Christmas In Brazil Facts: Their Decorations, Food, Desserts, And More
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Christmas, widely accepted as the birthday of the Lord Jesus, is celebrated on December 25 every year.
Due to the cultural differences across countries around the world, the festival is celebrated by adhering to different customs and traditions due to the cultural differences across countries around the world. One such interesting Christmas celebration happens in Brazil.
Christmas, in general, is synonymous with the Christmas tree, the big star, decorations, Santa Claus, gifts, nativity scene, baby Jesus, midnight mass, songs, carols, food, desserts, and more. Throughout the whole month of December, you will see people all over the world get into the Christmas spirit and participate in many celebrations.
There are special Christmas customs to celebrate on Christmas Eve, the morning of Christmas, and Christmas Day. In Brazil, Christmas is known as 'dia de festas'.
Similarly, Brazilians celebrate the festival by coming together for some quality family time, exchanging gifts, mostly through secret Santa, gorgeously decorating their Christmas trees, setting up nativity scenes, preparing and enjoying a scrumptious Christmas feast that includes a big spread of food and desserts, and much more.
Once you have finished reading this article, why not discover the answer to facts about Christmas in England and facts about Christmas in Spain here on Kidadl?
How Christmas is celebrated in Brazil?
The country is home to people from various cultures and has a rich history. Since Brazil was a Portuguese colony for a long time, Christmas traditions are influenced by Portuguese customs.
There are also stories that animals like roosters, bulls, and sheep communicate with each other about the birth of Jesus during this time. These animals are associated with Christmas in Brazil.
Unlike other countries, Brazil has a unique Christmas: a tropical Christmas. December is proper summer in Brazil yet people in the country follow most of the Christmas customs that are practiced worldwide. Additionally, many people in Brazil prefer going to the beach to cool off a bit as well.
Brazilians come together for a family dinner on Christmas Eve and celebrate with food and drinks till midnight. They dress up properly in new clothes to celebrate Christmas. Some even attend the midnight mass and participate in singing carols and songs like 'The Silent Night'.
The concept of Secret Santa or Amigo Secreto or Amigo Oculto, as it is known in Brazil, is very famous. When a huge group of people is involved, each person in the group is allotted one person to get a gift secretly. Some even exchange gifts with their friends and family throughout the month of December.
While Christmas Eve is celebrated in a big way till post-midnight, Christmas morning and Christmas Day celebrations are a bit low-key and relaxed.
Santa Claus Or Papai Noel
Christmas is a special time to remember Santa Claus. The Christmas spirit is imbibed in little children through the stories of Santa Claus, his elves, and reindeers. Children learn and practice good deeds year long as they are continuously told that it is important to get into Santa's good books by doing good deeds.
While people in other countries refer to the good old man from the North Pole, dressed in red and white, as 'Santa Claus', but as per the Brazilian culture, he is called Papai Noel. Some even refer to him as 'Bom Velhinho' or 'Good Old Man'.
While it is believed that Santa wears thick robes as he lives in the North Pole, some in Brazil say that he wears silk robes to suit the tropical climate of the country.
Brazilian Christmas Desserts
Desserts play an important part in Christmas celebrations. The finishing touch after the Christmas dinner is given equal importance and weightage and people look forward to having it.
Some of the famous desserts include Italian panettone (a soft loaf of bread), pavê (a layered no-bake cake), rabanada (similar to the French toast with the addition of sugar and cinnamon), passion fruit mousse, and much more.
Since it is summer in Brazil during December, ice cream is a must-have as part of the dessert spread.
Christmas Food In Brazil
Christmas food, or Christmas feast, is the major highlight for many in Brazil. Christmas dinner in Brazil is usually prepared as a huge spread, with tables properly laid out with tablecloths, cutleries, and glasses.
One can find a variety of foods from Brazil, Portugal, and even Italy, Germany, and Spain. Foods like the Italian Panettone are famous in São Paulo, whereas the Portuguese salted Cod is well-known in Rio de Janeiro.
The foods one can find in traditional Christmas eve dinners include potato salads, chicken salads, pork, turkey or Chester, ham, vegetables, rice cooked with raisins, lasagna, farofa, and dried fruits.
People in Brazil come together by the afternoon or evening of December 24. They start the evening with drinks and the exchange of gifts, but the main dinner begins late so that it continues well past midnight after wishing each other 'Feliz Natal!' or 'Merry Christmas!'
Christmas Decorations In Brazil
Christmas decorations in Brazil look colorful and bright. Since the availability of traditional Christmas trees is limited or non-existent, people in the country use plastic trees that look like traditional Christmas trees instead.
They decorate them with fairy lights, stockings, wreaths, stars, toppers, mistletoe, and decorative ornaments like snowflakes, reindeer, fairies, gift boxes, and snow globes. Some people also put up outdoor decorations and light up their houses as well.
Major cities and states in Brazil, like São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and the Rio Grande do Sul, light up their skies with a huge display of fireworks. There is also a display of electric lights, sometimes in the shape of a Christmas tree. The beaches and lakeside spots in the country are lit up as well.
People all over the world love Christmas as a holiday. It is that time of the year when everyone forgets about their worries and focuses on spreading happiness.
Children everywhere get a break from school and get to participate in all the Christmas traditions followed by their families. It is quite a merry time throughout the month, and it extends till the New Year celebrations.
Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly factsfor everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for Christmas in Brazil facts,then why not take a look atChristmas in Sweden or Christmas in the Philippines facts.
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Bachelor of Science specializing in Human Anatomy
Joan AgieBachelor of Science specializing in Human Anatomy
With 3+ years of research and content writing experience across several niches, especially on education, technology, and business topics. Joan holds a Bachelor’s degree in Human Anatomy from the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria, and has worked as a researcher and writer for organizations across Nigeria, the US, the UK, and Germany. Joan enjoys meditation, watching movies, and learning new languages in her free time.
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