Christmas Traditions of Japan.

Christmas Traditions of Japan.

Christmas in Japan is quite different from the Christmas celebrated in most countries.

Japanese people are great lovers of festivals and celebrations, including Christmas.

December 25th is not a national holiday in Japan, although December 23rd, which is the birthdate of the present emperor, is. Although it is not an official holiday the Japanese tend to celebrate Christmas, especially in a commercial way. The Japanese celebrate Christmas Eve by eating a 'Christmas Cake' which the father of the family purchases on his way home from work (or his wife does in the case where he has to work on Christmas Eve).

In recent years, thanks to the marketing prowess of the folks at Kentucky Fried Chicken, the Christmas Chicken Dinner has become quite popular. Many Japanese even make reservations for their "Christmas Chicken" ahead of time. People line up at their outlets to pick up their orders. As a result of KFC's brilliant advertising campaign, most Japanese now believe that Westerners celebrate Christmas with a chicken dinner instead of the more common ham or turkey.

Christmas presents are exchanged between people with romantic commitments as well as close friends. The presents tend to be 'cute' presents and often include Teddy Bears, flowers, scarves, rings and other jewelry. Christmas cards are also given to close friends.

Christmas lighting and displays are often up at the end of October and this year many stores have displays featuring Teddy Bears. There is also a trend developing for make-it-yourself presents.
The New Year's holidays, which constitute the main holiday season for the Japanese, come closer to the American-European idea of assembling family and friends. Christmas seems to be closer to the Western concept of St.Valentine's Day.