Christmas may only be celebrated by a small percentage of the Indian population, but it is celebrated. Only around 2.3% of the population in India are Christians, but that does equal out to about 25 million people. Similar to the US you will find Christmas trees in India, common Christmas decorations, nativity scenes and some closed schools and businesses. Christmas is celebrated on the 25th of December.
Midnight mass on Christmas Eve is a wide spread tradition that is very important to Catholic Indians.Father Christmas, Christmas Baba in Hindi, visits children who have been good throughout the year and delivers presents by horse and cart. A decoration specific to India are paper lanterns in the shape of stars. These are hung between houses so they float over the sidewalks below.
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| Star Lanterns |
Looking into specific regions of India, you can find some unique traditions. In some areas it is more common to find a decorated banana or mango tree instead of a pine. Banana and mango leaves might also be used to decorate the home. In southern parts of India families place clay oil lamps on their flat roofs to symbolize the light of Jesus. The Bhil of the northern regions celebrate by going out and singing carols each night for the week leading up to Christmas.
So happy Indian Christmas - in several languages below!
Hindi - Bade Din ki Mubarak
Sanskrit - Krismasasya shubhkaamnaa
Bengali - Barodiner shubhechha janai
Tamil - Christhu Jayanthi Nalvaalthukal
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