Twelfth Night Customs: France

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French Twelve Nights: Les jours de fête
In Provence, these are called jours compteurs: meter days, in Berry éprouves, in Lorraine, les petits mois: the little months and in other regions of France, they are the ajets. In France, the Christmas period can vary depending on the region and can stretch from the beginning of December to Candlemas. The 12 days of Christmas are the Calendo: Chalende, Nadal: Nan, Noël. The Crèche, manger scene, invented by Saint Francis of Assisi on Christmas Eve in 1223 AD in Italy, is put up in the home and gifts are exchanged on January 6th: la fête des Rois: The Kings’ Festival. (pron. law FEHT day ROO-WAH) Young people dress as shepherds and shepherdesses and come with drums and pipes to church for Midnight Mass carrying torches to find their way. The French carol Un Flambeau Jeanette-Isabella: Bring A Torch Jeanette-Isabella a.k.a Joseph, Chaste et Digne Epoux illustrates this custom. During Twelve Nights the soul hunters are called The Harlequin Family. (8, 11)

En France, les jours de fête sont une occasion pour se réunir en famille ou entre amis. Pour chaque fête, on mange des plats typiques qui changent parfois selon les régions. Pour la fête des Rois, le 6 janvier, on achète chez le pâtissier une galette. C’est un gâteau qui contient une fève. La personne qui trouve la fève dans son morceau de gâteau est le roi (ou la reine) et cette personne choisit sa reine (ou son roi). La famille ou les amis boivent à leur santé (10).

In France, holidays are an occasion to reunite with family or friends. For each holiday, one eats typical regional dishes. For the Kings’ Festival, January 6th, one buys a galette at the bakery. This is a cake that has a bean inside. The person who finds the bean inside their morsel of cake is the king (or the queen) and that person chooses their queen (or their king). The family or friends drink to their health. (10)