Languages - Christmas Edition

Christmas in Indonesia

29.1 million Christians in Indonesia celebrate Christmas with their family, friends and community. SELAMAT HARI NATAL means Merry Christmas! 

Throughout Indonesia, people come together to celebrate Christmas joyfully with their own customs, traditions and special foods. 

During one of our classes, we had Year 8 Indonesian students singing We wish you a Merry Christmas in Indonesian while playing the Angklung, a traditional Indonesian musical instrument. Amazing voices!

Selamat Hari Natal from 

Bu Devathas dan Bu Birchall.

Christmas in Germany

Many of our Christmas traditions come from Germany – Christmas carols (“Silent Night”), the advent calendar, the Christmas tree. Thanks to Albert, Queen Victoria’s husband, Christmas trees became popular in England. Popular food also comes from Germany. Lübeck is famous for marzipan, just as Nuremberg is famous for gingerbread. “Zimtsterne” (Cinnamon Stars) are now found in supermarkets, too. See below for a recipe: 

Zimtsterne (Cinnamon Stars) 

Ingredients: 

4 egg whites 

250g caster sugar 

5g cinnamon 

300g unpeeled almond meal 

Icing sugar (for rolling) 

Method: 

Beat egg whites and caster sugar for 20-30 min until foaming. Take about 3 tbsp of mixture to brush the cinnamon stars with. Combine remaining egg white mixture with cinnamon and almond meal and roll out dough onto icing sugar to 5mm thickness. Cut out stars from rolled dough and put onto a greased tray. Glaze stars with retained egg white mixture and put into preheated oven. 

Oven temperature: 150 °C; Baking time: about 20 min) 

Weihnachten in Deutschland

Viele unserer Weihnachtstraditionen kommen aus Deutschland – Weihnachtslieder („Stille Nacht“), der Adventskalender, der Weihnachtsbaum. Dank Albrecht, der Mann von Königin Viktoria, wurden Weihnachtsbäume beliebt in England.

Beliebtes Essen stammt auch aus Deutschland. Lübeck ist für Marzipan berühmt, sowie Nürnberg für Lebkuchen. Zimtsterne finden wir jetzt im Supermärkten. Ein Rezept dafür gibt es unten: 

Zimtsterne 

Zutaten: 

4 Eiweiß  

250 Gramm feiner Zucker 

5 Gramm Zimt 

300 Gramm ungeschälte, geriebene Mandeln 

Puderzucker (zum Ausrollen) 

Methode:

Eiweiß und Zucker 20 bis 30 Minuten schaumig schlagen. Etwa 3 Eßlöffel von der Masse zum Bestreichen der Zimtsterne nehmen. Unter die restliche Schaummasse Zimt und geriebene Mandeln mischen und den Teig auf Puderzucker 5 Millimeter dick ausrollen, Sterne ausstechen und auf ein gefettetes Backblech legen. Mit dem zurückbehaltenen Eiweiß die Sterne schön glasieren und in den vorgeheizten Backofen stellen.

Backhitze: 150 Grad; Backzeit: etwa 20 Minuten

Frau Ryan, Frau Ho and Frau Fittje.

Community languages:

Christmas in France 

Joyeux Noël!

In France, we treat Christmas very seriously. The big celebration is on Christmas eve where we have a large family meal, often with friends, that usually lasts several hours. 

We burn the 'Bûche de Noël' or Yule log, and at midnight everyone goes to Midnight Mass. After Mass we return home for more food! The Meal itself has a name 'Réveillon'. 

Please feel free to bring out the inner French in you this Christmas!

Que Dieu vous bénisse, vous et votre famille, en cette période de Noël.

(May God bless you and your family this Christmas season.)

Amities,

Mr. Seago.

Christmas in Italy

Buon Natale! 

Why celebrate Christmas on one day? In Italy, Christmas celebrations begin on the 8th of December – the feast day of the immaculate conception – where families begin assembling nativity scenes or presepi. Presepi are not your typical Myer-windows displays; rather, dioramas of Bethlehem are recreated in the comfort of hearth and home, with each character and/or animal being added daily until Jesus’ star appearance on the 24th.  

This introduces the biggest day of the year: the 24th of December and no, that’s not a typo. La Vigilia encourages all waistlines to be extended in anticipation for a seafood extravaganza, given that Italians typically abstain from meat on the eve of a feast day. If you ask me, the real delicacies come the following day with a smorgasbord of sweets like torrone (nougat), panettone (fruitcake), crostoli (fried pastries), frittole (fried donuts), parrozzo (sponge cake) – the list is well and truly endless. 

Festivities extend through to the Epiphany on January 6th, when the witch La Befana takes jolly ol’ Saint Nick’s place by bestowing treats to good children and coal to the naughty ones. Despite breaking-and-entry, Befana makes sure to clean the house with her trusty broomstick to sweep away the year that was. 

And with that, may your floors be aptly swept and your stockings coal-less, staff and students of Heathmont College!  

Ms. Tedeschi.

Christmas in Croatia

Sretan Božić!

Croatia celebrates Christmas very similarly to Australia; however, we have a few extra customs. 

The first one is that St. Nicholas’ Day on December 6th, where small gifts comprised of chocolates and sweets are given, especially to children. The second and more major is an old tradition of sowing wheat for St. Lucy’s day on December 13th. If the wheat grows successfully, it represents new life and renewal, as well as a good harvest! 

And when we say Merry Christmas, we say Sretan Božić!

Mr. Baboselac.