6th January: Epiphany

Epiphany means appearance of a god. It celebrates the visit of the Magi to the infant Jesus. 10 Epiphany traditions from around the world:

1. Spain Children leave straw out for the Magis' Camels, and the Magi leave gifts for the children.
2. Mexico Celebrated with rosca de reyes, a ring-shaped loaf of sweet bread baked with fruit. Inside is a small figurine of the baby Jesus. The person who finds the baby in their slice has to give a party on February 2nd.
3. France A coin or bean is baked into a cake, and whoever finds it is made king for the day. The French have an expression, “He has found the bean in the cake”, which means that a person has extremely good luck.
4. Bulgaria Housewives rise early and carry the family crucifix, icons and plough to the village fountain, where they wash them.
5. Italy Italians believe that animals can talk on the night of Epiphany so owners feed them well.
6. Syria It is said that trees bow at midnight to honour the Christ child, and miracles occur.
7. Former Yugoslavia A cross is thrown into a body of water and young men dive in after it.
8. German water diviners cut their wands today. A stick is dedicated to Caspar to find gold, Balthasar for silver and Melchior for water.
9. Muslims believe that on this night the angel Gabriel brought the Koran from heaven to Mohammed.
10. Isle of Man At Twelfth Night parties, the fiddler would lay his head on the lap of each girl present in turn. Another person would ask who she would marry. The fiddler’s answer would be taken as an oracle.