Christmas in Botswana

Of course, Christmas traditions in Botswana were adapted to local cultural peculiarities. Still, the general atmosphere is equally merry as anywhere else in the world.

Locals spend the festive season with their families, enjoy traditional food cooked on a grill, and attend church services on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning.

Overall, Christmas customs in Botswana are more relaxed than in the U.S. or Europe. Everyone should have a good time, and that’s all that matters.

Christmas in Summer

Batswana is in South Africa, so locals don’t dream of a white Christmas and never say, “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.”

Christmas is in the middle of summer in Botswana, so instead of a winter wonderland, locals get clear blue skies, warm sunshine, and blooming flowers, which doesn’t seem like a bad trade.

Naturally, the climate influenced local Christmas celebrations. It still feels like Christmas, but people don’t skate on ice rinks or build snowmen.

Instead, Batswana play football, swim in local rivers, or enjoy the sunshine on their porch.

Christmas Food in Botswana

Food is integral to Batswana Christmas celebrations – in this sense, all Christians are the same, regardless of the continent. Batswana traditionally gather together on Christmas Eve, but the meals are simple.

The real feast takes place on Christmas Day, typically in the afternoon. When everyone arrives home from church, family members begin the preparations.

Since the weather is favorable, many Batswana prefer to have a Christmas lunch outdoors and cook food on a grill.

In South Africa, barbecue is called a braai, and the concept is no different from American barbecue – it’s a laid-back event held in someone’s backyard. People usually dress comfortably.

However, some Batswana prefer to have a formal sit-down dinner – it’s a matter of preference because Christmas dinner traditions in Botswana aren’t as strict.

Christmas feast in Botswana involves a lot of meat. Families in rural areas slaughter cows or goats, while people in urban regions buy meat in stores. Chicken is a must on the festive table, usually roasted in spices.

Batswana Christmas lunch isn’t complete without seswaa, the Batswana national dish. Seswaa is made from beef boiled until tender and pounded. The meat is usually served with grounded corn or sweet potatoes.

Batswana also make stews with meat or fish, cassava, tomatoes, potatoes, and other vegetables. Peanuts are native to Botswana, so locals add them to various dishes or eat them raw as a treat.

Salads are popular at the Batswana Christmas feast, especially coleslaw and potato salad. The desserts are usually simple – most Batswana aren’t fond of baking or consider pastry too heavy for such hot weather.

Traditional Christmas desserts in Botswana are light lemon and condensed milk biscuits, tropical fruit mousse, or fruit salad with whipped cream.

Some make so-called malva pudding, although it’s more similar to a light sponge cake with apricot jam cut into bite-sized pieces. Drinks can be any, including wine, beer, and cocktails with tropical fruit juice.

Christmas Carols & Other Entertainment

Music is a significant part of Christmas celebrations in Botswana. People get together and sing to embrace the Christmas spirit, but they don’t usually sing Silent Night or 12 Days of Christmas.

By “Christmas songs,” Batswana usually mean any popular song released around the holiday season or any traditional hymn. The songs may have nothing to do with Christmas, but it’s about the atmosphere, not the lyrics, right?

Schools and other public organizations often host choir performances where local kids play native instruments and sing. Besides singing, Batswana love to watch classic Christmas movies, such as Home Alone or The Grinch.

After Christmas Day lunch, families with kids make their way to the football pitch. December 26 in Botswana is known as the Boxing Day, but local stores don’t usually hold holiday sales.

Instead of shopping, people spend time at home, relaxing and eating Christmas feast leftovers.

Church Services

Christmas in South Africa, in general, and Botswana, in particular, is focused on religious traditions, so attending a Christmas Mass is a must for every Batswana. Most churches hold special services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day morning.

Christmas Masses include biblical readings and their interpretations, devotional hymns, and playing native instruments.

While the Batswana Christmas feast is usually laid-back, church services are considered formal events, so most people dress up.

