Christmas traditions can be as varied as the ornaments on a tree: some have been handed down for generations, some are new takes on old ideas, some are quirky or just-plain silly—but they all have special memories attached. These can change from region to region or home to home.

Some folks keep their doors open all season to anyone and everyone who wants to share in the festivities. For others, Christmas is a time to huddle together with family. According to ethnographer Ivo Jardas (1888-1978), who was an expert in customs of the Istria-Kvarner region, Christmas Day in Kastav was a time just for family.

In his book Kastavština, Jardas explained that people were to stay at home on Christmas Day. On Christmas morning, adults would warn their children not to go visit friends or neighbors. In some neighborhoods, if anyone went to visit someone else who wasn’t family, they would be told off or even made fun of.

But the day after Christmas was a whole different story. On St. Stephen’s Day, or Stipanja, as it is called in Kastav, the whole village would come together. Early in the morning, people would start making the rounds of their neighbor’s houses. Adults would be greeted with homemade rakija, and children would be given a piece of fruit. Sisters and girlfriends would knit wool zapesnice (wrist warmers) or socks for their brothers or boyfriends and give them as presents. 

It seems the whole village would have been feeling the warmth, inside and out, on St. Stephen’s Day. We tend to think that’s a pretty nice balance, having quiet family time and then extending the celebration another day to spend with everyone else!