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Keeping Christmas: Yuletide Traditions in Norway and the New Land
Few Norwegian Americans know the origins of the treasured customs they use to celebrate the holiday. Kathleen Stokker's Keeping Christmas: Yuletide Traditions in Norway and the New Land brings home the stories of these practices. Norwegian immigrants carried with them centuries-old folk traditions, which they held especially dear at Christmas time, remembering family members left behind. But in the United States, the immigrants and their descendants met the newly evolving traditions of the commercial American Christmas, a powerful homogenizing force in a nation of immigrants. And the celebration of Christmas in Norway continued to evolve as well, as the holiday - influenced in the twentieth century by American practices - became more child-centered and more commercial. Stokker describes and traces the development of folkways on both sides of the ocean, from their origins to their practice today.
379 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
November 20, 2013
This is a superb book about Norwegian and Norwegian-American Christmas traditions.
Norway was once the greatest power in Northern Europe. But a series of failed wars, conquests, and the move of its royal family onto the throne of Denmark left Norway a backwater and part of Sweden. Much of its indigenous culture was close to being lost, swamped by Denmark and Sweden. In the 1750s, a huge resurgence of Norwegian culture occurred, and this strengthened significantly in the mid 1800s through the work of composers like Edvard Grieg, playwrights like Henrik Ibsen, and authors like Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Knut Hamsun, and Sigrid Undset. The first Norwegian university was established in 1811.
Norway won its independence from Sweden in 1905, the first time in 586 years that the country had its freedom.
During the latter half of the 1800s, a huge wave of Norwegian immigration to the United States occurred. Many Norwegians were fleeing the repressive police state imposed by Sweden. But Norwegian society was deeply conservative, socially. Sweden had kept Norway undeveloped, and most Norwegians worked as farmers or fishermen. Norwegian cities were small, and the country ruled by an elite, well-educated class. (There wasn't even a wealthy industrial socio-economic class in Norway.) Many Norwegian immigrants sought the same peasant life in America, and settled as farmeers in the cold Midwest and upper Great Plains and the rainy and cool Pacific Northwest.
Norwegians came to America during a period of great transition for both Norway and the United States. American Christmas traditions were rapidly shifting toward far more commercialized, gift-centered, and Christmas Tree-oriented celebrations. Norwegian-Americans were leaving a country which had nearly lost its indigenous culture, one where Christmas traditions -- where they still existed -- were not tightly held to and poorly remembered.
Norwegian-Americans wanted to deeply embrace American culture, having had such a weak hold on their own indigenous culture. But American cultural traditions were in such flux, what could they embrace?
This is the conundrum confronted by author Kathleen Stokker. She has two problems to confront. The first is to identify indigenous Norwegian Christmas traditions, and put them down on paper for the first time. Many of these traditions were nearly lost, and others are now deeply infected with modern Christmas practices which have spilled over from Scandinavia, central Europe, and the United States. Many of these traditions are also quite varied. (Look at the traditional "twelve cookies of Christmas" which households bake in Norway. But which 12 cookies??? There must be 30 different lists!)
Furthermore, Stokker really can't look to Norwegian-Americans for information, because they tended to keep so few of their native cultural traditions and because they so strongly embraced those shifting American traditions. Picking apart the braided traditions kept by Norwegian-American families is quite difficult, because it's so hard to determine what was "indigenous" to either Norway or America, and what was modern versus traditional.
I'll say this, however: Stokker does a super job. There are literally hundreds of Norwegian Christmas traditions. Her book is largely ordered by importance, it seems. Those traditions which are more central to the Norwegian Christmas -- such as singing songs around the Christmas tree, or the koldtbrod ("cold buffet"), or the julenisse -- are presented first, as are those traditions which tend to be more widely adopted throughout Norway. Toward the back of the book are those traditions which lack good documentation, which are regional rather than national, and which are less central or more modern.
Each tradition is presented with some background on why the tradition was important in Norwegian society. For Norwegian-Americans, this is critically important. It's often difficult for an urban American who buys groceries at the supermarket to understand how seasonal work in Norway was, what kind of lead-times had to go in to the prepartion of meats and fish and cheese, how much work was required in order to create "time off" or "holidays", and how community-oriented Norwegian village life was. Stokker then discusses how modern Norwegians have abandoned, adapted, or retained the tradition, and then looks at how Nowegian-Americans did the same.
