• Christmas is a Christian holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ
• The word Božić in Croatian comes from the diminutive of the word God (Bog)
• We celebrate Christmas on the 25th December

• This is the time before
Christmas
• It starts 4 Sundays before
Christmas and ends on
Christmas Eve
• We make advent wreaths with 4 candles which we light every Sunday before
Christmas, they symbolize hope, peace, joy and love

• On Christmas Eve, the
Christmas wheat, which has been sprouting since
St. Lucy's Day on the 13th of December, is tied with ribbon in the colors of the
Croatian flag – red, white, and blue. Sometimes a candle is also placed within the wheat.

• On this day people make
Christmas meals, they clean and decorate the house and cook dinner ( usually fish)
• After the dinner families go to church to a midnight mass

• Christmas Day is spent with family and at church
• People are happy, they sing Christmas carols and they spend time with their families and closest friends
• They eat Christmas cookies and other traditional food

• On Christmas Day Croatians traditionally prepare turkey, lamb, roasted pork, sarma (minced meat wrapped in cabbage), peppers stuffed with minced meat, salads, freshly baked bread and traditional
Christmas deserts such as fritule (pastry similar to doughnuts), strudels, walnut and poppy-seed cakes and many, many more.

• We decorate the Christmas tree on Christmas Eve
• Long ago people used to decorate Christmas trees with flowers or fruit
• Today we decoate it with Christmas lights and balls
• We put presents under the tree

• Besides sprouting wheat, Croatians decorate their homes with wreaths and trees. Licitar hearts or handdecorated cookies often decorate Christmas trees in
Croatia. Christmas creches are also used for decoration in Croatia. Various greenery, including evergreen boughs, is a typical Christmas decoration.