Hello to everyone here! Yes, today you can say Merry Christmas to your Ukrainian or Russian lady. Christmas is celebrated on January 7, and the Christmas holidays include January 6 (Christmas Eve) and 8. It can be rather confusing, but the Russians (as well as the Ukrainians) celebrate Christmas twice in fact, because the Orthodox countries observe Christmas on December 24 and January 7. It comes on a traditional Orthodox Christmas celebration today, on January 7, according to the Gregorian calendar as in most of Orthodox Christian countries. So don’t forget to congratulate your Russian lady writing her Merry Christmas!

There are a lot of traditional Christmas customs in Ukraine. In fact, the celebration of Christmas had been banned under the rule of communist government. When Ukraine acquired its independence in 1991, the old folk Christmas traditions have been revived. That is why some Ukrainian Christmas traditions are alike Thanksgiving customs in the USA. It comes on didukh custom as well. A Ukrainian word of “didukh” means “grandpa”, a grandfather. It represents a wheat sheaf and symbolizes all the ancestors of the family. Didukh is placed in an “icon corner”, the family’s place of worship, also called the home altar. It is believed that the spirits of the ancestors come on holidays in such a way. Kuria and uzvar, a ritual Christmas meal and drink, are served in this holy corner next to the didukh as a treat. The Christmas table is usually covered with two linen tablecloths in order to respect the dead ancestors. One tablecloth is believed to be covered for the dead ancestors; the second one is for the living descendants. The table is peppered with the seeds too in order to bring prosperity and wealth in the coming year.

On January 7 some people organize folk performances. They sing old folk songs (called koliadky and shchedrivky in Ukrainian), put folk monsters’ costumes and travel from house to house in order to sing a Christmas carol and ask for a Christmas treat (it sounds quite similar to trick-or-treating practice in the USA, doesn’t it?). Sometimes they can dance, but in any case they had to ask for a permission to show. Then they sing carols for all the family members in order to wish health and wealth them in the next year. So if you see people made up as monsters banging on the door, don’t be frightened! They come with best wishes!