One of the best parts of the book are the great recipes which Stokker includes. Norwegian Christmas is all about cookies and cakes. But as a largely impoverished society without access to modern baking materials (like baking soda or yeast), Norwegians had to create their own unique baked goods. Moist baked goods, which spoiled easily, where uncommon and tended to be small (so they could be eaten quickly rather than stored). Stokker also includes good lists of the typical things a Norwegian family might eat. You won't get a recipe for sylte (head cheese), but you will know when during the season it was created and eaten.
Sprinkled throughout the book are great quotes and tidbits from famous Norwegian writers and diarists, modern and not. These help give a real sense of how these Christmas traditions were celebrated in both Norway and the United States, and help give the book a vitality and sense of the immediate and real that it otherwise would lack.
The book is full of pictures, and the layout is pretty good.
For anyone interested in both the Christmas traditions of Norway as well as Norwegian-Americans, I think this is a nigh-definitive text.
Norway was once the greatest power in Northern Europe. But a series of failed wars, conquests, and the move of its royal family onto the throne of Denmark left Norway a backwater and part of Sweden. Much of its indigenous culture was close to being lost, swamped by Denmark and Sweden. In the 1750s, a huge resurgence of Norwegian culture occurred, and this strengthened significantly in the mid 1800s through the work of composers like Edvard Grieg, playwrights like Henrik Ibsen, and authors like Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Knut Hamsun, and Sigrid Undset. The first Norwegian university was established in 1811.
Norway won its independence from Sweden in 1905, the first time in 586 years that the country had its freedom.
During the latter half of the 1800s, a huge wave of Norwegian immigration to the United States occurred. Many Norwegians were fleeing the repressive police state imposed by Sweden. But Norwegian society was deeply conservative, socially. Sweden had kept Norway undeveloped, and most Norwegians worked as farmers or fishermen. Norwegian cities were small, and the country ruled by an elite, well-educated class. (There wasn't even a wealthy industrial socio-economic class in Norway.) Many Norwegian immigrants sought the same peasant life in America, and settled as farmeers in the cold Midwest and upper Great Plains and the rainy and cool Pacific Northwest.
Norwegians came to America during a period of great transition for both Norway and the United States. American Christmas traditions were rapidly shifting toward far more commercialized, gift-centered, and Christmas Tree-oriented celebrations. Norwegian-Americans were leaving a country which had nearly lost its indigenous culture, one where Christmas traditions -- where they still existed -- were not tightly held to and poorly remembered.
Norwegian-Americans wanted to deeply embrace American culture, having had such a weak hold on their own indigenous culture. But American cultural traditions were in such flux, what could they embrace?
This is the conundrum confronted by author Kathleen Stokker. She has two problems to confront. The first is to identify indigenous Norwegian Christmas traditions, and put them down on paper for the first time. Many of these traditions were nearly lost, and others are now deeply infected with modern Christmas practices which have spilled over from Scandinavia, central Europe, and the United States. Many of these traditions are also quite varied. (Look at the traditional "twelve cookies of Christmas" which households bake in Norway. But which 12 cookies??? There must be 30 different lists!)
Furthermore, Stokker really can't look to Norwegian-Americans for information, because they tended to keep so few of their native cultural traditions and because they so strongly embraced those shifting American traditions. Picking apart the braided traditions kept by Norwegian-American families is quite difficult, because it's so hard to determine what was "indigenous" to either Norway or America, and what was modern versus traditional.
I'll say this, however: Stokker does a super job. There are literally hundreds of Norwegian Christmas traditions. Her book is largely ordered by importance, it seems. Those traditions which are more central to the Norwegian Christmas -- such as singing songs around the Christmas tree, or the koldtbrod ("cold buffet"), or the julenisse -- are presented first, as are those traditions which tend to be more widely adopted throughout Norway. Toward the back of the book are those traditions which lack good documentation, which are regional rather than national, and which are less central or more modern.
