Ruaan Nel
Slava or The Celebration
In Serbia, which is a small eastern European country, they are Orthodox-Christians, and they have a holiday called Slava or The celebration. It is not the same date for everybody. Some celebrate it on January 20th. Every house has a saint as a protector. It is similar to ancient Greeks, who had old Greek gods as protectors of their house.
Friends and cousins come over for the feast that is prepared to celebrate their saint. The guests bring presents for the hosts. It is usually a drink, chocolate, flowers, and a household item like a toaster or something similar. The people that come to your celebration are the same ones that you go to when it’s their time to celebrate.
Christmas and Chinese New Year
Chinese [people have] a different style of celebrating New Year. They are Christians, so they celebrate Christmas, but as a family, they have a bigger gift-giving tradition during Chinese New Year usually around early February.
It’s a celebration that lasts for two whole weeks! It’s a festive time, especially for kids and kids at heart, who receive what’s called an Ang Pao from the elders. It’s basically a small red envelope that contains money. Traditionally, the amount will depend on the age of the person. [The amount] also cannot be in odd numbers, as they are saved for funerals. Multiples of six or eight are considered lucky numbers.
Jack Miller
Jack Miller is the founder of How I Get Rid Of. He is a home improvement and pest control expert with more than 15 years of experience.
Liam Scout
Diwali or Deepawali
India has a great festival called Diwali or Deepawali, where they exchange gifts during the day and burst crackers during the evening until late at night. The day celebrates a Hindu God Rama’s victory over the evil spirit Ravana.
Christmas and Eid al-Fitr
A popular holiday around the world that involves gift-giving is Christmas, which is celebrated in December of every year. People wrap gifts in green and red to share with their neighbors, strangers, family, and friends. These gifts are mostly placed under the family Christmas tree on Christmas Eve as a surprise to family members.
Eid al-Fitr is a Muslim holiday that commemorates the end of Ramadan and is celebrated all around the world. Gift-giving is encouraged among Muslims, and Christians also give gifts like fruit hampers, flowers, food baskets, etc., to Muslims during Ramadan as part of the celebration.
Adanna Jideofor
Lucas Travis
Monito Monita
In the Philippines, there is a counterpart of what Americans [know as] Secret Santa. At Christmas, they have what they call Monito Monita. They receive gifts from an anonymous colleague or relative [for] a week. At the end of the week, they meet and give the last gift also revealing their Monito and Monita.
The Christmas Season
[Christmas] is around the world’s gift season. It is not complete without presents under that Christmas tree, right? When December comes, people are busy doing gift shopping. The rush shopping happens every day during this month.
Robert Johnson
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