Hyvää Joulua!

That is how you say Merry Christmas in Finland.

Christmas in Finland is celebrated by cleaning the house to get ready for the occasion, which lasts for three days, starting on Christmas Eve to Boxing Day (Dec. 26).

The fir tree is often used as a Christmas tree and this is decorated with different ornaments on Christmas Eve. Fruits such as apples, paper flag, cotton, tinsel and candies are often used as ornaments.

A clean house is nothing if the people living in it are dirty, so the Finnish go to the steam baths to clean their bodies and get into clean clothes before Christmas dinner.

A tradition that is unique to Finnish Christmases is the feeding of the birds. People take out a sheaf of grain and tie it to a pole, adding some nuts and seeds. This pole is then set up in the garden for the birds to eat. Some families will not have their Christmas meals until the birds have finished eating.

But most families start eating as soon as the first star appear in the sky. Christmas meals in Finland often include codfish, suckling pigs, roasted ham, vegetables, potatoes and cream sauce.

Santa Claus

Finland is said to be where Santa Claus live. The Finnish legends hold that Santa Claus lives in Korvantunturi or Lapland which is in the northern part of Finland. Around the globe, Finland’s northern area is very famous for Christmas Land, a theme park near Santa Claus’ supposed address.
This is why children in Finland do not have use for Christmas stocking, because Santa Claus, together with his elves, brings their gifts in person.

MerryStockings.com has a great selection of personalized holiday cards that you could send to impress your friends in Finland. Just choose from the wide selections, send us your photos and we’d take care of the printing for you!