANY «EASTER» famous. Mother`s Day is a very similar way in Germany. Children give presents to their mothers and everyone enjoys a family day. Celebrated as well in May, which is said to be: The most beautiful month of the year. Easter and Christmas are the two most popular religious festivals in France Cervantes death. We celebrate Book Day too and people, especially couples, give books to each other. Mother s Day is Spain on the first Sunday of May. Children make crafts for their mothers at school in the preceding weeks. Easter Week is celebrated around Spain. There are Holy Week Processionswhen the brotherhoods march through the streets in honour of Christ and the Virgin. They carryi heavy ornamental In Greece Mother s Day is also celebrated, but during May. In Greece, at Easter time, mothers also paint red Easter eggs. In Estonia Mother s day is celebrated on the second Sunday in May. In Estonia children and their parents paint boiled eggs at Easter time. Coloured eggs are used as Easter decorations. In CR, before Easter, young girls also paint or decorate Easter eggs. They will be given to the boys on Easter Monday.
14. MARCH SPAIN «LAS FALLAS» 15. MARCH «CELEBRATING EASTER MONDAY» 16. APRIL SPAIN «LA MONA DAY» 17. APRIL SCOTLAND «EASTER SUNDAY» Easter Monday is a national holiday in Germany and marks the end of the Easter period. The Germans don t have special customs on this day. Easter Sunday is a very similar way in Germany. Children search in the garden for hidden eggs, which the Easter bunny brought. Easter Monday is a bank holiday that allows people to rest after the Easter rejoicings. Called La Brioche de Pâques, it is served for breakfast at Easter. Children pick up eggs made of chocolate that the bells coming back from Rome leave in the gardens statues. We celebrate Easter Monday La Mona Day by having family lunches and giving children cakes with chocolate eggs. Easter Sunday is called Palm Sunday in Spain. Godmothers give their godchildren palms and they take them to church for a blessing. We celebrate the entrance of Jesus into See custom 10. In Greece, at Easter time, mothers also paint red Easter eggs In Estonia children paint boiled eggs and religious people go to church. See custom 15. Decorated eggs are prepared for Easter Monday. See custom 15
18. APRIL GERMANY «WALPURGIS NIGHT» 19. APRIL GREECE «ST. GEORGE S DAY IN ARAHOVA» 20. APRIL «BURNING THE WITCHES» In Germany Walpurgis Night is also celebrated with a bonfire. People believe that witches gather on this night. But it s There are some similar local traditions, that aim to blowi away evil spirits. Sainte Marie (15 th August) and Sainte Jeanne d Arc are the two patron saints of France There are some similar local traditions, that aim to blow away evil spirits. Jerusalem. Saint George s Day is also celebrated on 23 rd April in Spain. In Catalonia Rose Day and Book Day are celebrated together. There are flower and books stalls everywhere in towns and cities. Lovers give each other red roses and books. In Estonia we have same custom with small differences. See custom 20.
21. MAY GREECE «MAY 1ST IN CRETE» not usual to burn wooden witches. On 1 st of May, it is a custom in France to offer a spray of Lily of the Valley to all the beloved ladies, as a charm that brings happiness. 1 st May is a holiday in Spain as well. We celebrate Work Day. 22. MAY ESTONIA «WALPURGIS NIGHT» Walpurgis Night is a very similar way in Germany. There are some similar local traditions, that aim to blow away evil spirits. See custom 20. In the old days villagers made a figurine dressed with an old woman s clothes, it represented Morena the Winter. Then the villagers walked to a river where they threw Morena into the water to bid the winter
23. MAY GERMANY «MAYDAY» 24. MAY SPAIN «MAY CROSSES» 25. MAY «RAISING A MAYPOLE THE FIRST OF MAY» 26. JUNE SPAIN «THE SUMMER SOLSTICE» 27. JUNE The first Monday in May is a national holiday. The Germans also fell a tree on the 1st of May. But the maypole is placed in a public place and people dance around it. It s not very popular to celebrate the summer solstice in Germany. But some people make bonfires. Celebrated on 1 st of May that tradition (Arbre de Mai) is not celebrated much now. Celebrated on 1 st of May that tradition (Arbre de Mai) is not celebrated much now. Takes place all over France, throughout the shortest night of the year (21 st June) with fires, dances and songs. St John is also Greece. Men and women jump over fires. Mayday is Estonia too. It is the beginning of the warmer season. Estonians don t make maypoles. In Estonia the summer solstice is celebrated as Midsummer Day. People make bonfires. farewell. See custom 25 Also celebrated in CR. Young men and women gather around the fires, play the guitar, sing and eat. See custom 29.
