History of the Christmas tree

The tradition of having a pine tree indoors comes from Germany and Switzerland somewhere between the 1500-1600’s. It was first and foremost a decoration for the high society – such as rich and noble people – and often decorated with candy. From the late 1600’s it was spread to France, Belgium and Holland, but didn’t reach Swedish homes until the 1800’s.

Although; we do know that the very first Christmas tree in Sweden appeared in the home of the wealthy family Wrede-Sparre in 1741, who lived on Södermalm – one of the islands of Stockholm. But the tradition didn’t spread to every home until the late 1800’s. So we could say that the Wrede-Sparre-family was super modern for their time!

In the 1700- and 1800’s the Swedish decoration of the tree was quite similar to the traditional decoration we have today. The tree would have live candles, apples and (if you’re lucky) candy hanging from the branches. In the end of the 1800’s it was common to buy Christmas tree decorations in small stores, such as garlands of the Swedish flag, paper crackers and decorative red hearts to hang in the tree.

The vikings and the Christmas tree

The word ”Christmas’ ‘originates from Christ, another name for Jesus, and many countries refer to Christmas as the birth of Jesus according to the Christian religion. But in Swedish, the word for Christmas is ”jul”, and has its origin way back to the roots of the Vikings.

The Viking celebrated the holiday ”Yule” as the midwinter occurred. It was a way to acknowledge that the darkest time of the year was over and they were heading towards lighter and warmer times. The Christmas tree – or the plain pine tree – was a big symbol for these dark and cold times since it was the only green tree in the forest. It symbolized continuous life and life force, as every other tree dropped its leaves during autumn.

Legends say that trees were highly respected and honored in Viking culture, and it was common to decorate pine trees outside and wear wreaths made of pine tree branches.

It’s common to see different color matches in today’s Christmas trees. An all red tree – where every single piece is red – is very powerful and popular. Another modern trend is to look past the red and try other things that still feel ”Christmasy” – one example is green and gold, where the golden touch can be found in straw-decorations and fabric, while the green can be moss-decorations, plants and tree decorations. Gold and green resembles the forest and the colors within, while an all white and silver decorated tree resembles the snow and winter landscape. White and silver sure are colors of the Nordic: both in home styling and in nature. To bring nature inside is popular, and white Christmas decorations – all the way from the tree to the pillows and fabric – is also a very popular and modern trend.

But, to summon up: there are no rules. Decorate the tree the way you feel like, and after your own preference. The big thing is to find the Christmas spirit and have a lovely time together with family, while finishing your Christmas tree.

The Christmas food buffet

The Christmas food buffet can almost be described as a museum of Swedish culinary history. The traditional buffet is filled with foods and dishes only eaten on Christmas. Some culinary historians mean that the Christmas buffet is a way to keep connected to our past and our ancestors: things that young people eat today could be the same thing and the same recipe that family members ate hundreds of years ago.

The oldest food on the buffet today is ”lutfisk”. Lutfisk is a dried fish, bleached in birch ashes until white, hard and thin. In order to eat it, the fish must be soaked in clear water for a week. It’s eaten with green peas, butter and white hollandaise sauce. The old recipes though, dated back as far as to the 1400’s, also include almonds and raisins.

Loved tradition

Hundreds of years ago, the flower wreath was an easy way to dress up – even for a wedding. The beautiful flowers were free and blossoming during summer, and if you couldn’t afford a bridal crown, one made of flowers was a good choice. The wreaths were also great ways to preserve the magic of summer, and keep it all the way into cold winter times. It was said to bring good luck if you put the dried Midsummer flowers in your yearly Christmas bath.

Today, the flower wreath is a loved tradition amongst both children, older people, men and women. They were traditionally worn by women, but anyone can wear one today.

Step by step

1. Create a circle of the thick wire, and adjust it to the size of your head. This will be the base of the whole wreath.
2. Attach the thin wire to the base, and start adding flowers.
3. Attach one flower at a time by twining the thin wire around the shaft. Alternate flowers and greens and keep twining the wire to attach everything
4. When the whole base is covered with flowers, end the twining and hide the thin wire.
5. You can preferably decorate the wreath with the satin band and end it with a bow.

