Nowadays, Christmas is light, music and spectacle, gifts, and a great deal of emotion in the relationships between people, in companies and families. This frenzy lasts throughout the whole Christmas season, with a special holiday period established to celebrate this date, and even a bonus, to feed the commercial intensity that builds around this moment.
It was not always so, and the symbols associated with these days were adapted, taking on different ways of celebrating, starting with the meal usually prepared to mark these festivities, which varies according to the times and the geographies.
Many centuries ago, in antiquity, these festivities were pagan in nature and coincided with the winter solstice, for it was then that the arrival of winter was celebrated. People practised the cult of the Sun God with the aim of renewal, the time when the days begin to grow longer again.
From the 4th century, and with the consolidation of the Catholic Church in Rome, the festivity was officially established as the Nativity of Christ, that is, the birth of Jesus. As the exact day of Jesus’s birth is not known, this was a way of Christianising the Roman pagan festivals, giving them a new symbolism. Since then, Christmas has been celebrated in many countries, usually marked by the celebration of renewal and birth.
When we speak of the birth of Christ, the image most present in our minds is the nativity scene, which after all depicts the setting where the child Jesus was born, where we recognise the elements that appear in it: the Holy Family, made up of Jesus, Joseph and Mary, the three wise men, the angel and the star. It was in the 13th century, in Italy, that Saint Francis wished to recreate the scene of Jesus’s birth to explain to the people how it might have happened.
The three wise men went in search of Jesus to worship him and bring him gifts. This religious tradition also inspires the custom of exchanging gifts at Christmas, although today commerce has given new meanings to this practice. The stars on the tops of Christmas trees are precisely the sign followed by the wise men to find the place where Jesus had been born.
Although they are called kings, the three wise men were in fact learned men who travelled from their lands to visit and worship the child Jesus. Melchior came from Europe, Caspar from Asia and Balthazar from Africa, the lands known at the time, since the Americas had not yet been discovered. The gifts offered by the wise men each carry a symbolism, an identification and the recognition of Jesus as King.
The gold, offered by Melchior, represents royalty. Gold was used as an offering to the gods. The frankincense, offered by Caspar, represents divinity. Frankincense was used in acts of purification. The myrrh, offered by Balthazar, represents the human aspects of Jesus. Myrrh was used as a medicine.
In Spain, the most traditional exchange gifts on Epiphany (Three Kings’ Day) and not at Christmas. In the late afternoon of the 5th, the celebrations begin, with parades featuring traditional costumes, floats, wigs and make-up.
In Portugal, many people take down the Christmas tree on Epiphany, marking the end of the festive season. There is the tradition of the bolo-rei ("king cake"), a cake with crystallised fruit containing a broad bean inside. Whoever gets the bean must provide the cake the following year. From door to door, many people sing "as janeiras", popular Christmas songs tied to the Christian tradition.
The Christmas tree is one of the most famous symbols of the Christmas celebration. The custom of decorating trees comes from ancient European traditions and gained strength in medieval Germany. There, people set up the "Paradise tree", inspired by the Garden of Eden, and decorated it with apples and fruit. Christmas takes place in the European winter, and the pine is the tree most used in this celebration; because it withstands the cold, it symbolises hope and peace.
The figure of Father Christmas is inspired by Saint Nicholas, a Turkish bishop who lived in antiquity, and also carries strong symbolism in this Christmas season. Over time, and through writers such as Washington Irving (1783–1850) and advertising campaigns, the figure of Saint Nicholas gained new features and gave way to what we know today as Father Christmas. Instead of coins, the kindly old man leaves gifts for the children who behave well throughout the year.
Here, we continue to celebrate Christmas as a time dedicated to family, with the "bacalhau com todos" (cod with all the trimmings) at the table on Christmas Eve, or stuffed turkey depending on the region, along with family games and togetherness, such as the timeless game of Rapa and the exchange of gifts.
In Arcos de Valdevez, too, a visit to the Enchanted Forest at Porta do Mezio is becoming a tradition, with various surprises and activities for all ages, from music and theatre to spaces dedicated to the little ones, guaranteeing moments of joy and togetherness.
Carvalha House is here to warmly welcome all those who visit the region in this very special period.
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