I visited Ireland 3 years ago (How insane is that?!). And I have been waiting 3 long years to write a blog post about one of my favorite things about my trip to Ireland… Women’s Christmas! I just keep missing the deadline to post it. So we have had to wait all this time to learn about it.
This fun tradition is also known as Little Christmas, and is celebrated on January 6th of each year. It has truly become one of my favorite traditions I have ever learned about. I am so happy that I actually participated in it as well.
My Time in Ireland
Let me tell you about how I found out what this tradition was before we get into the history of it. I was touring Ireland and landed in the town of Killarney. We had a day filled with gorgeous sightseeing. My group I was with decided to go out that evening and listen to some live music. The Kilkennys were performing (who are awesome by the way) and I noticed there were hardly any men in the pub. I also noticed that the women who were out were wearing Santa hats and sashes that said “Merry Christmas”. The band also kept saying “Merry Christmas to all the ladies!”, and finally I asked our guide what was going on.
He explained that every year on January 6th, the women in Ireland go out for the evening and enjoy each other’s company. All the while, the men stay at home and do household work, or more commonly take down the Christmas decorations. I mean, how fun is that tradition?!
I think it is the cutest tradition, and one of the best I have ever come across. Definitely plan to use this in my household from now on.
A Little History
Little Christmas is also referred to as Woman’s Christmas. It came about from the Feast of the Epiphany, which celebrates the arrival of the Three Wise Men. This is celebrated 12 days after Christmas on January 6th of each year. During these 12 days, the women are normally working hard to make sure everything is in order. Which is why on the 6th they get the day and evening to just relax and let off some steam.
The reason that most of the men are home taking down Christmas decorations is because all of the decorations must be down by the 6th as it is the last day of Christmas in Ireland. If the decorations are not taken down by this date, you either have to deal with the bad luck coming your way, or leave them up for an entire year until the next holiday!
What do you think? Is this something you might try out?
