by Risa Seu
Christmas in Japan is a little different to from Christmas in other countries. Since less than 2% of the population in Japan identify as Christian, there was a big void to fill in for the tradition of Christmas. The biggest difference is that fried chicken, especially Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC), is synonymous with Christmas dinner. A extremely successful marketing campaign by KFC in 1974 rang “クリスマスにはケンタッキー” (read: Kurisumasu ni wa Kentakki; meaning: Kentucky for Christmas) with Colonel Sanders dressed up as Santa Claus. This helped create the tradition of eating KFC on Christmas. Now, people order fried chicken up to 2 months in advance and wait in extremely long lines to ensure they get KFC on Christmas! Other than KFC, Christmas cakes that are beautifully decorated are a big part of the tradition as well and such a cake is a must after the KFC dinner. Putting food aside, for the month of Christmas, streets are decorated with beautiful lights and many people like to tour the illumination in different areas. You can also hear Christmas songs ringing in every store you go into and along the shopping districts. Japanese Christmas songs are generally about magical love, the happiness of Christmas Eve and Christmas day. Some songs are about the sadness and loneliness of not being able to see your loved ones. Traditionally, Christmas was marketed as a celebration for couples, but lately, it is common for those who do not have significant others to have home parties or rent out karaoke spaces or hotel rooms with their friends and celebrate as well.