Each tradition is presented with some background on why the tradition was important in Norwegian society. For Norwegian-Americans, this is critically important. It's often difficult for an urban American who buys groceries at the supermarket to understand how seasonal work in Norway was, what kind of lead-times had to go in to the prepartion of meats and fish and cheese, how much work was required in order to create "time off" or "holidays", and how community-oriented Norwegian village life was. Stokker then discusses how modern Norwegians have abandoned, adapted, or retained the tradition, and then looks at how Nowegian-Americans did the same.
One of the best parts of the book are the great recipes which Stokker includes. Norwegian Christmas is all about cookies and cakes. But as a largely impoverished society without access to modern baking materials (like baking soda or yeast), Norwegians had to create their own unique baked goods. Moist baked goods, which spoiled easily, where uncommon and tended to be small (so they could be eaten quickly rather than stored). Stokker also includes good lists of the typical things a Norwegian family might eat. You won't get a recipe for sylte (head cheese), but you will know when during the season it was created and eaten.
Sprinkled throughout the book are great quotes and tidbits from famous Norwegian writers and diarists, modern and not. These help give a real sense of how these Christmas traditions were celebrated in both Norway and the United States, and help give the book a vitality and sense of the immediate and real that it otherwise would lack.
The book is full of pictures, and the layout is pretty good.
For anyone interested in both the Christmas traditions of Norway as well as Norwegian-Americans, I think this is a nigh-definitive text.
December 14, 2021
Not one for me to read straight through. Skimmed and will use for reference.
July 19, 2017
I was a bit disappointed with this book. First, it had been stolen from our local library. We are a strong Norwegian community, and either someone couldn't part with it, or truly lost it. Anyway, it was 6 months before the library got another copy.
It didn't quite live up to my high expectations and anticipation. It was good, thoroughly covered the customs as they are in Norway, and as they developed in Norwegian America. But it was a very dry read. I could only read bits and pieces at a time and I'd hoped it would be a gateway to a lot of memories for me. Much too much of documentary for that. It is a good resource.
It didn't quite live up to my high expectations and anticipation. It was good, thoroughly covered the customs as they are in Norway, and as they developed in Norwegian America. But it was a very dry read. I could only read bits and pieces at a time and I'd hoped it would be a gateway to a lot of memories for me. Much too much of documentary for that. It is a good resource.
February 4, 2016
This is an excellent reference book, and I know I will use it many times in the future. Trying to read this cover-to-cover would be rather dull, but I don't think the author intended her readers to do that.
January 27, 2021
This is a wonderful read for Christmas and since I purchased it I may read it again next Christmas. They gave up many of their customs and are now sad about it and trying to get them back so many go to Norway every year for Christmas. There are some good recipes and some suggestions about them as no one bothered to write them down exactly.
January 30, 2020
This book is interesting in parts, especially where it traces the origins of many traditions to early Viking and peasant cultures. However, I did read this book cover-to-cover as many here have suggested not doing. I would echo that suggestions as the book became somewhat repetitive and dry.