One last tip: don’t be afraid to experiment or let the wreath become big, proud or exciting. Nothing is wrong when it comes to midsummer flowers and wreaths. Let your imagination flow, and enjoy the flower crown you’ve created.

The maypole

The old name for the Swedish maypole is ”majstång”, but does not refer to the month of May (”maj” in Swedish). The Swedish word ”maj” is actually an old word that means ”to leaf something” – or, in more modern terms: to decorate something.

Quite suitable, since the maypole today is richly decorated with leaves and topped off with two large flower wreaths, formed as a big cross-like statue of wooden poles. Songs and dances are held around it, and it doesn’t matter how many – or few – people there are to celebrate: the dancing will take place, no matter what! So what do we sing about? Well – jumping frogs, laundry day, and the famous fox sneaking around an iced lake… of course with matching dances.

The holiday of friends and nubbe

If Christmas is a family holiday, Midsummer’s eve is more of a holiday for friends. We gather to eat sill – herring in different pickled variations – summer potatoes, sour cream with green onions and of course to drink nubbe. Nubbe – or ”snaps” – is a Swedish hard liquor, originally made from potatoes or grain, and is always served ice cold. Today there are many different variations in taste and seasoning: from a fresh hint of lemon and elderflower, to the bitter taste of wormwood. And since singing is a big part of the Midsummer celebration, you can’t drink a nubbe without a small song – or maybe an anecdote. After the song, you raise the small glass (snapsglas) and cheer ”SKÅL”. After that, the night never seems to end.

The history of kräftskiva

In Swedish, crayfish are called ”kräftor” – why the whole celebration is called ”kräftskiva”. Swedes have caught crayfish for many, many years, but it became regulated by the Swedish state in the 1920’s because of the fear that crayfish would run out in Swedish waters.

The regulation limited crayfish catching to the months of August and September, and quickly became a celebrated tradition when the season started. Still to this day it’s a beloved tradition, often celebrated with friends, great food and of course the thing Swedes do best: silly hats and weird songs.

Decorate for kräftskiva

The decorations of a kräftskiva are quite special. No other holiday has this kind of decoration, and Swedes find nothing weird about it. Here are the must-haves for a proper decorated kräftskiva:

1. A long table – the more people the merrier – with a nice table cloth
2. Hanging garlands of colorful little flags
3. Round, hanging lamps made of paper, with a picture of a smiling face
4. More hanging decorations made of paper, in the shape of crayfish
5. Bibs for adults – of course decorated with a crayfish
6. Small party hats – decorated with what? Crayfish!

Additional decorations can be put on the table, and one such thing is the song book. Swedish snaps-culture demands that you sing a small song before drinking a snaps. They can be quirky, weird or even a bit vulgar, and the higher you sing, the better. A crayfish-party tradition is to take these small songs and rewrite the lyrics to whatever you want. It can be a fun way to sing about personal anecdotes or something else that brings you together.

Oh, and since you eat crayfish with your hands: don’t forget to load up on napkins!

Did it work

But why this night was thought to be full of magic is harder to get straight. Hundreds of years ago, the beliefs of creatures and magic were part of everyday life, and a way to explain unexplainable things. Today, we can turn to science to understand nature. Back then, we turned to magic and religion.

The biggest question is though: did it work? Hard to say – maybe it worked for some girls, if they happened to dream of the neighbor boy? But the best answer would be: try it for yourself. The tradition lives on, and there are plenty of flowers to pick during Midsummer. If not for the magic, it’s a lovely way to seize the Swedish Midnight sun.

Follow the rules

Unfortunately, it’s not as easy as just picking seven flowers and placing them under your pillow. To really get in touch with the magic, there are several rules to follow if you want everything to work out. One rule is to make everything backwards as much as you can. Doing things in the wrong order, backwards or upside down was believed to ”shorten the way” into the magical world – simply because it was the opposite way of the normal Christian way of living. Another rule is to not break the magic by talking – silence is key!