No chimneys here, but plenty of glögg, lussekatter, smorgasbord – and Disney. The Scandinavian Community Centre Society (SCCS) will host a diverse line-up of holiday events this month, including the long-standing Swedish tradition of Lucia (Dec. 14): which brings light, hope, and warmth to dark winter months.

“It’s supposed to be a totally positive thing and brings people’s spirits up,” says Carina Spencer, vice-president of the Sweden House Society and the honorary consul of Sweden for British Columbia and Yukon.

Lucia, traditionally celebrated on Dec. 13, is one of the most beloved Swedish traditions.

The festivities of food

Holiday celebrations, points out Spencer, in the Swedish culture begins early with Advent: four Sundays before Christmas. An advent candleholder is placed on the windowsill in their house, marking the countdown and bringing warmth to the dark season.

“You light one, then you blow it out – because you don’t want to totally make it disappear,” she explains, of the custom originating from the Lutheran church. “Then, the next [Sunday], you light both of them.”

Food, particularly the smorgasbord (the “Sandwich board”), is central to Swedish celebrations. The smorgasbord is the traditional Christmas meal: families prepare the food ahead of time– with some boards lasting over the course of three or four days.

“Early December, the restaurants [in Sweden] start having them, and they are big smorgasbords with Christmas things,” she says, noting that herring, ham, meatballs, sausages, and ribs are included.

As for beverages, the popular Swedish drink, glögg, is often heated on the stove. While glögg is traditionally recognized as a mulled wine, Spencer notes that it doesn’t have to contain alcohol.

“It has cloves and cinnamons…we pour them into very special little cups, and we usually put raisins and almonds in it,” she adds. “That’s one of the smells of Christmas that I remember.”

A curious tradition

During the Lucia festivities, girls, as the Lucias, wear candles in their hair; and boys, as star boys, carry a star in their hands. Both dressed in white gowns, the Lucias and star boys sing traditional songs.

“You can sit in a house or in a church that is pitch black, and all of a sudden you hear this singing,” she adds. “So, they come, bringing light in the darkness.”

During Lucia, Swedes eat gingerbread cookies and lussekatter, or Lucia bread, made from saffron and shaped like a cat.

According to Spencer, Swedes would traditionally put food, such as oranges or chocolates, in their Christmas tree. This meant that they would only set up their tree either on the day of Christmas or the day before Christmas.

For the Swedes, the big celebration happens on Christmas eve – including the family meal, the arrival of Santa – who knocks on people’s doors and eats porridge with cinnamon and sugar – and a curious Disney tradition that begins at 3 o’clock in Sweden.

“I would say probably 60-70 per cent of the families in Sweden sit down to watch Disney for an hour,” she says, noting the programming includes a mix of old Disney and Christmas themed Disney. “We all ask each other all the time, ‘Why do we do this?’”

At the Scandinavian Community Centre, there will be an afternoon and evening Lucia celebration on Dec. 14. The afternoon event includes a fika, or coffee break, an important part of socialization in Swedish culture. The lights will be dimmed as the children from the Swedish school in Burnaby enter and perform traditional Lucia songs in Swedish.

“They sing different songs, and have little speeches,” she says. “The evening one also has a smorgasbord.”

Spencer emphasizes that events at the Scandinavian Culture Centre, including the Scandinavian Seniors Christmas Lunch (Dec. 13) and Christmas by the Fireside (Dec. 13) are open to anyone who wishes to attend, regardless of their ethnic heritage.

For more information, please see www.scancentre.org