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Opłatki: A Polish Christmas Tradition

12/19/2017

3 Comments

 
Oplatki: A Polish Christmas Tradition // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
For the last Family History for Children Blog Hop, I talked about some of the traditional Polish foods my extended family eats during the holidays. Today, I'll talk a little bit about the Polish tradition of opłatki, thin wafers shared among family members at Christmas Eve. Opłatki, which is pronounced 'O-pwat-ki,' are similar in composition and taste to the hosts used in Catholic masses, but they have not been consecrated by a priest.

Traditionally, at Christmas Eve dinner, the eldest family member breaks off a piece of the
opłatki wafer and says a blessing. The wafer is then passed around to other family members around the table, each of whom breaks off a piece and eats it. Our family does it a little differently; each family member takes a piece of opłatki and then walks around the room to other family members. We individually share a hug and a 'Merry Christmas' and each person breaks off a small piece of opłatki from the other person's wafer. Here are a couple of photos of my uncle showing my 3 year old son how to do it.​

Oplatki: A Polish Christmas Tradition // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Oplatki: A Polish Christmas Tradition // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
This blog post is part of the December Family History for Children Blog Link-Up. Check out the other posts below!
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3 Comments
Nicole Dyer
12/19/2017 12:16:27 pm

Neat! Thank you for sharing this insight into your family's celebrations! Every culture and religion is so unique. What a special tradition.

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Teresa link
12/20/2017 05:05:16 pm

We follow this tradition as well :) In fact, my mum had to buy new oplatek to mail to me as I finally ran out after many, many years! Thanks for sharing the lovely photos.

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Jana K Greenhalgh link
12/21/2017 11:59:05 am

Traditions are wonderful. I love how you've added family hugs to this one.

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    Emily Kowalski Schroeder

    Founder and Author of Growing Little Leaves

    Emily Kowalski Schroeder / Founder and Author of GrowingLittleLeaves.com
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    Emily Kowalski Schroeder: 2017 RootsTech Speaker

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