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 Websites presented in alphabetical order

Christmas view detail comment email this

Brief overview of Christmas and New Year's traditions in France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, such as "Père Fouettard, Father Spanker, in France, to las uvas de la suerte, the lucky grapes, in Spain." Also includes a quiz and foreign terms associated with these holidays. From the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) service that focuses on learning foreign languages.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/christmas/
Topics: Christmas, Holidays and Observances Individually
Last updated Nov 27, 2005


Christmas at War: Experiences From the First and Second World Wars view detail comment email this

This exhibit illustrates "how [some] people spent Christmas during the First and Second World Wars." Illustrated essays cover themes of family, food, gifts, entertainment, and goodwill. Include sound clips and transcripts of personal experiences of the wars. From the Imperial War Museum, London.
http://www.iwm.org.uk/upload/package/6/christmas/index.htm
Topics: Christmas, Wars & Conflicts
Last updated Dec 14, 2007


Christmas in Iceland view detail comment email this

This site describes various ways that Christmas is celebrated in Iceland. Includes pages devoted to the transition from solstice to Christmas, decorations and preparations, St. Thorlákur's Mass, children, food, the Christmas Cat, the Yule Lads (13 mischievous trolls), Christmas Eve, and Threttándinn (the 13th day, also known as Twelfth Night). Includes some Icelandic Christmas vocabulary and related links. From the Embassy of Iceland in Washington, D.C.
http://www.iceland.org/us/the-embassy/curiosities/nr/757
Topics: Christmas, Holidays & Observances, Holidays and Observances Individually
Last updated Jun 11, 2005


Christmas in Mexico view detail comment email this

This bilingual (English and Spanish) website describes traditional Christmas celebrations in Mexico, which begin nine days before Christmas Eve with "Las Posadas" ("an enactment of looking for lodging of St. Joseph and Virgin Mary"). Features traditional songs, prayers, food, and activities. From a Spanish instructor at Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio.
http://www.nacnet.org/assunta/nacimnto.htm
Topics: Christmas, Holidays & Observances, Musical Genres
Last updated Mar 2, 2006


Christmas in Mexico Cultural Articles view detail comment email this

Collection of articles about the celebration of Christmas and other December and January holidays in Mexico. Topics include Our Lady of Guadalupe Day on December 12, the first of nine posadas held on December 16, and Three Kings Day on January 6. Also includes recipes for traditional Mexican Christmas foods such as atole, hot chocolate, and buñuelos de Navidad (Christmas sweet fritters). From a company that produces educational videos about Mexico.
http://www.inside-mexico.com/christmasinmexicoarticles.htm
Topics: Christmas, Holidays by Region
Last updated Dec 13, 2007


Christmas Little Women Style: Celebrate Christmas Like the March Girls in Alcott’s Novel view detail comment email this

This article describes how to celebrate a less commercial Christmas in the manner of the March girls in Louisa May Alcott's novel "Little Women." Topics discussed include giving up a personal self-indulgence in order to give to a loved one, giving to those in need, and sacrificial giving. From Suite101.
http://americanfiction.suite101.com/article.cfm/christmas_like_little_women
Topics: Christmas
Last updated Nov 24, 2008


Christmas Markets in Germany view detail comment email this

"This brochure presents a cross-section of typical and popular [Christmas] markets all over Germany, from Flensburg in the far north to Constance in the south, and between Aachen in the west and Bautzen in the east." Includes images and descriptions of selected markets, such as "Germany's oldest Christmas market, the Striezelmarkt [in Dresden], founded in 1434." In English and German. From the German National Tourist Board.
http://www.germany-tourism.de/ENG/culture_and_events/christmas_markets.htm
Topics: Christmas, Holidays by Region
Last updated Mar 9, 2006


Christmas Season Celebrations in Australia view detail comment email this

Learn how Christmas is celebrated in Australia, where Christmas comes at the beginning of summer. Topics include where Australians spend Christmas (often out of doors, such as at a beach or camping), how "many people no longer serve a traditional hot roast dinner" (serving cold turkey and Christmas plum pudding with cold custard instead), and Australian Christmas carols. Also includes brief information about Indigenous Australians' summer celebrations. From the Australian Government.
http://culture.gov.au/articles/christmas/
Topics: Christmas
Last updated Dec 3, 2008


Christmas Traditions view detail comment email this

Website for a Christmas festival in Missouri. The "Christmas History" section has brief background about Christmas characters and traditions such as Kris Kringle, Père Noël, Saint Nicholas, Santa Lucia, the Sugar Plum Fairy, the yule log, and Christmas trees. Also includes information about Santa parades, photos, and links to related sites. From "merchants, residents and persons interested in the historic preservation of the South Main Street area in Historic St. Charles, Missouri."
http://www.stcharleschristmas.com/
Topics: Christmas
Last updated Jun 15, 2009


Christmas Traditions in France and Canada view detail comment email this

Historical background on the "social and communal customs, family celebrations and religious ceremonies" of Christmas as they evolved from the Middle Ages to modern day France and Canada is explored at this site. Available in English and French.
http://www.virtualmuseum.ca/Exhibitions/Noel/angl/
Topics: Christmas, Holidays by Region
Last updated Nov 21, 2002


