Advent
During advent, the four long weeks leading up to Christmas, Swedes are doing their best to brighten up the darkness by decorating homes, windows and gardens with stars and electric candle sticks.
Lucia 13 December
One important day during advent is the Lucia celebration on 13 December. As so many other traditions is Sweden it is mixture of different elements. Lucia was a martyr who lived in Italy and died in the year 304.Historically in Sweden the Lucia night was considered as the darkest night of the year and a dangerous one. Animals could speak and supernatural beings were playing their tricks. To mark the end of the night animals had to have extra feed and the humans could eat seven or nine breakfasts just to be safe again. In agrarian Sweden young people dressed up as old men (lussegubbar) and wandered from house to house singing and asked for food and schnapps.
Since the 1900s it is celebrated with boys and girls dressed in long white gowns, carrying candles and singing traditional songs. Today it the young children in schools and daycare centers use battery light and dress as Lucia while the parents listen in the dark while filming on their mobiles. At workplaces everyone expect there to be a choir singing Lucia songs or at least a fika with (pepparkakor) ginger bread snaps, lussekatter (saffron buns) and glögg (mulled wine).
Read more about the celebration of Santa Lucia
Get your own Lucia experience - find list of Lucia events in Lund below!
