Best Swedish tradition
Fifteen customs and celebrations from the Swedish calendar, from Midsummer to Lucia. Which one is the best?
Tier list by PairTier · 15 items
- Midsummer (Midsommar) — Celebrated around the summer solstice with a maypole, dancing, herring, new potatoes and strawberries.
- Lucia — On 13 December, a white-clad Lucia with candles in her hair leads a procession singing in the dark.
- Christmas Eve (Julafton) — Sweden's main Christmas celebration, with the julbord buffet and gifts on 24 December.
- Donald Duck on Christmas Eve — The Disney special From All of Us to All of You, shown every Christmas Eve afternoon since 1960, now at 3:05 pm.
- Walpurgis Night (Valborg) — Spring is welcomed on 30 April with bonfires and choral singing.
- Crayfish party (Kräftskiva) — Late-summer party with boiled crayfish, paper hats, lanterns and drinking songs.
- Fika — The daily coffee break with something sweet, a cornerstone of Swedish social and working life.
- Semla on Fat Tuesday — Cardamom bun filled with almond paste and whipped cream, eaten on Fat Tuesday and throughout Lent.
- Easter witches (Påskkärringar) — Children dress up as Easter witches and go door to door handing out drawings for sweets.
- Cinnamon Bun Day (Kanelbullens dag) — Celebrated on 4 October, a modern tradition honouring the cinnamon bun.
- Waffle Day (Våffeldagen) — Waffles on 25 March, a name that grew out of Vårfrudagen, the Feast of the Annunciation.
- Saturday sweets (Lördagsgodis) — The custom of eating sweets mainly on Saturdays, rooted in mid-20th-century health advice.
- St Knut's Day (Tjugondag Knut) — On 13 January, twenty days after Christmas, the Christmas tree is danced out and taken down.
- Surströmming party — Late-summer gathering around fermented Baltic herring, famous for its powerful smell.
- National Day of Sweden — 6 June, marking Gustav Vasa's election as king in 1523 and a public holiday since 2005.