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Advent begins November 29

The Almanac

Julotta

In Sweden the first service of Christmas Day was held in the dark, and people walked or rode to it by candlelight.

A black and white pen drawing of villagers in winter coats sitting in church pews, with hymn books, at an early service.
Julotta in Leksand church, pen drawing by Pelle Hedman, 1890s. Public domain. Credits
When it is kept
Christmas morning
Where it fits in the year
Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

Julotta is the early church service on Christmas morning in Sweden. The name joins jul, which means Yule or Christmas, and otta, an old word for the dark hours before dawn.1 A Swedish church law of 1686 set the start of julotta at 6 a.m. Before that it often began a few hours earlier, so country people got up around 4 a.m. to walk to church.2,3 A few churches, such as Rättvik in Dalarna, still hold it at 4 a.m.2

In old Sweden many people went to julotta by horse sleigh, through snow and in the dark.2,4 About 200 years ago Swedish homes put one candle in a window from Christmas Eve to Christmas Day. A curator at the Nordic Museum says it was a greeting to the people walking to church.5

The best-known julotta hymn is "Var hälsad, sköna morgonstund", "Welcome, beautiful morning". Its words are by Johan Olof Wallin, from 1819, and its tune is by Philipp Nicolai, from 1599.6

Fewer people go to julotta now, and the Christmas Eve service has taken over for many families.1,3 In Turku, Finland, a Christmas Peace is read out at noon on Christmas Eve, a custom that came from the Swedish kingdom and has been kept for hundreds of years.7,8

Old belief

People once believed that the family that got home first from julotta would have the best harvest that year. No evidence backs it up.1

Old belief

The curator also says people once believed a candle in the window kept evil away. The part that is certain is that the candle was a welcome.5

In the Bible

The angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be to all the people. For there is born to you today, in David’s city, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

Luke 2:10-11

Julotta celebrates the birth of Jesus, which these words from Luke announce. The early hour is a church custom, not a Bible command.

Sources

  1. Julotta, Wikipedia
  2. Julotta, Swedish Wikipedia (the 1686 law)
  3. Julotta, Svenska kyrkan, Ystad
  4. Christmas in Sweden, Wikipedia
  5. Christmas candles and window lights, The Local (Nordic Museum curator)
  6. Var hälsad, sköna morgonstund, Wikipedia
  7. Declaration of Christmas Peace in Finland, University of Turku
  8. Declaration of Christmas Peace, Wikipedia

Sit in the Chapel, a quiet room