Skip to main content

A Visit by Swiss Santa

If there is one ingredient of Christmas that has spread all around the globe by now, it's the person of Santa Claus, Papa Noël, Père Noël or Father Christmas which are all loosely based on the historic figure of Saint Nicholas. In Switzerland, this figure is called 'Samichlaus' and despite the obvious similarities to the other Santa Claus versions, the Swiss Christmas tradition involving his visit is quite different.

The Swiss Santa Claus Tradition

Unlike in the United States or other places around the globe, Santa Claus visits Switzerland not on the 24th of December but on the 6th of December. He also does not bring gifts but a huge bag filled with chocolates, peanuts and mandarines for everyone to share. However, not everyone is allowed to dig in!

Let me explain, how the Santa tradition in Switzerland works. In the evening of December 6th the Samichlaus visits every family with his helper 'Schmutzli' which literally translates to 'dirty one'. This helper is usually dressed in all black clothes and appears with a blackened face.

Unlike in other countries, Santa actually knocks on the door and is invited in. Maybe Swiss chimneys are simply to narrow for him to climb down?! Sometimes, Santa even has a donkey with him that carries his bag of treats.

A Good or a Bad Report

Once inside, the Samichlaus orders his helper to put down the big bag with the treats and open it to show everyone what he has brought with him. He then calls up everyone present one by one and gives them a report on how they behaved during the last year. The parents usually tell Santa beforehand about each child present. He'll praise children for doing their homework or always helping their parents but he'll also give hints in which areas they still have to improve.

After receiving their report, every child can try to improve their standing with Santa by reciting a Christmas or Santa related poem. A good report and a good poem will get a child a big handful of treats. A bad report and a bad poem usually lead to a reprimand by Samichlaus and in severe cases even endanger you of receiving blows from Santa's helper or being stuck into Santa's bag and carried off with him. At least, that's what we were told as children. Promises to do better next year usually save you from that.

Santa also gives a report to parents and grown ups but usually in a rather funny way which is not to be taken too seriously! So I hope you behaved this year and will receive treats and not be carried off!

Santa Claus - Alwin Gasser  / pixelio.de







© 2011 IRENE WYRSCH "A HUMOROUS GUIDE TO SWITZERLAND" ALL RIGHTS RESERVED


Labels:

Comments

  1. UnknownDecember 1, 2016 at 11:29 PM

    Hope my baby will see sta claus this x mas.....sta..pleas come..Danke..👏👏👏👏👏👏

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

You have something to add or would like to ask a question? I would love to hear from you!

Popular posts from this blog

A Typical Swiss Birthday Party

Birthday Cake - Helene Souza  / pixelio.de My son and I recently attended a birthday party here in Cocachimba , Peru. It was the birthday of one of the kids in the village and since it's such a small place, almost everyone is invited. To be honest, I don't like going to children's birthday parties - or grown up's birthday parties - because there is usually too much noise and fuss and chaos. My husband usually takes it on himself to accompany our son to these birthdays but this time he was away so I had to step in. If you've never been to a Peruvian birthday party, let me tell you one thing: it's loud and crowded! There is dancing and food and once in a while people are trying to say something above the deafening noise of the music. I guess, if you grew up with this it's probably normal and enjoyable but for me it was way too much noise. I could see all the children's ear go deaf in my minds eyes. Argh. Probably one of those cultural differences you
3 comments
Read more

How to Spot a Swiss Person

As an expat one usually spots fellow expats right away. It's not only the language or the looks of people but rather the little peculiarities of life that seem so normal at home that give us away while abroad. Obviously, it's a cliche that all people from the same place (country, city, continent) behave in the same way and I am far from making that claim. However, growing up in a certain surrounding does rub off on people's behavior and some similarities can certainly be observed. This is also true for Swiss people. According to the Swiss stereotype, we are a clean, punctual and strictly organized people.  However, there are many exceptions like my Swiss friend who is always late or my brother whose room was a total mess while growing up. Yet, although they do not fit the description of a typical Swiss person, they still have some traits that give them away as Swiss. The same is probably true for myself - if I like it or not. 10 Signs you are dealing with a Swiss Person
13 comments
Read more

Schätzli, Schnüggel and Müüsli - Terms of Endearment in Swiss German

Kiss -  Oliver Haja  / pixelio.de If you've ever been invited to the home of a Swiss couple, you are probably familiar with the most popular Swiss German term of endearment "Schätzli" ('little treasure') or one of it's many varieties like e.g. "Schatz" or "Schätzeli" . Obviously, this is not the only pet name used by Swiss couples (or parents for that matter). Like many other languages, Swiss German offers a wide variety of words and phrases that you can use to address your loved one. Swiss German Terms of Endearment What most of these pet names have in common is the ending "-li" which basically turns the thing or person a word refers to into something small or cute. For example "Haus" means house and "Hüüs li " means small house. Plus, this ending "-li" can also be added to first names as a means of endearment, e.g. Benjamin li , Esther li or Fabienne li . I tried to come up with a colle
2 comments
Read more