Christmas, also known as Christmas, Noel, Christmas or Xmas (from the French Noël, an abbreviation of the root Emmanuel, meaning "God with us") is a celebration of the day  Jesus of Nazareth was born to most Christians. Some countries celebrate this day on December 25, some countries again on the evening of December 24. According to Roman Catholics, the official feast day is December 25, also known as "the main feast of the day", and the night of the 24th of the month. 12 is called the “vigil”. However, the December 24 night ceremony usually attracts more news. The word Christ (the Anointed One) is the title of Jesus. The word Mas is an abbreviation for Mass.  When the words Christ and Mas are written, it becomes the word Christmas. Christmas means the feast of Christ, that is, the feast of the Nativity of Jesus.

Today, the time to celebrate the traditional Tet in Vietnam has almost shortened, only about 7-10 days. Some regions still keep the custom of celebrating Tet longer, about half a month or a little more. In addition to the meaning of saying goodbye to the old year and welcoming the coming of the new year, the Vietnamese traditional New Year also has the meaning of reunion, reunion and meeting in joy.

This period usually lasts from the 22nd to the 30th day of the lunar calendar. During this period, Vietnamese people will clean the house, throw away old or unused items, paint and repair the house to make the new house look more beautiful. After that, the Vietnamese will buy ornamental plants and fresh flowers to decorate the house. Next is the ceremony to see him off to Heaven, many Vietnamese people will do the worshiping ceremony. Besides, during the preparation period before Tet, Vietnamese people will also make many typical Tet dishes such as wrapping banh chung, banh tet, making Tet jams, Tet cakes...

Year-end parties are also held during this period. This is a party where the owner makes many delicious dishes and invites relatives, friends, and neighbors to come and enjoy the meal.

This period starts from New Year's Eve and lasts until at least the 6th day of the Lunar New Year. At the time of New Year's Eve (ie 24h on the 30th day to 1h on the 1st day of the lunar calendar). Many people will do New Year's Eve offerings,stockingsple go to see fireworks, go to church, go to temples or go to crowded public places to celebrate the new year together.

Starting to enter the first days of the new year, Vietnamese people will have a lot of taboo practices to limit bad luck and wish for luck to come. For example, people will try not to say bad things, bad things. Instead, Vietnamese people will talk to each other gently, with more joyful stories, so that the new year will be as joyful. There are also many other taboo customs such as not sweeping and dumping garbage, not breaking furniture and dishes, not borrowing or paying debts, not giving others water and fire, not picking up money that falls on the street, no eat some dishes such as dog meat, cat meat, duck meat, shrimp for fear of bad luck... in the first days of the year. According to the old custom, on the 1st day of Tet, Vietnamese people will go to wish their grandparents, parents, and relatives on the paternal side. On the 2nd day there are relatives on the outside. The 3rd day is to congratulate the teachers who have taught them Tet. From the 4th, Vietnamese people begin to wish New Year's greetings to friends and colleagues, or to go out in the spring and travel more comfortably.

Annual activities during Tet

According to folk beliefs, the time to break ground at the beginning of the year is counted from New Year's Eve. Whoever comes to the house first is the one who breaks into the family's land. This will greatly affect the luck and fortune of the owner in the coming year. That is also the reason many families ask people of the right age to come to the land on New Year's Eve. In addition, many families also storm the land for themselves by going home after New Year's Eve with branches and buds for good luck.

Going to the temple at the beginning of the year is also a familiar Tet activity for many families. People often dress formally, go to temples to light incense and recite Buddha's name to keep their souls pure, and pray for health and happiness for their families. This is a meaningful spiritual activity that has been continued for many generations.

Ancestral graves

On the first day of the new year, everyone in the family will get up very early, prepare incense and lamps to visit the graves of ancestors. This is a way to remember those who have passed away, so that children and grandchildren know the family's roots.

Regarding activities on New Year's Day, customizing gold is also one of the indispensable rituals. Usually, from the 3rd to the 10th of January, families will burn votive papers to send their grandparents and ancestors back to heaven. In addition, the golden ceremony is also considered a ceremony to welcome the god of wealth to the family, to pray for a favorable new year of business and prosperity.

During Tet, the custom of giving lucky money and wishing New Year's relatives and friends is one of the meaningful Tet activities that everyone preserves. After a busy year, this is an opportunity for people to visit each other, send lucky money envelopes with wishes of luck and peace to children and elders in the family.

This is the shortest period of the Traditional New Year, depending on each family and each locality, this period is different. This phase starts from the last day of phase 2, that is, after Tet, Vietnamese people will make offerings to burn Tet (the end of Tet), clean the house, remove ornamental plants and decorations. in the house, rearrange the furniture back to normal.

