Bravo tu t’en es très bien tiré !
The main significance of Christmas in Ireland is "officially" religious. The national Medias constantly remind people that it is the time of Jesus' birth, but in truth Christmas has become more of a profane celebration over the last 10-15 years. Families assemble in their "family home" on Christmas day and on Saint Stephens day (26th of December) to drink and eat (alcohol plays a very important role in the "Irish Christmas")…
The gifts are exchanged on Christmas day and children “pester” adults to get their toys! Then, with all the electronic noise that toys make nowadays, the whole house becomes very animate between the children playing… and the adults trying not to hear them!
The traditions
In Ireland, Christmas begins with the 12 days of the Advent. The Advent calendar reminds all of the meaning of the days preceding Christmas. Irish people decorate their Christmas tree around this time although there are no longer any rule regarding the time when the tree should be made.
As soon as their vacation starts, adults "rush" to the local pubs to celebrate Christmas. The shops are closed on the 25th of December.
Midnight Mass is a bit of a joke. Churches can often be found on the way from home to the pub, and a lot of Irishmen will enter there (for the first time of the year) to attend Midnight Mass. For this occasion, the church is very pleasantly decorated. One will always find there a "happy/
merry" person singing "Jingle bells" while half a dozen of other people are snoring away…
The meals
Traditional Christmas food includes turkey and ham, with potatoes (roasted, steamed, or mashed…) and Brussels sprouts. The traditional dessert is a plum pudding with custard or brandy cream.
« Merry » signifie “happy”, mais après un verre ou deux (une version moins péjorative d’éméché si tu
préfères). C’est pourquoi Joyeux Noël se traduit en Anglais par Merry Christmas !