Ethiopian Christmas, known as Genna or Ledet, is a sacred occasion celebrated on January 7th by Orthodox Christians in Ethiopia. This date aligns with the Julian calendar, which is followed by several Orthodox churches around the world. While the rest of the world celebrates Christmas on December 25th, Ethiopians, alongside Russian, Greek, Eritrean, and Serbian Orthodox churches, celebrate Christmas Day which is called “Genna” on January 7th.
Genna for Ethiopians is less about materialism and presents and more about its religious significance and about spending time with family and friends.
The Ethiopian Christmas celebrations - also known as Ganna - are slightly different than those in the West. Ganna is a religious holiday, and gift-giving or Santa Claus does not play a role.
The Ethiopian calendar shares many similarities with the Coptic and Julian calendars, but it is not the same.
In Ethiopia the current year isn’t 2015 - it is 2008. The Julian calendar is used, so Christmas is celebrated on 7 January, and New Year’s Day is on 11 September. We saw nothing to do with Christmas during December when we celebrated Christmas, and even in January there were few decorations or signs of Christmas.
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There are many languages spoken in Ethiopia. Merry Christmas in Amharic is 'Melikam Gena!' (መልካም ገና!), in Oromo it's 'ayyaana dhalootaa kiristoos gaarii hata'u', in Somali it's 'Kirismas Wacan' and in Tigrinya it's 'Ruhus Beal Lidet' (ርሑስ በዓል ልደት).
A Brief History of Ethiopian Orthodox Christmas
The Ethiopian Orthodox Church considers January 7th to be the day that Jesus Christ was born. Ethiopia is one of the oldest nations in Africa.
Ethiopia is one of the oldest nations in Africa. It still follows the ancient Julian calendar, so Ethiopians celebrate Christmas on January 7. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church's celebration of Christ's birth is called Ganna.
While the rest of the world celebrates Christmas on December 25th, Ethiopians, alongside Russian, Greek, Eritrean, and Serbian Orthodox churches, celebrate Christmas Day which is called “Genna” on January 7th.
It is a local tradition that one of the wise men who visited the Christ Child came from Ethiopia.
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Prepare for Genna
Orthodox Ethiopians typically fast for the forty days leading up to Christmas Day. This is known as the 'Fast of the Prophets' (Tsome Nebiyat) and it means going on a diet without meat, dairy, or alcohol. Fasting also includes abstaining from all animal products and psychoactive substances, including meat, Alcohol (drug), dairy products, and egg.
Many people take part in a special Advent fast during the 43 days before Christmas. It starts on 25th November and is known as the 'Fast of the Prophets' (Tsome Nebiyat). During this time, traditionally only one vegan meal is eaten each day.
On the day of Genna, they’ll break their fast with a feast that includes dishes containing chicken, beef, and lamb.
On Christmas Eve it is not uncommon to see locals carrying live chickens or other large portions of meat to their homes.
Traditional Garments
For Ganna, people get dressed in white. Most people wear a traditional garment called a Netela. On Christmas Day, a thin white cotton garment called netela is worn.
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It's a thin white cotton piece of cloth with brightly colored stripes across the ends. It's worn like a shawl or toga. The shamma is worn somewhat like a toga.
If you live in a big town or city you might wear 'western' clothes. Urban Ethiopians might put on white Western garb.
Christmas Eve Service
On the Christmas Eve, Ethiopian Christians attend an overnight church service, usually starting around 6:00pm and finishing at 3:00am.
The Church Service
Then everyone goes to the early mass at four o'clock in the morning.
The churches in Ethiopia echo the shape of the houses. In many parts of the country there are ancient churches carved out of solid volcanic rock.
In a modern church, the choir assembles in the outer circle. The choir sings from the outer circle.
Each person entering the church is given a candle. The people walk around the church three times in a solemn procession, holding the flickering candles. They then go to the second circle to stand during the service.
People line up surrounding a church and begin a long, looping procession around the circumference of the church.
Then each person stops to form an outer circle. In the centre circle, the priest serves Holy Communion.
The men and boys are separated from the women and girls.
The design of Ethiopian Church is similar to the houses. In the country, they are often very old and have been carved out of rock.
