1. Winter Celebrations Around the World
Eid Al Adha
Hanukkah
Boxing Day
Kwanzaa
Las posadas
St. Nicholas Day
Lunar New Year
Christmas
Diwali
Hogmanay
St. Lucias Day
Bodhi Day

2. Christmas
How do you celebrate Xmas? Does your family have any special
traditions? How is Xmas celebrated in your home country?
Here are a couple of videos with some bizarre traditions from
around the world:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6vIuSQPlzk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWUNQfjkwmg
Christmas at the White House, from NPR:
http://www.npr.org/2013/12/07/249309185/white-house-invites-all-to-gat
Christmas shopping in the UK:
http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/word-street/christmas

3. Diwali – Festival of lights
The five-day Hindu festival Diwali, honors the goddess of wealth,
Lakshmi. Known as the festival of lights, the holiday is marked
by lighting lamps, setting off fireworks, gathering with family
and friends to eat good food, dance and exchange gifts. And it's
about the triumph of light over darkness, good over evil.
Professor Narayanan tells us more about the festival:
http://www.npr.org/2012/11/13/165046185/diwali-celebrating-the-festival-o
And a video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrrW3rO51ak

4. Kwanzaa
Kwanzaa is a week-long holiday that takes place between December
26th and January 1st. The holiday celebrates African culture ands
history. The name Kwanzaa comes from the Swahili language and
means “first fruits”.
Kwanzaa celebrates Nguzu Saba, which means "The Seven
Principles of Blackness". Each of the seven days represents a
different principle. The principles are unity, self-determination,
working together, cooperating in business, building the nation,
creativity, and faith.
http://www.history.com/topics/kwanzaa-history

5. Hanukkah
Hanukkah is one of the most important celebrations in the Jewish
calendar. It means the Festival of Lights. It is an eight-day holiday
that takes place each year in November or December. The festival is
to celebrate a miracle that happened in the Second Temple in
Jerusalem. A Syrian king took the temple from the Jews. In 164BC,
a small group of people called the Maccabees revolted against the
king and took back their temple. Their leader Judah Maccabee
decided to cleanse the altar by burning olive oil in a special candle
holder called a Menorah. They only had enough to burn for one day,
yet miraculously, it burned for eight days and nights. Jewish elders
declared an eight-day holiday to commemorate this miracle.

6. Boxing Day
Boxing Day in the United Kingdom is the day after Christmas Day
and falls on December 26. Traditionally, it was a day when
employers distributed money, food, cloth (material) or other
valuable goods to their employees. In modern times, it is an
important day for sporting events and the start of the postChristmas sales. (
http://britishfood.about.com/od/christmas/p/boxingday.htm)
A video with information: http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Jtg800BxBAg

7. Eid Al Adha
Eid Al Adha is celebrated by Muslims on the 10th day of the month
of the lunar calendar (In 2008, it fell on December 8) to
commemorate the willingness of the prophet Ibrahim (or
Abraham) to sacrifice his son for God. Today, Muslims sacrifice
an animal—usually a goat or a sheep—as a reminder of Ibrahim's
obedience to God. The meat is shared with family, friends
Muslims or non-Muslims, as well as the poor members of the
community.

8. Hogmanay
Hogmanay is the Scots word for the last day of the year and is
synonymous with the celebration of the New Year (Gregorian
calendar) in the Scottish manner. However, it is normally only the
start of a celebration that lasts through the night until the morning of
New Year's Day (1 January) or, in some cases, 2 January—a Scottish
Bank Holiday.
Some facts about the holiday:
http://www.scotland.org/features/hogmanay-top-facts

9. St. Nicholas Day

10. Las Posadas

11. Lunar New Year

12. St. Lucias Day

13. Bodhi Day