December 18, 2023
AN INFORMATIVE HISTORY AND OVERVIEW OF NORWEGIAN CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS
Author and professor Kathleen Stokker wrote in the Preface to this 2000 book, “Norway is a prosperous, industrialized country increasingly attracting international attention for its admirable leadership in areas as diverse as commerce, diplomacy, and social legislation… notwithstanding, at the core of Norway’s unique identity lie centuries of folklore. To forget this distinctive heritage … would be to miss the country’s soul. Norway’s rich folkloric heritage undergirds the country’s celebration of Christmas, to which Norwegians devote unexcelled spirit and sparkle. My own curiosity about the background of their yuletide practices, along with queries from students and the general public, have prompted this book.” (Pg. ix)
She states in the Introduction, “During the second half of the nineteenth century, emigrating Norwegians brought to America a Christmas that had evolved through the centuries… Once in America, the Norwegian immigrants encountered new Christmas ‘traditions’ that had, in fact, only recently begun… America needed its own Christmas ritual, one that could bind together the increasingly varied ethnic groups housed within the borders of the new nation. Characterized by Santa Claus, the Christmas tree, and gift giving, this uniquely American celebration evolved about the same time as the heaviest waves of Norwegian immigrants were arriving on American shores… Christmas reveals better than any other aspect of Norwegian American culture forces of evolution, preservation, and assimilation that faced the Norwegians as they made their new home on American soil. Certain Norwegian Christmas traditions remain … the ones through which the immigrants revealed their deepest feelings about adjusting to American culture.” (Pg. xv-xvi)
She explains, “Though fasting itself has disappeared from today’s Norway, a significant feature of this centuries-old practice remains: the pre-Christmas lutefisk dinner… during the weeks before Christmas, Norwegian restaurants report record consumption of the gelatinous white cod… Scandinavia’s last Catholic archbishop, Olaus Magnus, described its preparation… [as] a two-day lye soaking … follow[ed] by a fresh water rinse… The lye or ‘lute’ (potassium carbonate), from which the dish gets its name, was most commonly obtained by boiling the ash of deciduous trees in water… The process also results in controversy: people either love lutefisk or they hate it. There is no middle ground.” (Pg.20-21)
She recounts, “Arriving in Norway on the thirteenth day of December, tourists might find some Norwegians celebrating Santa Lucia… The tradition is associated with a second-century Sicilian saint who died a martyr’s death… The Catholic Church conferred sainthood on her, and she soon gained tremendous popularity, assisted perhaps by the resemblance of her name to ‘lux,’ the Latin word for light.” (Pg. 44-45)
She asks, “But where did the Christmas tree come from? To Norway it came via Denmark from Germany,,, Though the Christmas tree itself arrived in Norway relatively late, Norwegian culture incorporated trees into its earliest myths and rituals… The Christmas tree … had by World War II become Norway’s most important yuletide decoration… Which decorations on a modern Christmas tree would identify it as Norwegian? … Norwegian flags found a place on the Christmas tree… [which] also featured Christmas baskets… shaped like cones and hearts… Straws bent and sewn in various configurations is the third of the characteristically Scandinavian Christmas tree ornaments…” (Pg. 64-66)
She reports, “Sudden pounding on the door… announces the arrival of the ‘julebukker’… neighborhood children disguised in … masks and costumes. Before being invited in, they might sing a song or provide other entertainment. Once inside, the julebukkers receive candy, cookies, and other Christmas treats… Those being visited … try to discover the masqueraders’ identity, but will usually not find out … before the still-masked children proceed to another home.” (Pg. 92)
She notes, “The gap between the child-centered Christmas adopted during the nineteenth century … and the Christmas celebrated by immigrants of peasant stock had begun to narrow. As more and more immigrants began… adopting the Christmas tree and finally Santa Claus, they also realized that their customary celebration would not last…” (Pg. 156)
Later, adds, “The changing attitude (besides disgust) that celebrants express toward [lutefisk] can actually provide insights into the changing nature of Norwegian American ethnicity. During the nineteenth century … immigrants ate lutefisk… because Christmas should be marked by special foods as a continuation of Old Country ways. [There was an] ebb of ethnic interest in the 1930s to 1950s… By the 1970s abnd1980s, Norwegian Americans were going out of their way to find lutefisk and were eating it in conscious remembrance of their humble beginnings.” (Pg. 293)
This book will be “must reading” for anyone interested in such Norwegian customs.
