Costa Rica's Christmas traditions and cultural practices

Costa Rica's Christmas

How is Christmas in Costa Rica Different from the United States

Using information about Christmas in Costa Rica in the article "A Tica Christmas" written by Michael L. Smith, this paper compares Christmas in this country to Christmas in the United States (U.S.).

Gift Giving

In the U.S. families exchange gifts on Christmas day and children awake to find presents they believe Santa Claus has delivered. However, in Costa Rica, the family opens their gifts at midnight on December 24. The children believe their gifts have been brought by Baby Jesus rather than Saint Nicholas, although his presence is beginning to emerge in this country.

The Portal vs. The Manager

The manger scene is referred to as the portal in Costa Rica. Like Americans, Costa Ricans include the traditional figures of Mary, Joseph, Baby Jesus, etc. However, Costs Ricans also include offerings such as dolls, toys, fruits and berries. In the U.S., the manger scene typically has a special place near the Christmas tree where religious family members bless it each year on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. The Costa Rican portal may start out small and sit under the tree, but it can also grow quite large to occupy an entire room. Although outdoor manger scenes in the U.S. can be quite large, they are typically always small indoors. Costa Ricans also have an interesting tradition that doesn't exist in the U.S.; families who don't own a home must use a portal that has been received as a gift -- then the holy family will help them get a house of their own.

Also, unlike the U.S., Baby Jesus isn't placed in the nativity until the night before Christmas.

The Christmas Feast

Both Americans and Costa Ricans enjoy their Christmas feast on December 25. but, what they eat is entirely different. A traditional Christmas dinner in the U.S. features turkey with stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, vegetables and plum pudding or pie for dessert. Traditional Christmas foods in Costa Rica, on the other hand, include the tamal (corn flour dough stuffed with potatoes, vegetables and pork or chicken, then boiled in plantain leaves); pupusa (tortilla with cheese, corn and whatever); vigoron (cabbage, tomato, yucca and fried pork rind, served on a plantain leaf); and grilled pork, chicken and sausage. Many Costa Ricans also eat the traditional U.S. Christmas meal, but insist on their traditional tomal.

The Christmas Tree

Costa Ricans decorate fragrant cypress trees with ornaments and lights. Sometimes they use the dried branches of coffee shrubs or a large evergreen branch instead. In addition, they adorn their trees with white paint, brightly colored strips of paper, small figures, and place and they place a gold star on top of the tree. Americans use fir, spruce or pine for their trees, but decorate the trees in similar ways.

Religious Influence on Celebrations