Christmas is the most popular holiday and is celebrated by billions of people around the world, according to BBC News. BYU–Hawaii students from all corners of the world shared traditions their family does for Christmas.
In Sydney, Lucy Gorniak, a freshman ICS major from Australia, said there is a concert called ‘Carols by Candlelight,’ where celebrities are invited to sing Christmas carols. The people gathered there hold and shine their candle and then Santa comes.
“They have showing across the whole country so everyone watches it. Some communities have their own Carols by Candlelight but the biggest one is in the Sydney Opera House,” said Gorniak.
Melissa Tobon, a sophomore in elementary education from Colombia, explained where she’s from, “Christmas starts on the eighth of December. Every night after that, everybody lights the candles outside their door and every single night, we would sing, have food and read the versus. It’s like a family home evening everyday until Christmas.”
She continued, “We also believe January 6 is the day the wise men arrived and so there are more presents on that day.”
Benjamin Coffey, a freshman psychology major from New Zealand, said, “In New Zealand, there’s a big connection between strawberries and Christmas time. We tend to go strawberry picking a lot. Because they are red and they go with the Christmas theme. We make pavlova and fruit salads with it, which are traditional Christmas dishes.”
“Traditionally, in Kiribati, we don’t give gifts. We only share words. To celebrate Christmas, we would have a dance performed by each family. We don't usually tell the Christmas story but we always start the event with a prayer,” shared Teako Nebati, a freshman majoring in political science from Kiribati.
Eve Wang, a freshman biochemistry major from China, said, “Christmas isn't that widely celebrated, but it's becoming more well known. For students, we like to give apples to each other because it represents peace.”
Nikki Credo, a junior marine biology major from the Philippines, said, “The Philippines is filled with paroles, which is a star ornament that represents the star in the nativity that guides and gathers everyone. Everyone is gathered on Christmas day and you can feel the love of everyone. The lights and colors give a really warm feeling of Christmas.”
“We spend time with our families and church members. We don't really have special things in Korea but we have a break. And so we eat food together and give gifts to people. Parents prepare the gifts. Kids already know there’s no Santa Claus. Its kind of like Valentine’s day,” shared Suryeo Gil, a freshman intercultural studies major from Korea.
In the United States, “Christmas is a really popular holiday,” said Rachel Chambers, freshman general education major from Utah. “We decorate a Christmas tree as a family and put a star or angel on top as the finale. We also go caroling and watch Christmas movies like ‘A Wonderful Life.’ Also, towns and cities often decorate the streets with lights.”
Hunter Ulii, a freshman math major from Laie, said, “In Hawaii, we set up a Christmas tree right after Thanksgiving, and spend the whole day decorating the tree.”