Wigilia
Wigilia (Polish pronunciation: [vʲiˈɡʲilja] ⓘ) is the traditional Christmas Eve vigil supper in Poland, held on December 24. The term is often applied to the whole of Christmas Eve, extending further to Pasterka—midnight Mass, held in Roman Catholic churches all over Poland and in Polish communities worldwide at or before midnight. The custom is sometimes referred to as "wieczerza" or "wieczerza wigilijna", in Old Polish meaning evening repast, linked to the late church service, Vespers from the Latin.
The word Wigilia derives from the Latin vigil. The associated feasting follows a day of abstinence and traditionally begins once the First Star has been sighted.[1] Christmas is also sometimes called "Gwiazdka", "little star".
Traditions and customs
Children usually decorate the Christmas tree. Sometimes a handful of hay is placed under the tablecloth of the dining table to symbolise Jesus's birth in a manger. One old tradition states that when children playfully remove a piece of straw from under the tablecloth, its colour has meaning: Green indicates wealth or possibly a marriage, while black foretells bad luck for the year.[citation needed]
Another tradition is to make an extra place-setting for the "unexpected guest", to celebrate hospitality. The feast begins with
The Wigilia supper
A Christmas Eve dinner excludes meat, as
The Shepherd's mass
Some families as well as individual worshippers attend the traditional midnight mass/Shepherd's Mass (pasterka), where Christmas carols are also sung.[citation needed]
A major part of the Wigilia festivities is the opening of gifts. After everyone has finished supper the children often open their gifts and hand out the gifts for the adults from under the tree. The gift-givers in Polish tradition are "Święty Mikołaj" (Saint Nicolas), "Aniołek", an angel, "Gwiazdka", a star, "Dzieciątko" (Christkind) in Silesia, Saint Nicholas' feminine counterpart – or the Gwiazdor (masculine), which is either a pagan tradition or represents the little Star of Bethlehem. Saint Nicholas traditionally used to bring gifts on December 6. This varies and in some families Saint Nicholas brings presents both on the 6th and at Christmas.[citation needed]
The Christmas breakfast
Christmas Day is a national holiday in Poland and most Poles spend the day with their family. After Wigilia there are two more days of celebrations. Christmas breakfast often consists of scrambled eggs, cold cuts served with horseradish sauce, smoked or fried salmon, marinated salads, and cakes, especially, pierniki Toruńskie (a gingerbread), cake, and decorated biscuits.[citation needed]
Gallery
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Christmas waferopłateksymbolizing bread
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Barszcz with uszka, one of the traditional Wigilia entrées
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Rollmops, fish commonly served at Wigilia, important as a non-red-meat offering