Christmas in Spain: dates, traditions and Spanish vocabulary

The Christmas calendar in Spain

National means a public holiday everywhere in Spain; regional, in some regions only; tradition, celebrated but not a day off.

School holidays follow the same rhythm: they usually run from around 22 or 23 December to 7 or 8 January, with exact dates set by each region.

The traditions, date by date

22 December: El Gordo

The Sorteo Extraordinario de Navidad is the unofficial start of Christmas. People buy décimos (a tenth share of a ticket), often shared with family, colleagues or their local bar. On the morning of 22 December, pupils from the Colegio de San Ildefonso in Madrid sing the winning numbers and prizes live on television, in a chant every Spaniard recognises.

24 and 25 December: Nochebuena and Navidad

Nochebuena, literally “the good night”, is the big family dinner: seafood, roast lamb or suckling pig, fish such as sea bream, depending on the region and the family. It ends with turrón (almond nougat, soft from Jijona or hard from Alicante), polvorones, mantecados and mazapán. Some families go to midnight Mass, la Misa del Gallo. Christmas Day is for family lunch; in Catalonia the classic dish is escudella i carn d’olla, a meat and pasta stew.

Homes, churches and town halls display a belén (nativity scene), sometimes huge. In Catalonia it hides the caganer, a small squatting figure. People sing villancicos (carols) such as Los peces en el río or Campana sobre campana, with a tambourine (la pandereta) and a friction drum (la zambomba).

28 December: los Santos Inocentes

A day of pranks: paper figures (monigotes) are stuck on people’s backs and the media publish invented news stories. The victim is an inocente. Remind pupils that 1 April has no such role in Spain.

31 December: the twelve grapes

At midnight on Nochevieja, people eat one grape for each chime of the clock on the Puerta del Sol in Madrid, broadcast live on television. The trap: the chimes are preceded by the quarter chimes, los cuartos, and every year someone starts too early. Then comes a toast, often with cava, and ¡Feliz año!

5 and 6 January: los Reyes Magos

On the evening of 5 January, the Three Kings, Melchor, Gaspar and Baltasar, parade through towns throwing sweets to the crowd. Children have written them a letter (la carta a los Reyes); before bed they leave their shoes out, often with a snack for the Kings and water for the camels. Naughty children are said to get carbón, which in practice is sugar coal.

On 6 January families share a roscón de Reyes, a ring-shaped sweet bread topped with candied fruit, sometimes filled with cream. It hides a small figure, la sorpresa, and a dried bean, el haba: whoever finds the bean traditionally pays for the roscón.

Regional gift-bringers

Papá Noel has become common on 24 or 25 December, but several regions have their own figures: el Olentzero, a charcoal burner who comes down from the mountains on 24 December in the Basque Country and Navarre; the Tió de Nadal in Catalonia, a log that children look after in December and then tap with sticks while singing so that it “gives” sweets; the Apalpador in Galicia, a tradition revived in recent decades.

Christmas in Latin America differs from Spain’s. In Mexico, las posadas are held from 16 to 24 December; in many countries presents are opened at midnight on the 24th; in Colombia they come from el Niño Dios; and in Argentina or Chile Christmas falls in summer. Present Spain’s customs as Spain’s.

Christmas vocabulary and greetings

Te deseo una feliz Navidad y un próspero año nuevo.I wish you a happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

En Nochebuena cenamos con mis abuelos.On Christmas Eve we have dinner with my grandparents.

Los Reyes Magos me han traído un libro.The Three Kings have brought me a book.

A note on capitals: festivals take a capital (Navidad, Nochebuena, Reyes, Año Nuevo for 1 January), but months do not. In the wish feliz año nuevo, style guides such as the Fundéu recommend lower case, because it means “the coming year”; you will often see capitals too.

Typical mistakes of English-speaking learners

• “Feliz Navidades”: the adjective agrees. Say Feliz Navidad or Felices Navidades.
• Nochebuena and Nochevieja confused: buena, “good”, is Christmas Eve; vieja, “old”, is New Year’s Eve.
• Presents on the 25th only: traditionally they come on 6 January.
• “Papa Noel”: without the accent, papa means potato or the Pope. It is Papá Noel.
• Pronunciation: the d’s of Navidad are soft, the final one almost silent; the r of Reyes and turrón is rolled; uvas has the same soft b sound as bueno.

In class: Christmas in the daily routine

The Spanish festival days appear in the routine on the day itself, so the calendar does the teaching. The catch: most Spanish Christmas dates fall in the UK holidays, so plan ahead.

1. On 22 December, or your last lesson before the break, show the date and ask ¿Qué pasa hoy en España?
2. Show a winning lottery number and have the class read it aloud: five-digit numbers are excellent practice.
3. Ask ¿Qué hacen los españoles en Nochevieja? Reveal: Comen doce uvas.
4. Compare: ¿Y en el Reino Unido? En el Reino Unido…
5. Close with a wish: the class says ¡Feliz Navidad! together.

Reyes, on 6 January, often falls just as UK schools return: a perfect first lesson back. Ask pupils what the Kings brought them (¿Qué te han traído los Reyes?), even if in the UK it was Father Christmas.

Adapting to your class

• A1Name the day and wish: Hoy es Nochebuena. ¡Feliz Navidad!
• A2Describe customs in the present: En Nochevieja comemos doce uvas.
• B1Narrate past Christmases: El año pasado cenamos en casa de mi tía.
• B2Compare and give opinions: Me gusta que los regalos lleguen el 6 de enero porque la Navidad dura más.

At KS2, the grapes and the Kings are enough to fascinate. At KS3, use the dates to practise numbers and the calendar. At GCSE, Christmas is a classic topic for describing a past celebration and comparing traditions.

Frequently asked questions