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Tag: tradition

19th century Norwegian wedding celebrations are hard to match

A bride and groom who were to marry 200 years ago observed many rules and traditions.

How cloves from Indonesia and dates from the Middle East became part of Norwegian Christmas food

Cloves, cinnamon, ginger and figs were already being consumed in Norway during the Middle Ages. But these exotic goods probably only became a Christmas tradition at the end of the 19th century.

Christmas cards haven't always been cute. Rowdy, drunk Christmas gnomes were a popular motif back in the day.

“Some of the early Christmas cards are quite a bit darker than what we’re used to today,” says research librarian at the National Library in Norway.

Blackface in the name of tradition: the controversy around the Dutch ‘Sinterklaas’ festivities

In the aftermath of the festive month, Dutch PhD candidate Iris Beau Segers looks back on the annually recurring issue of Black Pete in the Netherlands, whose blackfaced appearance has been at the heart of a controversial public debate for almost a decade.

Swedes and Danes dominate Scandinavian Midsummer Eve

A survey shows only 15 percent of Norwegians now celebrate the ancient festivities around the summer solstice.

When rebels dressed in national costumes

Today is Norwegian Constitution Day. Dressing up in national costumes is a big part of the traditional celebration. But no more than a hundred years ago, people were spat on for dressing this way.

Where Norwegian lingo heads for limbo

The last generation of Norwegian-speaking Americans will soon be gone.

Suffering morphs into cosiness in Easter celebrations

Anyone who wishes to be faithful to old Norwegian Easter traditions should eat salted herring and black pudding on Long Friday.

Spawning cod packed with vitamins

Cod migrate from the Barents Sea to the Lofoten Islands in North Norway to spawn every winter. The fishing season for these large spawning cod, called skrei in Norwegian, is currently open. A traditional North Norwegian serving of the fish is a super source of vitamin D.

Circumcised women uncritical of the ritual

Women who have been subjected to genital cutting are too rarely critical of what they have undergone.

Innards are out

Norwegian dinner tables used to include dishes made of hearts, lungs, liver and kidneys. Today such innards are no longer eaten.