"Christoxylo"
In the villages of Northern Greece, on Christmas Eve, the landlord of each house searches in the fields and brings home the most beautiful and big piece of pine or olive wood. This is called “Christoxylo” (Christ’s wood).
The housewife has already cleaned the house and especially the fireplace well in order to make sure that there is not even the slightest trace of previously burnt ashes. She cleans even the chimney of the house, so that goblins, the evil demons, cannot enter the house during Christmas as it is mentioned in the traditional Christmas fairy tales.
The night before Christmas, when the whole family is gathered around the fireplace, the landlord of the house lights the fire with Christoxylo.
According to people’s tradition, as Christoxylo burns, baby Jesus gets warm in his sanctuary.
Every family tries to keep this fire for 12 days during Christmas and New Year holidays up to Epiphany.
"The Momogeri"
In the villages of Platanias and Sitagroi in the Prefecture of Drama, we meet the custom of ‘Mogomeri’, which comes from the Pontian refugees. The name of this custom comes from the words ‘mime’ or ‘momos’ and old man and is associated with the mimetic movements of the protagonists. Those people wearing skin of animals-wolves, goats or others - or dressed in uniforms of sword-armed men, have the form of seniors.
The ‘Momogeri’ appear throughout the course of the twelve days of feasts (Christmas and New Year’s Day up to Epiphany) and expecting good luck for the new year, walk around in groups in the streets of villages and sing carols or other songs with wishes: "Arhi kalanta kai arhi tou xronou, panta kalanta, panta tou xronou.’ "When two companies meet each other, they make ‘fake war’ between them until one team defeats the other and declare submission.
We meet variations of the same custom in the villages of Kozani and Kastoria that is called ‘Ragoutsaria’.
Others say it as ‘rogatsia’ or ‘babaliourgia’.
"The Scattering of Leaves"
On the island of Thasos, the families keep a very old custom up to nowadays that is called ‘the scattering of leaves’ which is done as follows:
They all sit around the burning fireplace, pull the ash out and throw olive leaves around the burning coals having in their mind a wish, without telling to each other. Whichever turn the leave first, his/her wish will be realized.
"Arapides"
The custom of ‘Arapides’ is revived every year, on the 6th of January, in Monastiraki, which is only 4 km away from the city of Drama. We also find it in the villages of Volakas, Petrousa and Xiropotamos. The same custom revives every year and in Nikisiani of the Municipality of Paggaio in the prefecture of Kavala.
"Fires of Florina"
One of the most popular Christmas customs in Florina is ‘the fires’. A custom with pagan roots that has been lost in the depths of the ages and it is concerned the worship of the sun. But, now, it is related to Christianity and represents the fire that the shepherds have lit up to warm the Divine Infant. At midnight on the 23rd of December each neighborhood lights up a great fire (with the larger one in Heroes Square), which preparation takes months. Groups of children gather tons of woods and cedars that have cut from the mountain.
Each group finds a safe place to keep its woods and every night they appoint one of the groups as guard, because the other groups are guarded to steal wood from the opponents. It is an honor for the rival group if they manage to steal wood without understanding it as well as a great shame for the others.
People say that in older times, the child from whom they have stolen woods in his shift, he/she was ashamed even to go school.
The custom of fire lasts also up to the New Year's Day. They set fire for making the new year comes earlier, and masquerade. The custom of disguise keeps from the Bacchic cult (worship) because the carnival was done in honor of Dionysus, the god of fertility, cheerfulness and abundance. This custom is the "Babaria", reviving in the village of Papagiannis where it is located at the northern of Florina. Others believe that it has Roman origins, but its meaning is that it praises the awakening of the earth as well as the fruitfulness on the 1st of January.
The central figure is the "bride" - a symbol of fertility, and the aim is to be abducted by the "bad guys". Men are disguised with hairs something that make them more frightening and put lima beans and red small dried peppers as teeth.
The men's team consists of about 15 people, wearing a linen shirt, a sleeveless vest and black woven knick-knacks, the fleece as well as large cowbells around their waist and thick woods – as crutches. Each member is also charged with a duty ... vanguard, rearguard ... side guarding of the bride ... because the "bad guys" and, of course, the hunchback lurk.
They have to give her intact and untouched to the groom…who differs from the young men...in the crutches...which is a part of a sword-like plow...it also has a tassel ...and small bells... The grandfather, the old lady (babo), the priest with the censer, the doctor with his medics and the shabby-trickster of the bride (the hunchback) are certainly present at the event.
The bride is a man who wears a local bridal dress - every year he wears clothes of an unmarried woman in the village...in order to be pregnant – as well as horse bells. The team goes out and in the yards of the houses and the housewives must give the company one tenth of their crop of tsipouro, pork, sausages, onion, bread and wine. Under the sounds of the bagpipes, the daul and the flute ... the heyday ... is the lamming of the "suitors" of the bride and the hunchback, in a degree that for many days the young people are being tanned... and unable to work. On the New Year's Day, there is also the custom of the bear. The morning of the first day of the year, all people, old and young ones, are washed with running water. People say that this day the bear gave birth and then it has been washed, so the running waters have its power, and it gets it those who wash with them. In the village of Pisoderi, the first piece of Vassilopita is for the bear and they go it to the "bear's rock" I order to eat it.
‘Koleda Babo’
The custom of ‘Koleda Babo’ revives, especially in Pella, and it is related to the massacre of Herod. The inhabitants of the area turn on fire in the evening shouting "Koleda Babo", which means "they slaughter the grandmother". According to the custom, the fires light up for people learning about the massacre and to protect themselves.
‘Koleda Babo’ is of course nothing more than carols to grandmother, a phrase known in many parts of Greece and not only in Macedonia but also in Thrace.
Let's look at some variations:
"Koleda, koleda dos mou babo kouloura. An den me doseis kouloura dos mou ti thygatera sou..."
"Koleda babo kai melida me mena babo kouloura…"
"Koleda babo, dos mou mia koulouritsa…as einai starisia, as einai kalampokisia, Koleda babo"
