Celebrating Ethiopian Christmas
21.07.2023 - 07:39
/ roughguides.com
/ Jesus Christ
Ethiopian Christmas is celebrated on January 7th each year. Most of the country's population is Orthodox, and Christmas celebrations last for weeks. Here is our quick guide to Ethiopian Christmas or Ganna in Ethiopia.
Ethiopians celebrate Christmas on January 7th, or on the Ge'ez Ethiopian calendar, the 29th day of Tahsas. This is when most orthodox populations celebrate Christmas, including Greek, Ukrainian, Serbian, Russian and Egyptian Orthodox Christians. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church considers this to be the day that Jesus Christ was born.
The Ethiopian Christmas celebrations — also known as Ganna — are slightly different than those in the West. Ganna is a religious holiday, and gift-giving or Santa Claus does not play a role.
Orthodox Ethiopians typically fast for the forty days leading up to Christmas Day. This is known as the 'Fast of the Prophets' (Tsome Nebiyat) and it means going on a diet without meat, dairy, or alcohol. On Christmas Eve it is not uncommon to see locals carrying live chickens or other large portions of meat to their homes.
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Pilgrims carry candles during Ethiopian Christmas celebrations © Karoki Lewis
After many days of fasting, Christmas Day comes with a celebratory feast. Typically one eats wat on Christmas — which is a spicy stew that contains meat and vegetables. It is served and eaten with injera, a spongy Ethiopian flatbread that is sometimes referred to as an edible spoon.
After the meal, it is typical to have a coffee ceremony where coffee is roasted and passed around to take in the smell.
Injera food, Ethiopia © Shutterstock
On Ganna you will notice that most people are dressed in shamma or netela — or a white cotton robe with brightly coloured stripes at the end. Priests will wear red and white robes and carry embroidered fringed umbrellas. In the afternoon, it is typical to attend church services.
Each person is given a candle (to represent the star of Bethlehem) and walks three times around the church in a solemn procession. Then each person stops to form an outer circle. In the centre circle, the priest serves Holy Communion.
The celebration, which will last for 12 days, then begins. This is a time of games, festivities, folk dancing and performances. Boys play a holiday game (called Ganna) that is comparable to hockey, with a curved stick and round wooden ball. This game represents the shepherds tending to their flocks and is a large part of the Christmas celebrations.
Ethiopian men play a sport called yeferas guks which involves horseback riding and shooting «spears» at each other.
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