December is a celebration month. The celebration starts from the end of November on ‘Thanksgiving’. It continues throughout the whole month and ends up on the New Year. January 1st is the New Year according to the English calendar. Different countries and different cultures have various ways of celebrating the New Year. Spain has an amazing New Year’s gift-giving customs and traditions.
1) Christmas Tradition in Spain- Christmas starts a little early in Spain. On 22nd December, the radio calls out the lucky numbers of Spain’s famous lottery ‘Loteria de Navidad’. It also announces the Prizes. That denotes the beginning of Christmas. After the economic celebration, they have their annual lunch on the 24th December eve. They also attend ‘Misa Del Gallo’. Here, the Churches celebrate the holy spirits with Christmas Carol and traditional instruments. The popular figure Santa Claus is famous as Papa Noel in Spain. The Santa Claus tradition is a new one where the Santa presents gifts to children on Christmas eve. Other than Santa Claus, local-Spanish figures of Christmas are Olentzero and Aragon (Catalonia). There is another special event near Christmas in Spain. That is on 28th December, known as ‘Dia de Los Santos Inocentes’. Spanish commemorate this day for the innocent victims of a Massacre. Governor of Judea, Herodes ordered for this massacre. The tradition of celebrating this occasion is likewise the April fool’s day. It is the Spanish Prank-stars day. On the New Year’s evening, they all gather under the old clock tower in Spain as a part of an ancient tradition. The Spanish people wolf down 12 grapes to pray for the good fortune in the coming year. Their celebration ends on 5th January, ‘Roscon de Reyes’ or ‘Epiphany’ with a sweet tradition. Christmas in Spain is a festival of lights-decoration and gifts. Online sites remain busy during this time for Christmas gift delivery.
2) Gift Etiquette for Holiday. – Spain being a cultural and rich country, it has its unique traditions and customs. One of these is the gift etiquette. There is a personal gift-giving etiquette. When one gets an invitation to a Spanish house party, one has to present the host/hostess a gift. The gift might be chocolate or sweet desserts along with high-quality wine. Flowers as a gift must be of the odd number except thirteen. One should avoid dahlia, white lilies, and red rose from presenting. Business etiquette differs from personal gift-giving etiquette. The exchange of gifts takes place at the conclusion of successful business negotiations. Business gifts should not be expensive as it sends the wrong vibe to the recipient. A bottle of quality wine will be the best business gift. Except for a pen or desk accessory, no gifts should carry the company logo. From early December to early January, the whole of Spain celebrates the holiday season. And this long festive season includes several occasions. The exchange of gifts takes place in common. One can find the best holiday gift ideas at any gift shop. They are very famous in Spain for gift delivery on various occasions.
December has already arrived. The season of occasions and celebrations has begun. You should start sending gifts to celebrate festivals in the Spanish way.
