With a rich history intertwined with Swedish traditions, Santa has become a cherished guest in every Swedish home during the Christmas season. The tradition of welcoming Santa Claus in Sweden often involves leaving out a bowl of creamy rice pudding, known as risgrynsgröt, on the front porch.
So instead of leaving cookies and milk for Santa, you would leave rice pudding. It comes with a sweet red sauce, it's a delicious treat for both kids and adults, as well as Santa's favorite.
Jultomten. Jultomten, or just tomten, is the being who brings the gifts at Julafton (the evening of December 24). The gifts are called julklappar, and are probably a modern version of the Yule log. Jultomten does not climb down the chimney, he delivers the gifts in person.
It's a Norwegian tradition to bring a bowl of Nissegrøt, rice porridge, out to the barn for Fjøsnissen on Christmas Eve. Once fed, he will gladly take care of the farm and the livestock in return. If not – he'll be very offended, and may get up to mischief! Such as leaving the barn door wide open.
5 treats children leave for Santa around the world
What do Dutch children leave out for Santa?
Regardless, the custom has evolved over the centuries for Dutch children. Instead of leaving treats for Odin's eight-legged horse, they now set out carrots for Father Christmas' normally legged horse in return for gifts, much like the American version.
In Denmark, risengrød, a traditional rice porridge, is served on Christmas Eve as part of a folklore tradition. People leave a bowl of it out for the nisse, hoping to appease them and ensure good luck in the coming year.
Known as the "Nisse" in Norway and Denmark, the "Tomte" in Sweden, and the "Tonttu" in Finland, this figure is more than just a cheerful holiday mascot—it is a respected and sometimes temperamental guardian of the farmstead, believed to protect families, livestock, and property from misfortune.
The tomte ("homestead man"), gardvord ("farm guardian"), and tunkall ("yard fellow") bear names that associated them with the farmstead. The Finnish tonttu is also borrowed from Swedish tomte, but "later tradition no longer consider these identical".
A Swedish Gävle goat (Gävlebocken). The Yule goat in Nordic countries today is best known as a Christmas ornament. This modern version of the Yule goat figure is a decorative goat made out of straw and bound with red ribbons, a popular Christmas ornament often found under or on the Christmas tree.
Our version of Santa is a busy man and has a lot of kids that he needs to provide for each year. So our girls limit their ask of him to four items: something they want, something they need, something to read, and something to wear.
Children do not hang stockings but rather leave their shoes and slippers by the fireplace. If they have been good, Père Noël will leave treats in their shoes or slippers. Nowadays, he often also leaves piles of presents under the tree.
Julmust. Julmust (Swedish: jul "Christmas" and must English: 'must' "not-yet-fermented fruit juice") is a soft drink that is mainly consumed in Sweden around Christmas. During Easter, the name is påskmust (from påsk, "Easter"). During the rest of the year, it is sometimes sold under the name must.
A perfect example of this can be seen with the Sami in Sweden, for whom reindeer herding has been not only their livelihood but also the cornerstone of their culture. It is not entirely known when the Sami began the herding and use of reindeer.
Tomte is a charming character from Swedish folklore who rules over their household with an iron thumb. Traditionally, tomten are known to wear grey robes and a woolly red hat. They may look like gnomes, but don't let that fool you, tomten have many more duties than their holiday creature lookalikes.
Since the 19th century, the word krake have, beyond the monster, given name to the cephalopod order Octopoda in Swedish (krakar) and German (Kraken), resulting in many species of octopuses partly named such, such as the common octopus (Octopus vulgaris), which is named jättekrake ("giant kraken") in Swedish and ...
The name “Joulupukki” literally means “Christmas Goat,” harking back to ancient pagan traditions that existed long before Christianity arrived in Finland. Back then, the Yule Goat was a symbol of fertility and was part of winter solstice celebrations.
In the 1840s the farm's Nisse became the bearer of Christmas presents in Scandinavia, and was then called "Julenisse" and has been associated with Christmas ever since.
In a less than poetic turn of phrase, Father Christmas/Santa Claus is named Julemanden in Danish (literally: The Christmas Man), and he is assisted by a group of Nisse, a sort of naughty elf that has a lot in common with the American 'elf on the shelf' (some people say they are the original version).
British diplomat Andrew Overton notes that "British children will often leave out a mince pie and a nip of sherry to brace Father Christmas for the chill." In Ireland, things get jollier with a pint of Guinness (and that splash of whiskey that Mrs. Claus has ready when Santa gets home).
So, historically, Santa visits the South Pacific first, then New Zealand and Australia. After that, he shoots up to Japan, over to Asia, across to Africa, then onto Western Europe, Canada, the United States, Mexico and Central and South America.
