Acadian Christmas Traditions.

Margaret Conrad is a history professor at Acadia University and editor
of They Planted Well: New England Planters in Maritime Canada.

Georges Arsenault has written widely and well on the history and folklore of the Acadians. This English translation by Sally Ross, herself a gifted historian, of Arsenault’s 2005 publication Nöel en Acadie (Tracadie-Sheila: Éditions La Grande Marée, 2005) makes his research on Christmas traditions among Acadians available to a broader readership. Sure-footed in his knowledge of archival sources and of the North Atlantic context in which Christmas has been celebrated over the past three centuries, Arsenault explores the differences among the diverse and scattered Acadian communities of the Maritimes, tracks the blending of old and new traditions, and analyzes Acadian practices associated with such traditions as the crèche (nativity scene), réveillon (originally a light snack after midnight mass), and naulet (a biscuit or bread in the shape of a child). Arsenault offers particularly rich primary evidence on his native Prince Edward Island, much of it gleaned from his extended family, many members of which are blessed with both long lives and good memories.

Acadians, it seems, clung to the religious traditions associated with Roman Catholic celebrations of Christmas longer than their Anglophone neighbours, but by the end of the 19th century priests were beginning to worry about commercial intrusions such as Santa Claus and gift-giving at Christmas rather than at New Year’s celebrations. Although the church tried to adapt secular traditions to spiritual ends, it was a losing battle, especially after mass consumer culture—spread by catalogues, radio, and relatives who worked in urban areas of North America—took firm root in the interwar years.

Well-illustrated with maps and photographs, and sprinkled with quotations from newspapers, letters, diaries, and oral interviews, this little book is accessible to the general reader and a welcome addition to the growing library of secondary works on Acadian history and culture.