Are there any gift givers in poland?

like santa? im doing a report on poland christmas and i have to know if there any any gift givers? thanks for your help.

OH YEAH and do they have stocking or anything like them like socks or bangs or anything? thanks.

Yes, there is a Santa Claus in Poland. The Polish word for Santa Claus is "Swiety Mikolaj" (this is an approximation based on the standard english keyboard).

Also, Christmas Eve ("Wigilia" in Polish) is the big night in Poland as opposed to Christmas day. On Christmas Eve it is tradition to eat strictly vegetarian dishes, many of which are only eaten once a year - on this very day.

It is also tradition to set an extra place at the table for the Christmas Eve dinner, this extra setting is for the "lonely traveler". Basically if someone hungry, lost or alone wandered towards a Polish family's door on Christmas, they would be welcomed with open arms and there would already be a setting at the table just for them.

There are many beautiful, beautiful traditions.

Good luck on your essay!

Here is a website, with the Polish word for many of the traditions:

http://annhetzelgunkel.com/polxmas/polxm...


EDIT: Just read the last two replies - makes sense, my family has fish on Christmas Eve too, forgot to add that, I don't think about it because I personally am vegetarian and don't eat meat at all... so I just never think about it. I have heard about December 6th, but my family would always exchange gifts on Christmas Eve, even when we were children in Poland...

I think this means certain traditions are regional within Poland.

Just a few words to add to the preceding reply - on Christmas Eve, apart from vegetarian dishes, such as pasta with poppyseed, cabbage with mushrooms, pierogi with same, FISH is also permitted. Carp in jelly (aspic) and fried carp, herring in oil with onions, pickled herring are omnipresent on Christmas Eve tables.
And as for gift givers apart from St. Nicholas (we never use any nicks of him), in some regions of Poland, there is Gwiazdor (Starman - but no sci-fi connotations, mind you).

I'd like to go along with the preceding two replys.

First, Santa Claus doesn't visit on Christmas in Poland. He visits December 6th and gives his present there. The presents that are recieved on Christmas eve are given by the gwiastka, or the star which derives from the biblical sense of the star of bethlahem.

Just a little extra information for you there!

dziadek mroz