Like many elements of France, Provence has traditions that return centuries. A lot of them encompass Christmas, a very powerful vacation of the yr. Let’s have a look at a number of.
Sainte-Barbe’s Wheat
The Provençal Christmas season begins on December 4, Saint Barbara’s day. That is when households fill three small dishes—three representing the Trinity—with moist cotton balls sprinkled with wheat seeds. These are stored moist within the hopes that the seeds will sprout.
Twenty days later, on December 24, if the wheat has grown straight and inexperienced, it’s stated there will probably be harvest the next yr. But when the wheat is sickly or bent over, be careful!
Nativity Scenes
Cities throughout France have nativity scenes, known as crèches, however in Provence they’re uniquely totally different. Right here you received’t discover Jesus, Mary, and Joseph surrounded by sensible males. As an alternative, the crèche provençal is crammed with santons, these lovable little collectible figurines that depict characters from village life just like the baker and the fishwife.
It’s because the show of crèches, like a lot of non secular life, was banned in the course of the French Revolution. So, a intelligent artist from Marseille invented santons and turned the crèche right into a “village scene” utilizing his collectible figurines as an alternative of the standard Biblical characters. Fortunately, the anti-religious zealots of the Revolution someway missed the truth that santon means “little saint.”
Parades
Parades happen throughout Provence in the course of the Christmas season, with songs performed on fifes and tambourines and townspeople in conventional gown. Particularly widespread is the woman’s Arlésienne outfit, a protracted, flowing gown with scarves over the shoulders, and hair pinned up.
Maybe probably the most entertaining parade is the bravade calendale of Aix-en-Provence. Right here you’ll see paraders prancing about dressed as dancing horses, and younger males with enormous flags, spinning and hurling them within the air like jugglers.
Aix should actually like parades as a result of on January 6 (Epiphany) they maintain a Three Kings parade the place sensible males and reside camels stroll down the primary thoroughfare—it’s extremely popular with children!
Meals
A standard Christmas dinner in Provence concludes with treize desserts (13 desserts.) Like many Christmas traditions, it is filled with non secular symbolism—13, for instance, represents the variety of individuals on the Final Supper.
As for what desserts to serve, every household decides for itself however fruits and nuts, candies, and a few kind of sweetened bread are normally included, plus calisson cookies from Aix. And plenty of households serve two sorts of nougat, one white and one black, to represent good and evil.
Learn extra concerning the 13 desserts of Provence
The Pastrage
Sheep have been part of Provençal life for millennia, and a lamb is usually used to represent the infant Jesus. In the course of the pastrage, a cortege of shepherds arrives at church with a child lamb, usually as a part of a midnight mass. The lamb is then positioned right into a nativity scene, with townspeople taking part in the assorted roles.
Keith Van Sickle splits his time between Provence and California. He’s the creator of An Insider’s Information to Provence, One Sip at a Time, and Are We French But? Learn extra at Life in Provence
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