The Advent wreath is a circle made of green branches and leaves that is often placed on a table or hung high for all to see.  Trees are often decorated at parties during the winter solstice - a sign of the coming end of winter.  On leaves placed within 4 candles.  The round leaf wreath represents the eternal character and endless love of God.  Green represents the hope that the Savior will come to save people.

Originated in 1843 when Mr. Henry Cole, a wealthy English merchant, asked Horsley, a painter in London, to design a beautiful card to give to friends. On Christmas that year, Horsley released the first card in the world  and it has since printed 1000 copies

Gifts express people's love for family and friends. For some people, Christmas gifts have a deep religious meaning. It is a celebration of the birth of Jesus, a gift that God has given to man.

 

The Christmas tree originated in Germany from the 16th century. This is a tree that lives in harsh climates but still retains its shape strong, steady and eternally green.  Gradually the image of this tree appeared more and more often and it was considered the center of the festival, where people held hands and danced around the ornate pine tree both inside and outside with flowers.  pink, apple and colored paper.

Legend has it that there were 3 girls of marriageable age in the other family, but no boys looked at them because their family was too poor.  Bishop Myra was so merciful that he threw the gold coins down the chimney of the three girls' house.  Gold coins fell from the roof onto the same pairs of stockings that the girls hung by the fireplace.  Needless to say, the girls were overjoyed.  They had the opportunity to fulfill their wish.

The 5-pointed star often appears colorfully during the Christmas season. A huge star hangs at the top of the church bell tower. From there stretch the paper on all four sides, there are many small stars, hanging lanterns and beautiful flowers.

The origin of the word "Santa Claus" or Saint Nicholas dates back to the 4th century in Turkey.  From an early age he was a very pious person and devoted his life to Christianity.  Saint Nicholas is especially celebrated for his love of children and for his generosity. Saint Nicholas is the patroness of sailors, the island of Sicily, Greece and Russia and of course saints as well. In the 16th century, in the Netherlands children used to place their wooden shoes by the fireplace in the hope that they would be well fed by St. Nicholas.

Christmas tree decoration: the pine tree is a familiar image during Christmas and New Year's greetings.  One of the funnest, warmest activities is when the whole family gathers to decorate the Christmas tree to welcome this festive season. Every time Christmas approaches, you will see a lot of decorated pine trees, displayed in homes, supermarkets and train stations… There are many legends about this tree, but in general the tree  Pine is said to be the tree that Saint Boniface previously believed to be the embodiment of Christ.  In addition,  decorating the Christmas tree  during Christmas also helps to remove evil spirits and remember Jesus. Usually, on the  Christmas tree  will hang many small gifts and very pretty bells, socks, etc.  Depending on the preferences of each home, this tree is decorated in different styles. You can decorate the Christmas tree at home, at work or in class, which can bring the Christmas atmosphere to fill that space.

Hanging Christmas stockings: On Christmas Eve, children always keep the habit of hanging up their socks and waiting until the next morning to receive a gift from Santa Claus in that sock. The passing story shows that many people believe that Saint Nicholas helped the poor nobleman through the stockings as the main source of this symbol. Socks used to decorate the occasion of Christmas are usually bright red, with very colorful patterns.  In some places, the socks are attached with very cute images such as: Santa Claus, snowflakes,... Some Christians even explain that Saint Nicholas once sent a bag of gold down the kitchen chimney to a poor old man.  When this bag of gold fell, it caught on a pile of socks that were drying nearby. Hanging socks on Christmas Day as an act of wishing for luck.

Santa Claus gives gifts: Every time Christmas approaches, you often come across images of Santa Claus (made up by humans) carrying a large gift bag to give to the children at the request of the family.  This form originates from the birth of the Child Lord and has deep religious significance. Accordingly, when Jesus was born in a manger, three astrologers came and presented him with different gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  However, the poor people have nothing to give, so they can only bring vegetables to offer to God.  Since then, people give each other Christmas gifts as a blessing from God.

In addition to the Christmas tree, decorative colored lights and gifts. On Christmas Eve, we cannot ignore special dishes.  Something that only Christmas can have.

Turkey: Topping the list of typical Christmas dishes.  Turkey (Turkey) is an indispensable dish on every family's dinner table on Christmas Eve.  Turkey originated from England.  It is unknown when it has become widely popular and is a special dish of the holiday.  Imagine in the cold of December. You and your family sit around the dining table, enjoying hot turkey dishes.

Meat pie is no stranger to us.  But at Christmas, it is the most special dish.  The cake is shaped like a bag, in which there are many different foods, such as meat, fruit, sugar... The ancients said that the cake was added during the Christmas party to send blessings,  and the bag is a place to store wishes to achieve happiness and a full life