Borough group celebrates Christmas traditions from around the world

The traditions of a British Christmas - carols, the tree, turkey and trimmings, cards and the rest - are too well known to need repeating.

But some residents of the borough grew up with a very different idea of what the festive season means and involves.

Beneficiaries of Everything Human Rights, a group in the borough which supports ethnic minorities, spoke of their memories of Christmas traditions in their homelands and how spending the season of goodwill in Wigan and Leigh compares.

In Zimbabwe in southern Africa, for instance, many people who live in the cities leave the built-up areas and travel back to their rural homes for large get-togethers involving extended families.

There is plenty of eating, drinking and merriment, as well as spending time with relatives people have not seen in months.

But the recipes on the table on December 24 and 25 are very different to those in Britain and other staples of Christmas here, like a tree and a heap of presents beneath it, are nowhere to be seen.

Corlina Katjangua said: “Christmas is one of the things that reminds me most of home. We start our preparation by doing lots and lots of shopping and then, if we live in the city, we all drive to the village.

“We have a reunion with all our extended family and we all come together. We make a lot of food and do a lot of baking. It’s very different to here.

“On December 24 children would dress up and in the evening we sat under a big tree and the children said the verses of the Bible about Jesus’ birth. It was really beautiful.

“On December 25 we would prepare the big meal and everybody gets dressed up in the kind of beautiful clothes you don’t wear throughout the year.”

Esnath Sanangura and Tabeth Mabiza-Nhakaniso also shared their memories of what makes a southern African Christmas.

Families in Zimbabwe tend to slaughter a cow or sheep for the large family festivities before placing a traditional dish of chicken and rice on the table on Christmas Day.

The place where the drinks are stored is the only indoor site used, with most of the feasting and spending time with family done outside.

The only presents most families would give would be the new dresses and outfits for Christmas Day, with dressing to impress around relatives and friends an important aspect of the festival.

Playing music and dancing is also a key part of this time of year in southern Africa, which can see dozens of people come together to celebrate if their families are large, said Shupikai Muchineuta.

The religious element of the festival is also far stronger in Zimbabwe, with more people going to church and marking Jesus’ birth as part of Christmas.

However, Christmas isn’t always about following the same routine in Zimbabwe, as one person recalled.

Karen Nhakaniso said: “I remember one Christmas the kids didn’t want to cook so we asked our dad to take us to a hotel that had an all-you-can-eat buffet. There were about four adults, my grandmother and 16 or 17 kids.

“Us kids went a bit crazy. It got to the point where the people at the buffet were taking our plates away because we were eating too much. The dessert table was full and by the time we were done it was completely empty.

“We went home in the backs of the pick-up trucks and the roads were quite bumpy, so a couple of the kids were puking out of the windows.

“That was a memorable example of what Christmas was for us: eating, having fun and in some cases getting up to a bit of mischief.”

For some Everything Human Rights beneficiaries, though, Christmas is a completely new experience.

Yuvuz Menekse, who is from Turkey and lives in Atherton, said: “The majority of people in Turkey are Muslims so there isn’t really the concept of Christmas. People celebrate at New Year, but not on December 25.

“We’re not used to giving presents to each other at Christmas or New Year. It’s totally different between Turkey and the UK.”

Even when Christmas is something you are brought up with, celebrating the festival in Britain can require some adjustments.

Corlina said: “In Zimbabwe, in the city or in the village, neighbours are family. You don’t need permission to go into anyone else’s house, as long as you share.

“It can be a little bit depressing because that is not very common here. You have to wait for your family to come from wherever for the celebration. Back home we just put food out in the street on tables outside the house and you can just go around. It’s not the same feeling here.”

People at Everything Human Rights have increasingly found themselves enjoying a hybrid kind of Christmas, with some traditions from their homelands along with some British aspects of the festivities, especially if they have school-age children.

Like many other people across the borough and the country, preparations are also having to be made for a rather different Christmas in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Shupikai will have to fit the family time in around her work shift on Christmas Day, with some present opening early on December 25 and a celebration on Boxing Day.

Everything Human Rights co-founder Farai Nhakaniso said: “We will come together and eat within our family and then Zoom is going to play a massive role this year.

“Normally we would be going to see family, but this year we will put in the extra effort to buy a tree and put up decorations to give that feeling that it’s Christmastime.”

Corlina said: “We will be celebrating more of an English Christmas this year, mixing it with our own as much as we can. We’ve got the Christmas tree up and are doing decorations bit by bit.

“We will also be wondering what Santa will bring us.

“We’ve got a group of family and friends, so we will be with them.”

Yuvuz said: “Next year we will have to have a Christmas party at home, have a Christmas tree and some presents under it and put some decorations up.

“My daughter goes to nursery and she is asking for these things. I’m even thinking about the Christmas socks!”

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