Christmas Around the World, Part 2 – Poland
We are in the midst of our annual trip around the world to explore Christmas traditions from different countries! This week we travel to Poland, where several unique traditions revolve around the family dinner table.
Christmas in Poland is three days long. There’s Wigilia (pronounced vi-GEE-lia), which is on Christmas Eve, followed by the First Day of Christmas and the Second Day of Christmas. Dinnertime on the evening of Wigilia is particularly meaningful. People place hay under the tablecloth to represent the manger. They set an extra place at the table in case there is an unexpected visitor who doesn’t have anywhere else to go for their holiday meal, to honor the idea that nobody should be alone on Christmas. And dinner may not be eaten until the first star appears in the sky. That first star is seen as a stand-in for the Star of Bethlehem, and kids will eagerly scan the sky in the hope of being the one to spot it first. Read more about Christmas in Poland (and find recipes for some yummy Polish Christmas dishes) here.
But before the meal begins, there is one more very special tradition to fulfill, one that dates to the 1600s: the oplatek. An oplatek (op-WAH-tek) is a large rectangular wafer with a Christmas image embossed on it. Everyone breaks off a piece, then gives a piece of their piece to each of the other people present. Wrongs are forgiven and Christmas wishes are exchanged. What a beautiful way to honor the spirit of Communion before the Christmas meal!
Your family can experience the oplatek tradition this year. You can buy oplatki (the plural of oplatek) from churches or Polish cultural centers, or even some online retailers. You can try to make your own using this recipe. Tracing the Christmas images onto them might be a fun challenge! But you can also honor the idea behind oplatki without having the wafers themselves. Break bread (or something else entirely!) with the people you love and take the time to share your wishes with each person individually. Just make sure you don’t fill up on your oplatki, whatever they are. In Polish homes, it’s customary to serve twelve dishes during the Wigilia dinner – for the apostles and the months of the year – and you must eat from each one in order to have good luck in the coming year. So leave plenty of room for pierogis, poppy seed cake, and mushroom soup!
What Christmas wishes will your family exchange on Wigilia? Share with us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. And Wesołych Świąt Bożego Narodzenia (Merry Christmas) to you and yours!
