What holiday is celebrated on December 24: interesting facts about this day

December 24 is Christmas Eve. Orthodox believers honor the memory of the holy martyrs Eugenia and Claudia and St. Kuksha of Odesa. Name days are celebrated by Danylo, Ivan, Luka, Mykola, Petro, Yevheniya and Klavdiya.

This day is also the Day of Workers of Archival Institutions of Ukraine, Independence Day of Libya, and the Day of the Christmas Peace Declaration in Finland. OBOZ.UA tells about the holidays and significant events of this day.

What holidays are celebrated on December 24

According to the New Julian calendar, Christmas Eve is celebrated on December 24. It is the final day of the Christmas fast. On Christmas Eve, children in towns and villages traditionally went to visit their godparents and brought a basket with kutia and treats, and in return received gifts and goodies. And after the first star appeared, they would start eating dinner.

The festive table must contain 12 meatless dishes symbolizing the 12 apostles. Among the obligatory dishes are kutia, dumplings with potatoes, cabbage, mushrooms or cherries, uzvar, fish, beans, peas or lentils. Before Christmas Eve, believers traditionally fast, giving up food of animal origin.

In the old days, hay was placed under the festive tablecloth to remind people of the manger. After dinner, young people go from house to house caroling, congratulating their hosts on the holiday and receiving gifts.

On December 24, believers also honor the memory of the martyrs Eugene and Claudia. Their lives were dedicated to faith in Jesus Christ, and their deaths were martyrdom, for which they were canonized by the Orthodox Church.

St. Kuksha of Odesa (born Kuzma Kyrylovych Velychko) is also remembered as a prominent figure of Ukrainian Orthodoxy in the twentieth century. His life is a vivid example of faith, humility, and indomitable spirit.

On December 24, Ukraine celebrates the Day of Workers of Archival Institutions. This holiday was established on October 30, 1998, in accordance with Presidential Decree No. 1200/98. Archivists collect documents from various sources, systematize them and create inventories. They ensure proper storage conditions for documents to protect them from damage and loss, conduct research of archival collections, discover new facts and reveal little-known pages of history.

Notable historical events on December 24

• 1624 - Hetman Mykhailo Doroshenko signed an interstate agreement on mutual assistance between the Zaporozhian Army and the Crimean Khanate.
• 1760 - Russian Empress Elizabeth signed a decree on the right of landowners to exile their peasants to Siberia.
• 1814 - In Ghent (now Belgium), the United Kingdom and the United States signed a treaty ending the Anglo-American War.
• 1903 - The first registration number for a car is issued in the UK - the plate with the number A1 was given to the Duke of Russell, brother of the philosopher Bertrand Russell.
• 1908 - The first international air show opens in Paris.
• 1914 - A German airplane dropped a bomb on the English city of Dover, carrying out the first ever aerial bombardment.
• 1917 - The All-Ukrainian Congress of Soviets opened in Kharkiv, captured by the Russian Bolsheviks, and ended on December 25 with the proclamation of the so-called Ukrainian People's Republic of Soviets, as opposed to the UPR with its capital in Kyiv.
• 1958 - Compulsory 8-year education is introduced in the USSR.
• 1979 - The USSR begins the occupation of Afghanistan.
• 2004 - The Ukrainian satellite Sich-1M (a remote sensing satellite; the 2nd in the Sich series of satellites) is launched into orbit.

Who was born on December 24

• 1798 - Adam Mickiewicz, Polish romantic poet, activist of the national liberation movement.
• 1818 - James Prescott Joule, English physicist.
• 1905 - Anton Walter, Ukrainian physicist. In 1932, together with K. D. Sinelnikov, O. I. Leipunsky, and G. D. Latyshev, he was the first in the USSR to split the atomic nucleus with artificially accelerated particles.
• 1905 - Konstantin Dankevich, Ukrainian composer.
• 1906 - James Hadley Chase, English writer.
• 1920 - Svyatoslav Karavansky, Ukrainian linguist, poet, journalist, public figure.
• 1922 - Ava Gardner, American actress, Hollywood star of the 1940s and 1950s.
• 1937 - Vyacheslav Chornovil, Ukrainian politician, public figure, literary critic, publicist, leader of the resistance movement against Russification and national discrimination against the Ukrainian people.
• 1974 - Oleksiy Senyuk, chief sergeant of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, participant of the Russian-Ukrainian war. Hero of Ukraine.

Died on this day:

• 1863 - William Thackeray, English writer.
• 1980 - Karl Deniz, German Grand Admiral, commander of the Kriegsmarine during World War II, President of Germany from April 30, 1945 to May 23, 1945.
• 1993 - Yang Jiagang, Chinese politician, headed the government of the Republic of China.
• 1994 - John Osborne, English playwright and screenwriter.
• 2002 - Tita Merello, Argentine actress and tango singer.
• 2008 - Harold Pinter, British playwright, poet, director and actor, winner of the 2005 Nobel Prize in Literature.

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