Three Ways Latinos Celebrate Christmas

Did you know that Puerto Ricans organize asaltos (caroling) to celebrate Christmas, or that Cubans put shoes near their windows to wait for the Three Wise Men? Meanwhile, Mexicans keep alive the tradition of celebrating their Posadas no matter where they are. Curious, isn't it? Well, Hispanics have several Christmas customs that are deeply rooted in their cultural heritage—traditions that continue to be passed down from generation to generation, helping to maintain family and community ties. Below, we review some of these customs.

In Hispanic homes, the Christmas season is celebrated with a Nativity scene displayed from early December through Three Kings Day.

Photo by Lauren Carroll/CRS.

Puerto Rican-Style Christmas

Puerto Ricans are accustomed to celebrating asaltos navideños, a tradition similar to serenades. This involves gathering with friends and family to surprise loved ones with typical Christmas songs and carols. During the holiday season, Puerto Ricans often listen to aguinaldo, plena, salsa, and traditional carols like Dame la Mano Paloma and El Jolgorio. Typical Christmas instruments, such as the guitar, güiro, bongos, and tambourines, are also common.

In Puerto Rico, the Christmas season is celebrated with "asaltos," where friends surprise others at home with lively carols and traditional songs.

Photo courtesy of discoverpuertorico.com.

In Puerto Rico, the Day of the Three Wise Men is celebrated with great enthusiasm. The night before the celebration, children, accompanied by adults, cut grass to place in boxes under their beds. The grass is for the camels of the Three Wise Men, who leave gifts for the children upon their arrival.

On January 6, children wake up early to enjoy the gifts left by the Three Wise Men in the boxes where they had placed the grass. It is a day to be shared with family. Eight days after the Day of the Three Wise Men, Las Octavitas is celebrated, extending the Christmas festivities. Thanks to this tradition, Puerto Rican Christmas is considered the longest in the world.

A Puerto Rican girl gathers grass to place in a box under her bed, a tradition to feed the camels of the Three Wise Men in celebration of Three Kings Day.

Photo by Julie Fletcher for CRS.

Cuban-Style Christmas

For Cubans, the Christmas holidays provide a unique opportunity to gather with family and friends to share the traditional customs inherited from their beloved Cuba. These gatherings often feature a culinary feast, with roast pork, black beans, yucca with garlic, flan, and turrones (nougat) as staples.

“For me, Christmas is three things: Kids running around the house, the big table full of food, and opening presents on December 24, before midnight,” says Haydée Díaz, a Cuban-American who heads CRS operations in Honduras, recalling the celebrations of her childhood in San Jose, California.

On Three Kings Day, Cuban families place a shoe in the window to signal the Kings that someone is home, inviting them to leave gifts.

Photo by Julie Fletcher for CRS.

Cubans also like to celebrate Christmas in Spanish, and one of their main traditions is preparing Cuban flan. They typically decorate their homes and set up the Christmas tree, placing presents under it that children open on Christmas Day.

For many Cubans, it is common to place a shoe in the window of their bedroom to wait for the Three Wise Men.

“Well, it's so the Three Wise Men know that someone is there. And when they come to give a gift to Jesus, they can also leave something for the people in the house,” said Michael Trujillo, son of Cuban parents living in Atlanta, and part of the CRS team. “Yes, I’m an adult, but I still do it,” he says with a laugh.

Mexican-Style Christmas

Mexicans keep alive the tradition of Las Posadas, usually celebrated nine days before Christmas Eve. This deeply rooted custom is also celebrated by Mexicans in the United States, from December 16 through December 24.

During Las Posadas, family and friends gather to pray. Afterward, they walk the streets of the neighborhood, looking for shelter for the Infant Jesus. Traditional carols like Entren Santos Peregrinos and Los Peces en el Río are commonly sung.

Latinos of Mexican heritage celebrate Las Posadas each Christmas, reenacting the Holy Family’s search for shelter before the birth of Jesus.

Photo by Julie Fletcher for CRS.

“Each family has an image of the Infant Jesus, usually carried by the lady of the house. Then, you pass by and give the baby Jesus a kiss and receive a sweet,” explained Rolando Guajardo, a Hispanic born in Monterrey, Mexico, and now living in San Antonio, Texas.

Once at the houses, participants of the Christmas posada usually eat traditional Mexican dishes together. Then, they break a piñata shaped like a star.

“Usually, the piñata is shaped like a star, symbolizing the Star of Bethlehem that guided the Three Wise Men. It is filled with candy, and sometimes money,” Rolando added.

In celebration of Las Posadas, a star-shaped piñata is prepared, symbolizing the star that guided the Wise Men to the birthplace of the Messiah.

Photo by Julie Fletcher for CRS

For Christmas Eve, the Mexican community typically opens gifts on December 24. Then, on the 25th, they celebrate La Recalentada, another family gathering where they enjoy the leftover food from the previous day.

Another unique Mexican tradition is the preparation of Rosca de Reyes (Three Kings Bread), a round-shaped bread with great significance: it symbolizes God’s eternal love.

For Latinos, Christmas is a time for family and celebration. While many more traditions exist, they are all united by faith and the desire to receive the Infant Jesus into their hearts.