GREECE «THE CUSTOM OF KLEDONAS» 28. JUNE ESTONIA «MIDSUMMER S EVE» 29. JUNE «SINGING AND DANCING» 30. JUNE FRANCE «EVE OF THE SUMMER HOLIDAYS» It s not very popular to celebrate the summer solstice in Germany. But some people make bonfires. Midsummer eve is celebrated on St John s day, with bonfires on the top of mountains. There are a lot of singing and dancing festivals in France. They are regional and aim to promote local traditions. School finishes the third week of June in Spain. There are school Every 5 years in Estonia a very big Folk Song and Dance Celebration takes place. It is a tradition where different choirs and dance groups sing and dance together. It has been a tradition for 140 years. In Estonia schools finish in June. All pupils and students get See comment 26. There used to be an International Children s Day with games and
31. JULY FRANCE «NATIONAL DAY» 32. JULY SCOTLAND «SCARECROW FESTIVAL» The German National Day is called Tag der deutschen Einheit and commemorates the reunion of the two German states. It is celebrated on the 3 rd of October. This custom is not very popular in Germany, but in some villages the people also celebrate scarecrow There are a lot of traditions aiming to protect the harvest in France. They are called Rogations. parties and celebrations on the last day of school before the summer holidays. The national holiday in Spain or Hispanic Day is on 12 th October. It commemorates the exact date in 1492 when Christopher Columbus set foot in America. In Greece, we have two national days: October 28th when we celebrate the resistance to the Italians during the Second World War and March 25th when we celebrate the rebellion against the Turks after 200 years of captivity. their certificates. Finishing basic school, Gymnasium or university is celebrated with parties. In Estonian countrysides people make scarecrows in their gardens to scare birds and wild animals. fairground attractions. The Czech National Days are on July 5th (when Cyril and Metod brought Slavonic language to the country and spread Christianity in the 9 th century) October 28 th (the founding of the independent Czechoslovakia in 1918)
33. JULY SPAIN «SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA» 34. JULY GREECE «THE FIRST BREAD OF THE SEASON» 35. JULY «GOING TO THE FUN FAIR» 36. AUGUST SPAIN festivals. German children love to go to the fun fair, too, but it is not bound to a specific date, food or churchgoings. There is a route for the pilgrims to Compostela that crosses France and many places of pilgrimage too, like Lourdes and Lisieux. Saint Honoré is the Patron Saint of the bakers in France. The bakers and the bread are celebrated on St Honoré s day, the 16 th of May. There are a lot of seasonal fairs celebrating fun everywhere in France ; with circus, clowns, merry-gorounds, etc.. In all the winegrowing areas In Estonia different fairs takes place all over the country during the summertime.
«FIRST SUNDAY IN AUGUST - CAMBADOS FESTIVAL» 37. AUGUST SCOTLAND «VIKING FESTIVAL» 38. AUGUST GERMANY «SCHOOL ENROLMENT» 39. AUGUST GREECE «ST. FANOURIO S DAY» In the north German town of Schleswig a Viking Festival is August. in France, there are comparable traditional events. On their first school-day, all the children in France are allowed to bring toys, candies and teddy bears along with their school materials. In France, we do not pray to St Fanourio (St François) when we lose something, but to St Antoine. Usually after praying, the thing which was lost is found. In Estonia the first of September is known as Wisdom Day. It is the day when the new school year starts.
40. AUGUST «COLLECTING FRUIT AND MAKING JAM» 41. SEPTEMBER ESTONIA «THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL» 42. SEPTEMBER GREECE «THE GRAPE MILLS» 43. SEPTEMBER GERMANY «AUTUMN» It s not very common, but some Germans also collect fruit and make jam themselves. The first day of school is celebrated very similarly in Germany. In former times, the grapes were crushed by people, but today machines do that. Like in Czech Republic, fruit is collected from forests and countryside in France On their first school-day, all the children in France are allowed to bring toys, candies and teddy bears along with their school materials. Pressing the grapes with bare feet is a tradition that no longer exists; except in living museums, during wine festivals. In North of France, autumn looks the same as in Grapes are collected in late August and September in Spain. We celebrate autumn by collecting mushrooms and In Greece children fly kites on Clean Monday which At the end of summer and beginning of autumn people in Estonia go to the forests to pick berries and mushrooms. In Estonia children pick colourful leaves and Children also fly kites in CR in autumn.
44. SEPTEMBER FRANCE «THE MARRIAGE OF THE GIANTS» 45. SEPTEMBER «CELEBRATING QUEEN ELISKA» 46. OCTOBER ESTONIA «TEACHERS DAY» Germany. A long time ago France was a multitude of small kingdoms with kings, queens and princes. Some still commemorate these people, as with Queen Eliska in the Czech Republic. There is no official date in France for celebrating the teachers. However, when it takes place, it is chestnuts in Spain. People roast chestnuts and yams in street stalls and bonfires. is celebrated 40 days before Easter. conkers. From conkers children make different toys, and leaves are used as decorations. See custom 54.
