Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without carols. While many people prefer modern Christmas songs, it’s usually the traditional carols people prefer to sing. After all, they are usually much less difficult to sing as they – at least in most cases – don’t require large vocal range and good singing skills. Not everybody can, for example, manage to sing the main song from Tři oříšky pro Popelku. So it is no wonder that the carol Veselé vánoční hody is one of the most popular ones in the Czech Republic.
Category: Holidays
Category for articles about Czech and foreign holidays.
Day 20 of Advent: Golden Pig
Adherence to traditions belongs to Christmas. With them, the holidays gain their charm. Perhaps every Czech knows the Christmas custom of the apparition of the Golden Pig. The origins of this tradition date back to ancient pagan times. The pig is a sign of abundance, a symbol of the sun and also the winter solstice.
Day 19 of Advent: Nesem vám noviny
In the previous articles we wrote about two beautiful Czech carols, both of which have quite an interesting history behind them. But not all carols’ history is known and this is also the case of Nesem vám noviny – a traditional Czech carol whose author is unknown.
Day 18 of Advent: Ježíšek or Santa Claus Brings Presents?
Joyful Christmas is celebrated in almost all countries around the world! The period and process depend on cultural and religious customs. Who gives presents on Christmas Eve in the Czech Republic? One of the traditional symbols of Czech Christmas is Ježíšek, in English “Christ Child”, who brings Christmas presents and places them for children under the Christmas tree.
Day 17 of Advent: Foretelling the Future
If someone told you that there is a famous poem about Christmas Eve you’d probably think that it must be some warm story about a beautiful snowy Christmas. If that’s the case then I have to disappoint you. The poem “Christmas Eve” (“Štědrý den” in Czech) was written by K. J. Erben, and it’s a dark tale about foretelling the future on Christmas eve. But don’t worry, the actual tradition is much less gloomy.
Day 16 of Advent: Christmas Cake Vánočka
There are no proper advent evenings without Christmas special dishes. Do you know what is really common to prepare in the Czech Republic? A special plaited bread called Vánočka that you can eat with butter or jam on it or just on its own!
Day 15 of Advent: Gingerbread Man Recipe
Gingerbread men, how could anyone refuse these cute little guys during Christmas! They are not only cute and adorable but also easy to make! Even if you’re not a fan of eating them, you can still enjoy their smiles and have some fun!
Day 14 of Advent: Good King Wenceslas
As some of you surely know, “Good King Wenceslas” is a popular British Victorian carol. Whether you have already known this fact or just now learnt about it, you are probably wondering what it has to do with Czech Christmas. Truth be told, this carol is not sung in the Czech Republic, yet there is a significant connection to the country’s history.
Day 13 of Advent: Christmas Trees
It cannot be the right Christmas without Christmas trees! But if I ask you why, can you tell the story behind? Do you know what kinds of trees are used as Christmas trees? Do you prefer real trees or plastic ones? And most importantly, do you know where to get one?
Day 12 of Advent: Narodil se Kristus Pán
There are many beautiful Czech carols but only very few of them have such an interesting story behind them as the carol Narodil se Kristus Pán. To be honest, it is usually because most of them are folk carols which means that their (hi)story is difficult to trace. Narodil se Kristus Pán is, however, an exception to this rule. There are actually some facts about this particular song that even Czechs are often completely unaware of.