Colonial Williamsburg view detail comment email this

Colonial Williamsburg is "the restored 18th-century capital city of Britain’s largest, wealthiest, and most populous outpost of empire in the New World." The site provides information on notable people, places, buildings, trades, Christmas in Williamsburg, clothing, slavery, and other topics. Contains documents (including the first draft of the Declaration of Independence "before Congress began amending and editing"), glossaries, and a chronology (1750 to 1783). Searchable.
http://www.history.org/
Topics: Black Resources, Christmas, History, Labor, Nonfiction by Genre, Presidents by Name, U.S. History By Place, United States History, Wars & Conflicts
Last updated Aug 12, 2004


Exhibit: Evergreens and a Jolly Old Elf view detail comment email this

This small exhibit contains images of winter holiday traditions and decorations in Maine, including a circa-1920 Christmas pageant, a parachuting man dressed as Santa Claus, and Santa with a Rubik's Cube puzzle. From the Maine Memory Network, a project of the Maine Historical Society.
http://www.mainememory.net/bin/Features?t=fp&feat=78&supst=Exhibits
Topics: Christmas
Last updated Dec 14, 2007


The Gift of Holiday Traditions: Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and Christmas view detail comment email this

Lesson plan about December holidays. "December is a month of holidays, celebrations, gift giving, and ... school vacations. Before taking time off to enjoy the holidays, take the opportunity to discuss with students the way different cultures contribute to what becomes a popular holiday tradition." Includes links to material about and activity ideas for Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and Christmas. From EDSITEment, a joint project of the National Endowment for the Humanities and other organizations.
http://edsitement.neh.gov/monthly_feature.asp?id=83
Topics: Christmas, Holidays and Observances Individually, Judaism
Last updated Nov 24, 2008


God Jul! [Merry Christmas!] view detail comment email this

This page contains an overview of Christmas activities in Sweden, including Advent, St. Lucia's Day (the oldest daughter wears a wreath and candles on her head while serving saffron buns and coffee), Christmas Eve (children set out porridge for the Jultomten, the Christmas gnome, who leaves them presents), Christmas Day, and St. Stephen's Day (for the patron saint of animals). Includes directions for making a St. Lucia wreath.
http://www.bry-backmanor.org/holidayfun/sweden.html
Topics: Christmas, Holidays & Observances, Holidays and Observances Individually
Last updated Dec 8, 2005


Greek-Recipe.com view detail comment email this

Collection of recipes for Greek dishes such as moussaka, baklava, Greek coffee, and Greek salad. Includes recipes using meat, poultry, fish, vegetables, filo, and other ingredients. Most include photos and user comments. Also includes menus for holiday meals, such as Easter and Christmas. Some recipes use metric measurements, but a conversion table is included on the site. Searchable.
http://www.greek-recipe.com/
Topics: Beverages, Christmas, Holiday Foods, Beverages, and Recipes, Holidays and Observances Individually, Recipes & Food Preparation, Recipes by Region
Last updated Sep 18, 2007


HistoryLink: Seattle's First Christmas view detail comment email this

Essay "gleaned from much reading of local history" about the celebration of Christmas in New York Alki (the first settlement that become Seattle) in 1851, which took place "only six short weeks ... since the Arthur Denny party had made their historic landing." Includes a description of the participants and of the celebration, which included two wild geese, "a small amount of tea for the elders, and ... clam juice" for the children.
http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=4138
Topics: Christmas
Last updated Oct 6, 2009


Holiday Traditions view detail comment email this

A guide to winter holiday traditions from around the world. The site mainly addresses Christmas greetings, decorations, and related traditions. Browsable by country. Also includes brief information about holidays that celebrate light or enlightenment, such as Chinese New Year, Diwali, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Ramadan. From the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.
http://www.msichicago.org/scrapbook/scrapbook_exhibits/catw2004/holiday_traditions.html
Topics: Christmas
Last updated Mar 9, 2005


Old Japanese Christmas and Samurai Santa view detail comment email this

An "account of a Christmas unknown to Westerners - and to most Japanese too! Including an amusing account of Santa dressed as a Samurai." This article follows the observance of Christmas in Japan from 1549 to the present day, with examples of "mirror customs of European traditions." Originally written in Japanese by a writer for the Felissimo Christmas Museum in Hokkaido, Japan.
http://www.christmasarchives.com/wjapan.html
Topics: Christmas
Last updated Dec 3, 2003


St. Fagans National History Museum: Frequently Asked Questions view detail comment email this

This site addresses questions about Welsh history and heritage, including national dress, national emblems (such as the red dragon, leek, and daffodil), St. Dwynwen's Day (the January 25 celebration of the patron saint of friendship and love), St. David's Day (the March 1 celebration of the patron saint of Wales), and Christmas customs (such as toffee-making). From the St. Fagans National History Museum of the National Museum Wales.
http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/271/
Topics: Christmas, History By Place, Holidays by Region
Last updated Feb 7, 2006


A Victorian Christmas view detail comment email this

This attractive site features Victorian Christmas cards and illustrations, accompanied by Victorian-era excerpts from the Illustrated London News to capture the essence of a Victorian Christmas. The festivities depicted in the illustrations include seasonal decoration, Christmas music, arriving home for Christmas, Christmas Eve, presents, dinner, Boxing Day, the pantomime, parties, and New Year celebration. Each picture and excerpt is carefully documented, dated, and described. From the Scrap Album.
http://www.scrapalbum.com/vxhome.htm
Topics: Christmas, Holidays and Observances Individually
Last updated Jan 21, 2004




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