Christmas Around the World, Part 4 – China
During this Advent season, we are continuing our tradition of taking a trip around the world, exploring Christmas traditions from different countries. This week, we’re headed to China!
While the majority of the world’s Christmas decorations are made in China, Christmas is not an official holiday there, partly because such a small percentage of the population (estimates are somewhere between 1 and 5%) is Christian, and partly due to the fact that the government discourages celebrations that are not rooted in Chinese culture. In fact, in recent years, reports coming out of China indicate that the government has “cracked down” on Christmas celebrations. Despite these challenges, over the years the people of China have developed a few unique and meaningful Christmas traditions that your family can help keep going!
Most Chinese people celebrate Christmas in a secular way, with the nature of the celebrations more akin to Valentine’s Day than anything else. Everything is open, so people go out together, enjoy special promotional deals at stores and restaurants, and exchange gifts with loved ones. Santa is a part of the Christmas scene, but he is called “Christmas Old Man,” and instead of elves, he is accompanied by his sisters. He is also often depicted playing the saxophone! You can see a picture here.
If you’d like to help keep China’s Christmas traditions alive, we invite you to dress up as Santa and play your best saxophone riff. In fact, if you do, please share photos with us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. But you can also take part in a less humorous but more meaningful custom, the exchanging of peace apples. The origins of this tradition lie in an appreciation for homophones unlike any we’ve ever seen. In the Mandarin dialect, Christmas Eve is called “Peaceful Night,” or Ping’an Ye. The word for peace sounds a lot like the word for apple, ping guo, which led directly to the concept of peace apples, or ping’anguo.
Peace apples often have messages on them, words like love or peace, or maybe drawings of hearts. They are wrapped in colored cellophane or placed in special gift boxes and exchanged on Christmas Eve. There are some great photos here. Some people even believe that these apples must be purchased with coins borrowed from 24 different friends with 24 different last names, an ordeal that shows the recipient how much you care about them. Accordingly, it is said that eating a peace apple will bring the person a peaceful and safe new year.
The exchange of peace apples is so popular, apple prices in some parts of China increase each year on December 24. And while that is unlikely to happen here in the United States, you too can purchase a peace apple (borrowed coins optional) to give to someone you love. Decorate it if you’d like (be sure to use edible materials if it’s going to be eaten), wrap it with care, and deliver it on Christmas Eve. After all, we could all use peace and safety in the new year, couldn’t we?
