Help - Homework - what happens in France at Christmas

[Coffeepotdi]

Hi

My daughter(12) has to write an essay on what happens in France at Christmas.  Could you help? Are there any traditions? I know they have a family meal on Christmas eve. Is that when they open their presents. Any help would be appreciated.

[Russethouse]

I think there is a tradition of 13 deserts too, but I'm not sure this is observed nationwide.

Sure others will know lots more....

[Miki]

[quote]I think there is a tradition of 13 deserts too, but I'm not sure this is observed nationwide. Sure others will know lots more....[/quote]

I have spoken with TU about this recently on the forum.

In Provence we found it was a traditional Christmas "dessert" (not truly 13 desserts though), in other regions it is not so well known, if at all. TU for instance, not being too great a distance away, was not au fait with it, in the Dordogne the same thing, here in Brittany it is available but not anywhere near how it is in Provence.

 

[RayB]

[quote]Hi My daughter(12) has to write an essay on what happens in France at Christmas. Could you help? Are there any traditions? I know they have a family meal on Christmas eve. Is that when they open the...[/quote]

Got to:

http://web.ask.com/web?q=christmas+traditions+in+france&qsrc=0&o=0

for a wealth of info.

Merry Christmas!

[Dick Smith]

In fact do a Google search on and you will get loads of info (14.3 million hits).

What course is a 12-year old doing that requires essays like this? Has her teacher not already provided sources of information?

[Mistral]

Good question Dick, when I set this sort of question, I give the  sources. This is from my experiences in a French family. they are from Brittany but have lived in Normandy and Lorraine and have been in Provence for the last 20 years.

Here in Provence, the first thing for Christmas is 4th December. It's St Barbe's day. Traditionally you plant the chrsitmas wheat (on cotton wool like mustard and cress) Traditionally it's wheat but it can be lentills. If it's planted on 4th Dec, then it's grown enough to go on the christmas table as decoration. In the east of France on 6th Dec, there is St Nicolas day (read the sweet tooth post) children who have been good get chocolates in their boots and if they have been bad, they get coal (happened to my husband once)

Next stage would be setting up the santons. We have small clay crib scenes, which are set in provencal villages and don't only contain the religious characters but also have the local people from the beginning of the 19th century. You find these in other parts of France, but there come from here and down here we have foires de santons (went yesterday) all through the month of December.

Christmas eve is the important day. In my husband's family we get together at about 6pm and  we'll probably sit down to eat at around 8. We usually dress up in smart clothes (don't think this is a French thing more a family thing) We will then stay at table all evening, with lots of small courses of traditional food (often foie gras, sea food and things like that) Sometimes we have a main dish, but often not. The 13 desserts tradtion comes from the time when people would walk to church in the cold for midnight mass and then walk home again. They are things like dried fruits, nougat, calissons and bread made with olive oil, things that add quick energy (it's interesteing that muslims eat the same sort of things when they break ramadan fast) We always have them on the table but we have an ice cream bûche as well. You can find an officla list on the internet easily enough (I can't remember them all) Some are pretty standard but the last few vary from family to family.

As for presents, they don't have stockings. The presents are given on 24th December. My husband remembers a time as a child when he was woken up at midnight to open his presents. It's more likely that the presents will be given some time in the evening, either just before sitting down to eat or before dessert.  If there are just adults, then they will quite often wait until midnight. In my husband's family, the children are put in another room and the presents are put under the tree in piles for each person with one of their shoes nect to it. (don't know how much this is a family thing)

 

Hope this is of some use good luck on the essay

[GRT17]

I have heard of a Christmas tradition (from the South of France, I think) where an extra place is laid at the dinner table, just in case an extra guest arrives.

Santons, yes, the French church in London has the crib scene set with the Santons.

Gill

[Mistral]

Gill's comment about the extra place (yes, I've heard it but can't place it, I'll check with the childminder tomorrow, she is as provençale as they come) reminded me of another one. Again, I don't know if it's provençal or not, but you are supposed to put three table cloths on the table, the first is for 24th December, the second for 25th and the thrid is for new year, although i can't remember if it's the 31st or the 1st.  At the end of each meal, you just take one off (where you are suppose to eat between christmas and new year, isn't clear)

[Pantouflard]

The 'extra place' is also found in Poland, but it's for the dead.  In fact there are many similarities with Polish Christmas traditions.  Is that an RC influence? 

[Dick Smith]

I have just realised that when I posted a reply earlier I used more than and less than signs <> to highlight the words 'France at Christmas' - but this damned forum software took the words out. Good stuff, innit?

[GRT17]

Mistral

There are some other provencal stories stashed away in my rusty memory! (I think I once went to an adult education, "French Lunch" where we had a lecture on the subject.)

other memories:

Using sage leaves in the cooking...........apparently the baby Jesus was wrapped in sage leaves.

Leaving crumbs on the table after the meal...........for the poor?.

Gill

[RayB]

[quote]I have just realised that when I posted a reply earlier I used more than and less than signs to highlight the words 'France at Christmas' - but this damned forum software took the words out. Good st...[/quote]

**I used more than and less than signs <> to highlight the words 'France at Christmas'**

I use the above . . . . it works.

[Dick Smith]

**Not my point, really**

Just another example of the duff software we are using here.

[Jill<br><br>Jill (99)]

We stayed with French friends in Normandy one Christmas. We ate dinner at the usual time for their evening meal - 7-8ish? We started with oysters and then had turkey with chestnut stuffing - can't remember what veg - I doubt if there was more than one, as there was never more than one vegetable at a meal there. I think we just had buche de noel as a dessert although it is quite likely that the usual cheese and fruit were brought out too. It was 26 years ago. The younger children aged 1 and 5 were put to bed and the rest stayed up. Didn't do anything special - just chatted and so on. Then at midnight, the little ones were woken up and presents were exchanged. I remember thinking it was a terrible tradition, because Magalie and Francoise just screamed blue murder at being woken up and didn't really enjoy the present opening. Then, we squashed into cars and drove to the grandparents house about 2km away, where their numerous other children and grandchildren also met. I can't remember how long we were there. It must have all been pretty late (or rather early morning).

It was one of the best Christmases I had spent up to that point in my life (I was 19 then), yet I did feel that it wasn't the best of procedures for children. I much prefer the waking up on Christmas day in England and going downstairs with the children to open the presents. We used to sneak them into the lounge and put them under the tree when they were asleep on Christmas Eve, but it became more and more difficult to do it secretly as they were awake so late. Now we can just put them there as they arrive during the time before Christmas.

We can't help bringing a little France into our Christmas though! The oven is switched on when we get downstairs and we have hot pain au chocolat with our coffee while opening presents.

Joyeux Noel a tout le monde!

[Mistral]

Gill, I've checked with the childminder, she's heard of the leaving an extra place thing, but doesn't know any more than that. There should be three white table cloths and three candles (for the trinity) but she just does them on the 24th. She doesn't know anything about sage leaves but says it is traditional to eat sage soup on the 25th against indigestion.

She leaves the crumbs on the table (for the reindeer)

Oh and she says the santons should be put out on 4th December (st Barbe) and put away on 2nd February (chandleur-presentation)

[GRT17]

Mistral

thanks for the info.

I had no idea that the santons remained on display until candlemass.

Gill