Finns are pretty serious about Christmas. After all, even the real and official Santa Claus comes from Finland. In this article, we will reveal 10 intriguing facts and figures about Finnish Christmas, based on fresh statistics compiled by stat.fi (Statistics Finland).
#1 Poinsettia Is The Most Popular Christmas Flower
The most popular Christmas flower in Finland is the poinsettia (29%). In Finland, this flower is commonly called joulutähti, or ‘Christmas Star’. It is followed in popularity by hyacinths (19%) and amaryllises (16%). For a long time, hyacinths were the Christmas flower of choice in Finland, having been seen first in a Helsinki flower store already in the 1840s. In comparison to hyacinths, the joulutähti is a relative newcomer, having appeared in shops in the 1960s after a new variety better accustomed to the Nordic climate was developed in Norway.
#2 Over a Million Christmas Trees
In a country of around 5.5 million inhabitants, having around 1.4 million spruces put up in the living room is quite astrounding, isn’t it? Furthermore, a whooping 300 000 of these spruces are cut down by Finns from their own forest! Indeed, being able to get a Christmas tree from your own forest is something that many Finns take great pride in. Having said that, Finns also accept plastic Christmas trees these days as evidenced by the fact that a poll conducted by Plantagen showed that 27% of the respondees planned to get a plastic Christmas tree. In the same poll, 42% of people responded that they will get a real Christmas tree, leaving around 31% without a Christmas tree completely.
#3 How Much Snow Is There in Finland on Christmas?
A white Christmas is not something people in all of Finland can take for granted. Luckily, most Christmases in Finland are snowy in most of Finland. The average snow depth on Christmas is 40 cm (16 inches) in Northern Finland, 30 cm (12 inches) in Central Finland and 5-10 cm (2-4 inches) in Southern Finland. In Helsinki, around every third Christmas is snowless.
#4 Surprising List of Most-Played Christmas Songs
Despite the popularity of Finnish language music in Finland, the most played Christmas song on Finnish radio in 2021 was Wham’s Last Christmas. The most-played Finnish-language Christmas song, Katri Helena’s Joulumaa, was only the fifth most played song that year.
Here is the top 5:
- Wham – Last Christmas
- Mariah Carey – All I Want For Christmas Is You
- John Lennon & Yoko Ono – Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
- and Aid – Do They Know It’s Christmas?
- Katri Helena – Joulumaa
In Finland, fans of heavy metal also have their own Christmas concerts called Raskasta Joulua (“a heavy Christmas”). This year, vocalists on the Raskasta Joulua tour include Marko Hietala, Elize Ryd and Tony Kakko, and many more stars of contemporary heavy music.
#5 The Most Popular Christmas Foods
In Finland, Christmas food traditions can vary quite a lot from family to family but if you ask Finns themselves, the undisputed number one Christmas food is the baked “Christmas” ham (joulukinkku). Other foods that Finns find important on Christmas are the root vegetable casseroles (sweetened potato casserole, carrot casserole and swede casserole), rice porridge, joulutorttu (a Finnish Christmas pastry) and cured fish such as salmon gravlax.
#6 Many Finns Attend a Christmas Concert
According to a poll by the Lutheran Church in Finland, 55% of Finns attend a Kauneimmat Joululaulut concert. A a slightly older poll conducted by Tilastokeskus (Statistics Finland) shows that 18% of Finns attend at least one Christmas concert.
One of the most cherished Christmas traditions in Finland, Kauneimmat Joululalut is a series of concerts all over Finland organized by Suomen Lähetysseura (Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission) where people get to enjoy a selection of the most popular Christmas songs from Finland and abroad, and sing along to them. The literal translation of kauneimmat joululaulut would be “the most beautiful Christmas songs” but we have seen the translation “The Greatest Christmas Carols” being used by the organizers.
Below you can see what the concert looked like in Helsinki Cathedral in 2022 (the actual concert begins around the 10:25 mark).
#7 Finns Prefer Red Wine With Their Christmas Dinner
Perhaps a bit surprisingly, a recent survey shows that red wine is the Christmas dinner drink of choice in Finland (38%). On the heels of red wine comes tap water (32%), followed by milk (30%), beer and glögi. During the two weeks before Christmas, around 2,000,000 liters of red wine is expected to be sold in Finland, while beer sales typically double in the Christmas season.
#8 One in Five Give Homemade Presents on Christmas
Finns value homemade gifts, so it is no surprise that they are given by 20% of Finns. Woolen socks, candles, Christmas decorations, homemade confectionary…these are some of the things we at Life in Finland have lucky enough to receive as Christmas gifts in recent years from friends and family.
#9 The Most Important Christmas Decoration
For Finns, the most important Christmas decoration element is a candle (71%). In second place comes the Christmas tree (70%), before Christmas lights (60%). Surprisingly, in fourth place is the Christmas stocking (52%) – a tradition that has arrived from the US in recent years.
#10 The Most Popular Christmas Gifts in Finland
In 2023, the average Finn plans to spend around 333 euros on gifts alone. To compare, Americans roughly spend twice the amount on Christmas gifts (around $700).
What exactly do Finns then give each other on Christmas? Well, statistics show that year after year, the most common Christmas gifts are candies, clothes, toys, books and gift cards. Recently, however, buying books has become less common, whereas giving second-hand gifts have increased in popularity. 28% of Finns have bought a second-hand gift to someone, whereas 26% could imagine themselves doing that in the future.
I am a Swedish women living in Finland since 60 yrs. I think we got very good and true information about Finnish life, habits and Christmas traditions here. Every country has its own habits, so interesting to learn how we do in Finland and compare with traditions in other cultures.
Thank you! 🇸🇪 🇫🇮🌲🌲