#syrianchristmas

 

A friend of mine shared her wish to start a hashtag #syrianchristmas  gathering food recipes and sharing traditions/customs  which we used to follow as Syrians back home.

Today we have spread all over the world and maybe a hashtag can gather some nice colorful memories online for curious souls  to know more about Syria and the Syrian ways of life.
I am excited to write about my part, as Christmas is one of my favorite seasons. I love December. I was born in December and the spirit of Joy spices my soul every year.

Christmas is a glorious season of the year. I love to share the simple joys of it and one of them is giving gifts. Lights and kindness are floating all over.

Suddenly everyone remembers to be kind, which is remarkable……
Finding the real joy of Christmas comes not in the hurrying and the scurrying to get more done but in the act of keeping traditions as well.
When you’re abroad and you get those kind of questions;
• How about your Christmas traditions back in your own country?
• It’s a Christian tradition why do you celebrate it , in the M.east? It’s a Muslim country.
• Why is your Christmas “as an Armenians” on the 6th and not 24th of December like the rest of the world?
•How do you celebrate? What do you eat?

In my blog I will try my best to be 100% true and based on facts , asking older generation to confirm my points and referring to my family and friends of family who kept the traditions for years ,  therefore I will not stereotype  Christians in Syria I will write about the  part  I come from, as an Armenian from Syria .
Please feel free to use your own versions and please share as much memories and recipes you know , remember and you still apply in your new homes . ……………….

In Syria you have a majority of Sunni Muslims with little group partitions ( Kurds, Druzes , Yazidis , ,Turkman , Ismailli , Alawi , Sunni Circassiansthen )
On the other hand, you may find  Christian minority groups Arabic-speaking Christians (Greek-Orthodox, Greek-Catholics, Maronites and a part of Syrian Catholics)
Assyrians (Catholics) and Syriacs (Orthodox) , Armenians ( Catholics and Orthodox) and Jews.

Syrian civil society is a remarkable patchwork. Therefore it’s important to understand and dig into the details in order to be able to comprehend the #SyrianChristmas
But then again I ask myself is Christmas more religious based ceremony or Christmas is a cultural event , but where do I come from church is very involved in the traditions . therefore I would call it  religion based Event .

I decided to put up a blog explaining the journey starting from 3rd of December. …….Read more
Then I will take you to a trip on 31st of December and 1st of January. ….. …….Read more  And the last article will be about 5th January Armenian christmas……… ….. …….Read more  
I will leave 24th Christmas eve for other friends who are able to express it in their own versions and community habits..  .
Recipes of traditional Dishes are from various sources online which will be mentioned and credited with modification from my Mom. based on how she does it. Every talent has its own secret.
Remember every community has habits and recipes but every house hold has its own Tradition as well, so welcome to mine