Merry Christmas!
December 24th 2008 15:13
Japanese Christmas Cake
Unlike in Western countries, December 25th is not a public holiday in Japan. Furthermore, less than 1% of the population is Christian (Source: LINK). However, the Japanese still enjoy the festive season.
Origins
Christmas was first introduced to Japan when the first Europeans arrived during the 16th Century. However, when "national isolation" was enforced in Japan during 1639, the tradition and Christianity went underground of sorts. Despite the risk of persecution, Christians or Kakure (meaning "secret Christians"), kept their tradition alive.
This meant celebrating the festive season in secret. In fact, it seems as though some of these practises which begun around 400 years ago still exist. For example, many still sing Christmas carols in Latin.
Sources (feel free to read more about the historical events):
Japan Guide
Christmas Archive
Christmas Eve is bigger than Christmas Day!
Most of the celebrations are typically held during the night before Christmas. In particular, females tend to value this event more than anyone else! For many, Christmas Eve is a prime opportunity to have the perfect evening with that special someone. The food, the activities and presents ought to be perfect.
So it isn't too much of a surprise to hear some off-putting jokes once in awhile which associate women with the festive season. Awhile ago, women were expected to be married by the time they reach their late 20s. Hence, unmarried women over the age of 25 were sometimes referred to as "unsold Christmas cakes".
Source:
JapaneseLifestyle.com
Food, oh Glorious Food!
So, if celebrations are generally held on Christmas Eve, what do they do? For couples, they have romantic dates. For families, there's the gift-giving (only from parents to children, but once the children don't believe in Santa anymore, the gift-giving stops) and family dinners.
Perhaps out of all activities, a special meal is of utmost importance. Many restaurants are often booked out for Christmas Eve. Not only that, many people tend to purchase special Christmas Cake. According to a survey on Japan Guide, 73% of people responded that Christmas Cake is often incorporated with their celebrations. These Christmas Cakes are typically sponge cakes with whipped cream and strawberries (or any kind of sponge cake).
Other foods which are often eaten during this season is chicken. Roasted Terikyaki Chicken for example. Actually, KFC itself is often packed during this time of year.
For further reading (and recipes!) on Japanese Christmas food, click here.
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Christmas certain is fun isn't it? Merry Christmas everyone!
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