Author and professor Kathleen Stokker wrote in the Preface to this 2000 book, “Norway is a prosperous, industrialized country increasingly attracting international attention for its admirable leadership in areas as diverse as commerce, diplomacy, and social legislation… notwithstanding, at the core of Norway’s unique identity lie centuries of folklore. To forget this distinctive heritage … would be to miss the country’s soul. Norway’s rich folkloric heritage undergirds the country’s celebration of Christmas, to which Norwegians devote unexcelled spirit and sparkle. My own curiosity about the background of their yuletide practices, along with queries from students and the general public, have prompted this book.” (Pg. ix)
She states in the Introduction, “During the second half of the nineteenth century, emigrating Norwegians brought to America a Christmas that had evolved through the centuries… Once in America, the Norwegian immigrants encountered new Christmas ‘traditions’ that had, in fact, only recently begun… America needed its own Christmas ritual, one that could bind together the increasingly varied ethnic groups housed within the borders of the new nation. Characterized by Santa Claus, the Christmas tree, and gift giving, this uniquely American celebration evolved about the same time as the heaviest waves of Norwegian immigrants were arriving on American shores… Christmas reveals better than any other aspect of Norwegian American culture forces of evolution, preservation, and assimilation that faced the Norwegians as they made their new home on American soil. Certain Norwegian Christmas traditions remain … the ones through which the immigrants revealed their deepest feelings about adjusting to American culture.” (Pg. xv-xvi)
She explains, “Though fasting itself has disappeared from today’s Norway, a significant feature of this centuries-old practice remains: the pre-Christmas lutefisk dinner… during the weeks before Christmas, Norwegian restaurants report record consumption of the gelatinous white cod… Scandinavia’s last Catholic archbishop, Olaus Magnus, described its preparation… [as] a two-day lye soaking … follow[ed] by a fresh water rinse… The lye or ‘lute’ (potassium carbonate), from which the dish gets its name, was most commonly obtained by boiling the ash of deciduous trees in water… The process also results in controversy: people either love lutefisk or they hate it. There is no middle ground.” (Pg.20-21)
She recounts, “Arriving in Norway on the thirteenth day of December, tourists might find some Norwegians celebrating Santa Lucia… The tradition is associated with a second-century Sicilian saint who died a martyr’s death… The Catholic Church conferred sainthood on her, and she soon gained tremendous popularity, assisted perhaps by the resemblance of her name to ‘lux,’ the Latin word for light.” (Pg. 44-45)
She asks, “But where did the Christmas tree come from? To Norway it came via Denmark from Germany,,, Though the Christmas tree itself arrived in Norway relatively late, Norwegian culture incorporated trees into its earliest myths and rituals… The Christmas tree … had by World War II become Norway’s most important yuletide decoration… Which decorations on a modern Christmas tree would identify it as Norwegian? … Norwegian flags found a place on the Christmas tree… [which] also featured Christmas baskets… shaped like cones and hearts… Straws bent and sewn in various configurations is the third of the characteristically Scandinavian Christmas tree ornaments…” (Pg. 64-66)
She reports, “Sudden pounding on the door… announces the arrival of the ‘julebukker’… neighborhood children disguised in … masks and costumes. Before being invited in, they might sing a song or provide other entertainment. Once inside, the julebukkers receive candy, cookies, and other Christmas treats… Those being visited … try to discover the masqueraders’ identity, but will usually not find out … before the still-masked children proceed to another home.” (Pg. 92)
She notes, “The gap between the child-centered Christmas adopted during the nineteenth century … and the Christmas celebrated by immigrants of peasant stock had begun to narrow. As more and more immigrants began… adopting the Christmas tree and finally Santa Claus, they also realized that their customary celebration would not last…” (Pg. 156)
Later, adds, “The changing attitude (besides disgust) that celebrants express toward [lutefisk] can actually provide insights into the changing nature of Norwegian American ethnicity. During the nineteenth century … immigrants ate lutefisk… because Christmas should be marked by special foods as a continuation of Old Country ways. [There was an] ebb of ethnic interest in the 1930s to 1950s… By the 1970s abnd1980s, Norwegian Americans were going out of their way to find lutefisk and were eating it in conscious remembrance of their humble beginnings.” (Pg. 293)
This book will be “must reading” for anyone interested in such Norwegian customs.
March 20, 2025
Growing up with a Norwegian grandmother, lefse, lutefisk and many kinds of goodies were part of our Christmas experience.
Although I do not keep any of these customs, it was very interesting to know where the family traditions came from and how they evolved over the years.
Although I do not keep any of these customs, it was very interesting to know where the family traditions came from and how they evolved over the years.
December 31, 2023
A very thorough examination of Christmas traditions in Norway and how they were adapted over the generations by immigrants to America. This book is incredibly informative and more scholarly than I expected. Likely not a book many will pick up as a fun December read, but one I imagine many of Norwegian heritage would want on their shelves as a reference.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews