– We really have an identical Christmas to everyone else, says Shazia Majid.
The VG commentator has a Muslim background, and has created strong traditions for the Christmas celebration in his family.
– Not many people go to church anymore, and we never did either. Otherwise, it’s family, food, Christmas tree, Christmas presents and the whole package, she says.
Christmas is a holiday for traditions, and many Norwegians celebrate in the same way year after year. Majid says that more and more Norwegians with an immigrant background also mark Christmas in one way or another.
– Some say “no, we don’t celebrate Christmas”, but they gather the family for dinner, buy presents for the children and like to decorate a bit. Others are more like me, who are completely saved from Christmas.
– It’s about community
She is supported by Geir Thomas Risåsen, Christmas curator at the Norwegian Folk Museum. He says that especially multicultural families with children adopt some of the classic Norwegian Christmas traditions. For example, halal pork chops are popular.
CHRISTMAS EXPERT: Geir Thomas Risåsen is Norway’s only Christmas conservator. Photo: Håkon Mosvold Larsen / NTB
Christmas is about togetherness, he believes.
– Christmas is a much older tradition than Christianity in this country. The name Christmas is from pre-Christian times. So there is the big midwinter party, to which it is easy to gather everyone.
Hiding the Christmas tree on the balcony
While many have had the same Christmas celebration all their lives, Majid’s traditions have come about over time.
The family got their first Christmas tree when she was in primary school, after she and her four sisters had made Christmas links at a Christmas workshop. There were many chains, but they had nothing to hang them on. Then the mother went to buy a small tree.
GLITTERING CHRISTMAS: The Christmas tree is an important tradition for many Norwegians. Photo: Sigve Bremer Mejdal / TV 2
It was not completely uncomplicated, says Majid.
– The Christmas tree had to go out on the veranda every time we had visitors because it was so unusual for others to see that we had a Christmas tree. Then they would think that we had abandoned our religion and embraced Christianity. But it wasn’t about that, it was simply about being allowed to be a part of what everyone is involved in, she says.
Difficult Christmas for many
A holiday characterized by community and togetherness, makes it extra demanding for those who feel excluded, or have no one to be with.
Majid emphasizes the importance of the work done by voluntary organizations such as Alternative Christmas, and recalls the project of Norwegian-Pakistani Aslam Ahsan. For 22 years he organized Christmas for single elderly people in Lørenskog.
– Goodness is part of the soul of this holiday. That we actually think about those who are alone, or have families that for one reason or another they don’t celebrate with, she says.
Risåsen is also aware that Christmas can be difficult for many.
– It is both a good time and a difficult time. Those who are alone for various reasons, those who would really like to be part of something more – it’s quite painful, he says.
NORWEGIAN CONDITIONS: Eirik Bergesen, Elin Ludvigsen and Morten Sandøy go in depth on current topics every Thursday on TV 2 Nyheter. Photo: TV 2
Extra people will also have a financially demanding Christmas this year. Majid says that she sees that many people are mobilizing and have a great desire to help others have a good Christmas. We can happily continue this solidarity for the rest of the year, she believes.
– We can also become better at seeing each other in everyday life and be more present for other people, she says, and continues:
– In the last two or three years, we have stood together in a kind of national and global trauma which I believe has brought us closer together. At least I hope so.
You can get the Norwegian state of affairs program on TV 2 Nyheter every Thursday at 17.30 and whenever you want on TV 2 Play.