47. OCTOBER SCOTLAND «HALLOWE EN» 48. OCTOBER GERMANY «OKTOBERFEST» 49. OCTOBER FRANCE «FÊTE OF THE TRANSHUMANCE» In recent years, Hallowe en has become more and more famous in Germany and children celebrate it like in the USA. The return of the cattle from the summer pastures is usually in June. Hallowe en has not such a popular impact in France as in the UK. Germany is well known for its beers; while France for its wines. There are many local festivals related to wines in France, but not as big as the Oktoberfest. Hallowe en has become more and more popular in Spain in the last decade. People make pumpkin candles, have costume parties and children wear costumes to school too. It is also an imported custom. Hallowe en is some bilingual schools in Greece too. However, it s a custom imported from UK. Hallowe en is Estonia too, especially among young people. It is an imported custom. Hallowe en is also celebrated in CR. It is a recently imported tradition.. However many people think it will not last long. Beer is the national drink. Pilzner and Budvar are famous brands but we don t have an Oktoberfest.
50. OCTOBER «MAKING ANIMALS WITH CONKERS AND ACORNS» 51. NOVEMBER ESTONIA «FATHER S DAY» 52. NOVEMBER SCOTLAND «ST. ANDREW S DAY» In the UK we have conker competitions to see whose conker is the hardest. Father's day is celebrated in the UK in June. celebrated very similarly in mountainous areas in Germany. German children love to make animals with conkers during autumn as well. Father s day is Germany in Spring time. It s not a real family day. Typically men meet with friends and drink a lot of alcohol. St. Andrew s Day is Germany only amongst religious people. It is traditional in kindergarten to make animals with conkers and acorns in autumn. Father s day is France on a Sunday, during the month of June. The Patron Saint for France is a woman from the 15 th century; Sainte Jeanne d Arc, whose life continues to inspire artists and Father s Day is celebrated on 19 th March. Children make crafts for their fathers at school. It is Saint Joseph s Day, Jesus father. Father s day is Greece during June. St. Andrew is a Saint celebrated in Greece too, specifically on November 30. However, there is no similarity among customs. Children in Estonia make animals from conkers and acorns in Autumn.
53. NOVEMBER GERMANY «ST. MARTIN S DAY» writers. The legends honor several Saint Martin in France. On November 10 th, it is the Saint Martin of Dunkirk (North of France) who is honored. St Martin s Day in Estonia is 10 th November a folk calendar holiday. On St Martin s Eve Martins (men or women dressed like men) run about wearing dark clothes or fur coats turned inside-out. They visit homes, sing special songs, dance clumsily, and wish the family good health and a good crop. St. Martin will arrive on a white horse is a weather folk saying: the first snow often appears at that time. 54. NOVEMBER «FLYING A KITE» In Germany children love to make their own kites and try to fly them. Flying a kite is a traditional game played all the year round on the In Greece children fly kites on Clean Monday which is celebrated 40 Children in Estonia make kites too.
55. NOVEMBER GREECE «ST. CATHERINE S DAY IN KIMOLOS» windy beaches, in the North of France. On Sainte Catherine s day in France, it is a tradition to celabrate the unmarried women. days before Easter. St Catherine s Day in Estonia is 25 th November. It is a folk calendar custom and similar to St Martin s Day. But that day people wear women s clothes (light colours), wish the cattle well and sing special songs of the day. 56. DECEMBER GERMANY «ADVENT» In the UK we also have advent calendars and advent candles. Advent calendars and crowns are originally a German tradition (19 th century) which is nowadays expanding in France. Advent calendars have been imported to Spain as well. Advent calendars have been imported to Greece too. But this was not an original Greek custom. Advent calendars are imported to Estonia too. In Estonia the first advent candle is lit on the Sunday seven weeks The tradition of Advent calendars has been imported from Germany after 1989.
57. DECEMBER ESTONIA «CHRISTMAS EVE» 58. DECEMBER «PREPARING BISCUITS FOR CHRISTMAS» Children hang up their stockings on Christmas Eve and leave some food and drink for Santa Claus and the reindeer. Germans celebrate Christmas eve very similarly to the Estonians. But usually they don t go to the sauna. In German families it is very common to bake biscuits On Christmas eve in France, it is traditional to participate at the midnight mass; while the Père Noël is coming down the chimney with toys for deserving children. Most of the French regions have their own Families have dinner together on Christmas Eve. In some parts of Spain Christmas Eve is a bigger celebration than Christmas Day. People decorate the Christmas trees and children get little presents from under the tree. In Catalonia children get their presents from a log, El Tió. Nowadays, in Greece, during Christmas time, families decorate fir trees. However, the old Greek custom was to decorate a miniature wooden ship. Greek mothers also prepare sweets for Christmas. before Christmas. Every Sunday until Christmas one candle is added. Estonian Christmas cookies are gingerbreads. Christmas Eve is the most important time at Christmas. All the family gather near the Christmas tree after dinner. The presents are brought by Ježišek (baby Jesus) whose arrival is symbolized by a ringing bell. Christmas Eve dinner is usually a fish meal (a carp) after a whole day of fasting. The real feast meal is on the following day.
59. DECEMBER SPAIN «CHRISTMAS TIO» 60. DECEMBER FRANCE «THE THIRTEEN DESSERTS» for Christmas, too. typical Christmas biscuits. The best known are from Alsace and Brittany. It is the Père Noël who is used to bring the gifts to the children, down the chimney, on the eve of Christmas, during Christmas mass. These are called kourabiedes and melomakarona and are different from the Czech ones.