IN SOUTH AFRICA
FOR THE MOST
PA R T, Y O U ' L L F I N D
FA M I L I E S E N J OY I N G
THEIR TRADITIONAL
CHRISTMAS DINNER
It doesn’t matter how but it happens. And
if you follow the Coptic Calendar as they
do in Egypt, you’ll be exchanging gifts
and getting merry on the 7th of January.
With such a large Christian community,
you’ll often find people attending Church
before they go on to celebrate Christmas
dinner with friends and family. This is
the norm in most countries, be they
religious or not. While some may forego
the Church part, it’s still about the spirit
of good will where the biggest gift of all
is sharing a meal with friends and family.
While the foundation is similar, different
countries in Africa still celebrate the
birth of Christ in their own way. The food
we are used to eating is a huge part of
cultural identity but regardless of race or
creed, mealtime has always been a way
of bringing people together.
In South Africa, for the more the most
part, you’ll always find families enjoying
their more traditional Christmas dinners
– sometimes even those with paper hats,
crackers filled with bad jokes, mince
pies, turkey and plum pudding – among
other things.
Compared to other countries, meal-wise,
Christmas is not complete in Ghana
without fufu and okra soup. For Liberia,
rice, beef and biscuits are the order of the
day. While in Zimbabwe, there's plenty
of bread, jam and tea to eat along with
their goat meat.
19
It’s truly inspiring that something simple
such as eating dinner can have the impact
that it does. Hopefully we can all agree
that the whole idea behind Christmas
is far more important than the way we
celebrate it. Looking all around the world
you can see that every culture, every
nation has taken the holiday and made
it theirs. This is no different in Africa.
There may not be snow, Santa Claus in
his sleigh, pulled across the night sky by
magical reindeer with Christmas carols
abound. It’s the notion of appreciating
togetherness, family and friends – this is
what’s important. This is what remains
constant...
Here's wishing you a happy, merry and
Magical Christmas from IMBO
In Akan (Ghana)
Afishapa
In Zulu (South Africa)
Sinifisela Ukhisimusi Omuhle
In Swazi (Swaziland)
Sinifisela Khisimusi Lomuhle
In Sotho (Lesthoto)
Matswalo a Morena a Mabotse
In Swahili (Tanzania, Kenya)
Kuwa na Krismasi njema
In Amharic (Ethiopia)
Melkam Yelidet Beaal
In Egyptian (Egypt)
Colo sana wintom tiebeen
In Yoruba (Nigeria)
E ku odun, e hu iye' dun!
By Litha Sontange
IMBO/ ISSUE 32/ '14