Traditional Christmas Foods in Ethiopia
The special Christmas dish is doro wat, which is a delicious thick spicy stew with chicken and whole boiled eggs in it.
Traditional Christmas foods in Ethiopia include 'wat' which is a thick and spicy stew that contains meat, vegetables and sometimes eggs (sounds yummy!). The foods enjoyed during the Christmas season include wat, a thick, spicy stew of meat, vegetables, and sometimes eggs as well.
Wat is eaten on a plate of 'injera' - a flat bread. The wat is served from a beautifully decorated watertight basket onto a "plate" of injera, which is flat sourdough bread.
It is eaten with injera, a thin sourdough flatbread used to scoop up the wat instead of using cutlery.
Ethiopians will celebrate Christmas by strewing grass decoratively across the floor of their houses, traditional Ethiopian food will be served that includes injera (a traditional Ethiopian round, spongy, a flatbread made with the grain, teff) with w’et, a stew that is often made with a popular red spice called berbere or saffron.
“Doro w’et”, a stew made from chickens (Doro), containing whole hard-boiled eggs (without the shell), is a particularly popular and delicious dish that’s eaten at Genna.
Following this delicious meal, there will be a coffee (Buna) ceremony (after all, Ethiopia is the origin of coffee, and it wouldn’t feel holiday without it).
In front of hosts and guests, the coffee beans will be roasted, and the pan will be passed around for everyone to savor the aroma, Hmmmmmmm… For a split of seconds, the astounding scent will take you to a place you never thought exists.
Coffee will be served with popcorn and sipped in the midst of the magical aroma of burning incense.
After the coffee ceremony, special homemade drinks will be served depending on the household.
Tej (a popular Ethiopian wine made from fermented honey, without grapes), Tela (a type of home-made beer made from a shrub called “Gesho”), and a strong alcoholic drink called Araki, made from local plants and herbs.
Christmas Traditions
Around the time of Ganna, the men and boys play a game that is also called ganna. The game is closely associated with Gena, the January 7 celebration of Christmas, from which it gets its name along with another, rugby-like, sport.
The celebration, which will last for 12 days, then begins. This is a time of games, festivities, folk dancing and performances. Boys play a holiday game (called Ganna) that is comparable to hockey, with a curved stick and round wooden ball.
In Amharic, men and boys may play a game similar to hockey, using a wooden ball and a curved stick. This game represents the shepherds tending to their flocks and is a large part of the Christmas celebrations.
One of the distinct features of Ethiopian Christmas is a traditional game similar to hockey.
This game goes back to ancient times: it is said that shepherds in the era of Christ’s birth played a similar game with their crooks.
Ethiopian men play a sport called yeferas guks which involves horseback riding and shooting "spears" at each other.
Historically, Imperial Ethiopian soldiers acquired proficiency in weapon use from a young age by being trained from childhood with games such as Akandura (Darts) and Gena, which imitated combat.
Few people had a Christmas tree, and those who did used a few branches which were decorated a few days before their Christmas day. The Christmas trees we saw were decorated with soft paper or cotton balls for snow, balloons, and pictures of Jesus.
On all special holidays, including Christmas, the floor is covered with grass.
Santa Claus isn’t a big part of Ethiopian Christmas. Instead, in the rural parts of Ethiopia, elders would wear a unique black robe and give a slice of homemade bread (Defo Dabo) to kids.
People don't give and receive present during Ganna and Timkat. Sometimes children might be given a small gift of some clothes from their family members. Santa Claus is a fairly recent visitor to Ethiopia, only being known about through 'western' Christmas traditions.
It is a day for families to gather together, to eat and enjoy time together. Gift-giving is not a big part of Christmas. Family members may give small gifts. People told us that only families with lots of money talk about Santa Claus or Father Christmas.
The LDS Church celebrates with a party, a nativity, and the choir singing.
Celebrate in the Religious Town of Lalibela
Lalibela is the best place to be ON Ethiopian Christmas day. Lalibela is known as Africas’ Jerusalem due to its 11 unique churches and artificial “River Jordon” which was a vision of King Lalibela during his reign.
