Category Archives: Rituals, festivals, holidays

A Christmas Tradition – A Birthday Cake for Jesus

Nationality: American
Age: 70
Occupation: Retired
Residence: Phoenix, Arizona
Performance Date: April 15, 2017
Primary Language: English

My informant is my grandmother, and every year at Christmas she hosts the Christmas Eve celebration. As long as I can remember the Christmas Eve has been the exact same and this had to do with my grandmother’s traditions and her passing them down to her children.

Me: “Explain your special Christmas Eve traditions, and what makes them so important and distinct and who you learned them from.”

DC: “Do you mean the food?”

Me: “Yes, what we eat, and why and from whom did you learn this?”

DC: “Well, since I was a very little girl, my mother would make a special cake for Christmas Eve, this cake would be a vanilla cake with white frosting and decorated with cherries sliced in half on top, and this cake was a birthday cake for baby Jesus. It would be brought out after dinner, and for dinner on Christmas Eve we would always have tamales you know . . .”

Me: “Explain the tamales?”

DC: “I don’t know, my mom always went to a little Mexican woman and bought tamales from her for Christmas Eve oh they were the best, homemade tamales are just the best, and they were different every time. I mean we are in Arizona, why not have tamales at Christmastime. I don’t know why she did it, but me and my brothers would just eat them up and we would have the cake after. But first we would sing happy birthday to baby Jesus just like for anyone’s birthday, then we would blow out the candles together, oh there was candles on top too, just like a birthday cake . . . then we would eat it all together.

Me: “And you learned it from your mom?”

DC: “Yes, grandma Duffy, my mom always did this and I don’t know where she got it, probably from her mother, and I continued it on with my kids and now with my grandchildren and I hope you guys will all continue to have the baby Jesus cake and the tamales because it is just so fun and special. The recipe was her’s as well, she made it up. She was quite a cook, always made the best treats and whatnot, so I have made her recipe all me life. It’s on a little recipe card that she wrote herself.”

Analysis:

This is an example of a holiday tradition that has been passed down  generations and food traditions are very commonly passed down like this. Special food traditions at holidays for certain families are a way of performing that family identity and creating a family closeness and unity by the specific traditions. This being a Catholic family, singing happy birthday to Jesus makes sense and is a fun and silly way of reminding the kids and the adults of what Christmas is all about other than Santa Claus and presents. It is a way of teaching children the significance of Christmas as the day of the birth of Jesus Christ in a way they would understand because they too have birthday parties and cake. The tamales at Christmas Eve would be a result of living in Arizona and having the strong Mexican influence. This is family is not Mexican themselves, but living in Phoenix, one cannot help but be introduced to foods like tamales and so them being incorporated into a special tradition is an example of the cultural plurality of the United States and especially the Southwest.

Sma Grordorna – Swedish Midsummer Celebration Song

Nationality: Swedish
Age: 21
Residence: Gothenburg, Sweden
Performance Date: April 24, 2017
Primary Language: Swedish
Language: English

Informant:

Elliot Danielsson is a 21 year old man from Gothenburg, Sweden. This is his favorite folk song from his native Swedish culture. He also says that almost everyone in his town “and probably most of Sweden” knows this song and sings it during their Midsummer Celebration.

Folk Song:

Små grodorna, små grordorna

är lustiga att se.

(Repeat)

Ej öron, ej öron, ej suansar

hava de.

(Repeat)

What the song is about:

Elliot: “It’s…uh…kinda hard to give a straight translation, but it’s basically about…It’s small frogs without tails or ears, which makes their lives very difficult, but they are still full of joy and love dancing around a tree. It basically shows how even though we all may live tough lives, we can still live our lives with happiness and joy.”

Context:

Elliot: “It is most often performed at any celebration that whatever Swedish town is putting on the…uh…celebration. Kids, like, love singing it during the celebration, and adults join in too.”

My thoughts:

Elliot also added that this Midsummer Celebration is comparable to America’s Christmas in regards to popularity, and one of the biggest parts (and probably my favorite part) of our Christmas traditions is Christmas music. Therefore, this song that is connected with a major holiday is very interesting to me because I did not know that other cultures’ holidays also often had music that went along with them.

Argentinian Christmas Meal

Nationality: Argentinian
Age: 22
Residence: Miami, Florida
Performance Date: April 23, 2017
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

Informant:

Santiago is originally from Argentina, but now resides in Miami, Florida. However, he still avidly practices his traditions that he learned in Argentina.

Cuisine:

Santiago: “Every year back in Argentina, we would have Christmas dinner with freshly…um, killed and skinned goat. Some families would have a member go and, like, find a goat out in the wild, but my family just bought a pre-skinned goat (laughs).        We would also drink a lot of mate, which is, like, a drink with made from herbs and cream and stuff. And this altogether is supposed to honor the mythical Argentinian cowboy who herded the giant herd of cows, or gauchos.”

Context:

They would practice this culinary tradition every Christmas.

My Thoughts:

I love hearing about different culture’s Christmas traditions because Christmas is my favorite holiday, and it is interesting to me to learn about how other people celebrate the holiday. Personally, I do not like the taste of goat, but I have tried mate before and I think it is extremely tasty. One day, I hope I can try to incorporate that part of the Argentinian Christmas into my own Christmas traditions.

Korean New Years

Nationality: Korean
Age: 20
Residence: Portland, Oregon
Performance Date: April 23, 2017
Primary Language: English

Informant:

Dahbin is a Korean man from Portland, Oregon whose parents are, as he puts it, “extremely conservative Koreans who take traditions weirdly and annoyingly seriously.”

Original Script:

Dahbin: “So New Years Day is, like, a pretty big deal in Korea, and on that day everyone wears, like, a super traditional outfit, with, like, you know, the long coats or whatever (laughs). Then you go to your elders and bow to them and say, ‘I wish you a good year of wealth and for you to, like, prosper’ (laughs). Then they give you a bunch of money that’s comparable to, like, Christmas and your birthday put together. I think this day is such a big deal because, like, Korea used to be super poor, and so surviving to the next year was, like, a pretty big thing.”

Context:

Every New Year.

My Thoughts:

I find it significant how one could view Korean New Years as a holiday that is for both elders and children, for the elders receive the respect that they demand out of their children while the children also get a monetary reward. In the U.S. it seems like most holidays are purely for the joy of children other than Mother’s and Father’s Day because it seems like many holidays are excuses for kids to receive presents. Korean New Years seems to have found a way to even this playing field out so that the elders also get something they long for.

Korean 1st Birthday

Nationality: Korean
Age: 20
Residence: Portland, Oregon
Performance Date: April 23, 2017
Primary Language: English

Informant:

Dahbin is a Korean man from Portland, Oregon whose parents are, as he puts it, “extremely conservative Koreans who take traditions weirdly and annoyingly seriously.”

Original Script:

Dahbin: “A Korean’s first birthday is, like, a huge deal. Like, it goes on for five days. In the past, Korea was extremely poor, so most babies would not live to see their first birthday. So, like, in Korea, when you’re born you are considered a one year old already because they want to be able to say that the baby lived at least for one year before it died. Basically, a Korean’s first birthday is more like a huge party, almost like a five day bar mitzvah (laughs).”

Context:

When a Korean turns one year old.

My Thoughts:

I like how the Koreans have taken such a sad phenomenon of their past and turned it into such a positive celebration in the present. Growing up in Korea years ago must have been extremely difficult, but nowadays they celebrate the lives of the living children by making their first birthdays such a great spectacle. This tradition truly puts life into perspective, showing me just how lucky I was to have grown up in such a great place.