Families get together on December 24 evening before attending the church and sing Christmas carols, boosting the festive mood.

A traditional Christmas Eve Mass in Botswana commences at midnight and lasts about three hours. Then, people go home to sleep and go to church again in the morning. Afterward, everyone can finally gather for a Christmas lunch.

Gift Exchange

Gift exchange isn’t really a part of Batswana culture, although more and more locals adopt the tradition as Christmas becomes more commercialized, especially in urban regions. About 14% of the population is beneath the poverty line and doesn’t exchange gifts.

However, even those who can afford to buy gifts usually only get them for children.

People may exchange handmade or sentimental gifts with immediate family members but usually limit Christmas greetings to heartfelt wishes when it comes to extended family.

People in Botswana believe that it’s the thought that counts and prefer to save some money for the Christmas feast rather than spend everything on lavish gifts.

However, they are ready to go above and beyond to make children happy and put a lot of effort into gift wrap. Kids usually open gifts during the day on December 25 rather than on Christmas Eve, like in the U.S. or Europe.

Usually, kids receive something practical, like new clothes for the football match or a new schoolbag. However, wealthier families may spoil their children with toys.

A Family Holiday

For Batswana, Christmas is a family holiday. But unlike many nations that only celebrate it with immediate family members, Batswana welcome all relatives wishing to join the traditional feast, including cousins, in-laws, uncles, and aunts.

Like most South Africans, Batswana are open-hearted and hospitable people. They are happy to see friends or neighbors in their homes for lunch if they choose not to spend the holiday with family or have no relatives left.

No matter how far family members live, Christmas brings everyone together. Even Batswana who live overseas usually come home for Christmas to celebrate with their dearest people.

Family members usually start gathering early on Christmas morning. Since cooking for such a large family alone is a challenge, everyone strives to be helpful – someone cuts the veggies, another one mixes salads, etc.

However, only one family member is responsible for grilling the traditional braai. For Batswana, a braai isn’t just barbecue – it’s a long-standing custom deeply rooted in South African culture.

Braai host is called the braai master, and no one is allowed to touch the grill but them.

Christmas Decorations

Christmas decorations in Botswana are pretty similar to decorations in European countries.

Families living in urban areas usually have a Christmas tree adorned with baubles and string lights, hang garlands and put Christmas character figures on shelves.

Christmas trees in Batswana are usually artificial or unconventional, made from wood or metal because pines and firs aren’t native to the continent. Some people refrain from a Christmas tree altogether.

People living in rural areas far away from shopping malls can’t always buy Christmas decorations, and some people simply can’t afford them.

However, a nativity scene with Mary, Joseph, Jesus in his crib, and shepherds can be found in every home, poor or wealthy.

Some people buy commercially manufactured nativity scenes, but most craft them from wood, clay, or plasticine. Most Christmas decorations in Africa are imported from China, the largest manufacturer of holiday decorations worldwide.

Batswana don’t go all out as Americans with decoration and usually only adorn the living room. However, city squares, shopping malls, and other public places always sparkle with Christmas lights.

No Santa?

Since Christmas in Botswana isn’t as commercialized as it is on other continents, Santa Claus isn’t the main symbol of the holiday. Most children in Botswana don’t believe in Santa or any other mysterious gift-giver.

Family members simply bring the gifts and leave them under the Christmas tree or stack them in the corner for kids to open later. Young Batswana don’t hang stockings on windows and don’t leave cookies and milk for Santa.

However, in urban areas, Santa Claus is rapidly gaining popularity. Some schools and shopping malls organize meetings with Santa for local children, similar to how kids in the U.S. can take a picture with Santa or leave him a letter.

Santa Claus in Botswana isn’t much different from American Santa – he also wears a red suit, a red hat with a pompom, and has a long white beard.

However, he isn’t necessarily old and plump, and his suit is often adapted to fit the hot weather.