Post written by Mariona, a United Planet team member
The Tió de Nadal is an essential part of any Catalan Christmas. The literal English translation could be “Christmas log”, but it is important to remember that this Tió de Nadal is not just any piece of wood ;it is an object which holds a lot of meaning for all families from the region of Catalunya in Spain.
At the start of the tradition, he was just a dead piece of wood. Today, the Tió commonly dons a traditional Catalan barretina, a red wool hat shaped like a bag. The barretina is seldom worn by people in Catalunya these days; however, you can still find it among the older generations, especially at the soccer stadium Camp Nou in Barcelona.
We say that the Tio looks like a little animal, due to his shape and small size. He normally measures around fifteen centimeters wide and thirty to fifty centimeters long, held together by three or four stick legs which are generally made of wood. What ‘s most important about the Tió is his kind face–a three-dimensional red nose and big, kind eyes. It is also common to see a lovely smile on his face as he eagerly awaits the children who will make him poo.
Children take care of the Tió every day from the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on December 8. They feed it with vegetables, such as carrots and potatoes, to get the Tió ready to ”poop” on Christmas Day or Eve, depending on the particular household. The Tió should be covered with a red blanket,so that he will not be cold at night.
On Christmas day, children are ready to hit the log (and throw him into the fire, if they have one) and sing songs enticing it to “poo some presents”. Here is an example of such a song:
Catalan: caga tió, tió de nadal, no caguis arengades que són salades, caga torrons, que són molt bons, i si no, et donaré un cop de bastó… pum pum pum!
English: Christmas log, do not poop salted sardines, which are salty, poop “torrons,” which are very good, and if you don’t poop well, I will hit you with a stick… pump pump pump!
Once they sing the song, the children go into a room and start praying for the Tió to bring them nice food. After their prayers, they go back and check if Tió has “dropped” sweets, candies and torrons* below the red blanket.
It is amazing to see how children share their presents. This is the essence of Christmas: children and families enjoying the holidays together. Merry Christmas and good luck with the Tió de Nadal!
Torrons are logs made of chocolate, coconut, egg or almond.
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