Crappy Catalan Christmas Traditions

Last Updated on March 11 , 2024 by acrossthewaterwithchelsita

Catalonia has many unique traditions you won’t find anywhere else: Calçotadas, Castellers, and Correfocs to name a few. But by far, the most bizarre and original have to be its scatological Christmas traditions. Think logs that poop presents and defecation in the nativity scene. So without further ado, let’s dive into the exciting world of Catalan Christmas traditions…

Let’s start with the Pooping Log…Caga Tió:

What is Caga Tió?

In most countries, it’s Santa Claus and his reindeer who bring you presents on Christmas Eve. In Catalonia, it’s the equally fantastical Caga Tió – basically a log with little wooden legs and an overly eager smiley face, usually topped off with a little red felt hat (a barretina). 

On the 8th of December (Day of the Immaculate Conception, usually considered the first acceptable day to put up Christmas decorations and start festivities), children start “feeding” the log with turrón and orange peels. When the kids are asleep, their family secretly replace the log with a similar but larger log. This way the kids can see Caga Tió log fattening up nicely week after week.

Why do Children Feed Caga Tió?

The children aren’t just caring for this log’s insatiable appetite for sweets out of the goodness of their hearts. Oh no! The idea is that once he’s nice and fat, he’ll miraculously excrete gifts from his non-existent bottom. But only after being persuaded by vigorous beatings with a stick. Traditionally these gifts are sweets and small toys. Bigger presents are reserved for King’s Day on the 6th of January, (usually the main day for giving holiday gifts, but we’ll come to that another time).

In any case, for Catalan families with children, Christmas Eve or, Nochebuena, plays out more or less like this:

Excited children have been feeding Caga Tió for weeks, and they can finally reap the rewards of their hard work. However, for some unknown reason, their little log friend needs some persuading to give up his goodies. Maybe he’s constipated from his high-sugar, low-fibre diet? Perhaps he wants to seek revenge on the little devils fattening him up like a foie gras goose? Whatever the reason, he needs some coercion to bring forth the succulent gifts. This is where the blunt-force corporeal violence comes in.

How do the Children Claim their Christmas Goodies?

While the children leave the room to go and wet their sticks, (again, who knows why), the parents quickly hide all the sweeties under a blanket which has been keeping the log nice and cosy all this time. When the children return, the torture ritual begins with a menacing chant. Although there are many variations, with each family choosing their favourite, the most popular goes like this:

Catalan original	Rough Translation into English
Caga tió!	Poop log!
Caga torró,	Poop turrón,
avellanes i mató.	hazelnuts and fresh cheese.
Si no cagues bé	If you don’t poop well,
et daré un cop de bastó.	I’ll hit you with a stick,
Caga tió!	Poop log!

Following the threats of violence, the goodies are immediately extorted by savagely beating the defenceless log with a stick. His blanket is then lifted up to reveal the hard-won sweets, much to the delight of the small terrorists.

Well, that’s if you’ve been good. What if you’ve been naughty all year? Caga Tió might poop out a herring, a piece of coal, an onion or a clove of garlic. So make sure you’re good boys and girls!

Check out the video below if you want to see these acts of violence in action. Warning: you might see some upsetting images of arboreal cruelty:

I’m not sure what this is really teaching kids. But in any case, children evidently love it and the curious Catalan Christmas tradition of Caga Tió won’t be stopping anytime soon.

And the crazy poop-related traditions don’t stop there…

Not content with just one defecating Catalan Christmas Tradition, There’s a Second … Caganers!

Literally “poopers”, these figurines depict a man with his trousers around his ankles and his bare bum on display squatting down to do his business, complete with said turd meticulously sculpted to protrude from said behind and collecting in a pile at the base. If that wasn’t odd enough, they’re hidden in nativity scenes in surreal scatological Where’s Wally? set-up.

Okay, that’s a lot to take in.

Let’s start with the pesebre – the nativity scene. This is often the most important Christmas decoration in Spanish homes.

In the UK , the nativity often just shows the main characters: baby Jesus, Mary, Joseph, The Three Wise Men and maybe a few donkeys.

In Spain, as well as in most of Italy and Southern France, the nativity scenes are elaborate installations encompassing the whole city of Bethlehem. The pesebre could include anyone from the baker, washer women, farmers in the fields, the midwife looking over a group of frolicking children, you name it.

This miniature village usually also comes complete with fresh bark and twigs collected from the forest, as well as working miniature watermills and tiny LEDs for candles inside hand-crafted houses! It seems fitting then that these embellished displays include even the lowliest characters of society, doing trivial things; like taking a dump.

Aren’t Caganers Offensive?

Obviously, some people do take offence at the depiction of a defecating peasant in the presence of baby Jesus. This was something my Catalan teacher friend found out the hard way when she explained this Catalan Christmas tradition to her Irish students. She thought they’d laugh but they were actually shocked, disgusted and embarrassed.

However, the tradition is tolerated by the Catholic church in areas where it is practised, which aside from Catalonia includes Murcia and Valencia, as well as Andorra, Portugal and southern Italy.

What’s the Origin of this Catalan Christmas Tradition?

But why have a pooper at all? The caganer has been around in Catalonia since the 18th century and since then there have been many theories about its meaning. The most popular being that, since the caganer is fertilising the soil with his number two, it brings prosperity and good luck in the new year, especially for farmers. Others think it’s a subversive symbol to not-so-discreetly tell the Catholic church what was (is) thought of them by the common folk. Alternatively, maybe a pesebre-maker decided to pull a prank one year, leading to retaliation by another, which soon turned into a tradition. Or maybe the caganer is just a reminder to stay down-to-earth, have a little fun, and not take things too seriously, even (especially?) where religion is concerned.

What types of caganers are there?

The traditional caganer figurine is a peasant wearing traditional Catalan attire: white shirt, black trousers, belt, espadrilles and barretina, but nowadays there is a wide range of caganers to choose from. In recent years a urinating figure (a “Pixaner”) has also appeared, but they aren’t nearly as popular as the good old-fashioned poopers. New figures appear every year depicting famous people such as Messi, Donald Trump and The Queen to name just a few. Many people collect them and there’s even an association dedicated to them called Els Amics del Caganer (Friends of the Caganer) which produces a regular newsletter, “El Caganófil”.

Where can you Buy Caganers?

You can buy them year round in many souvenir shops but the most authentic place to buy them is directly in front of Santa Eulalia Cathedral at Barcelona’s oldest Christmas market – La Fira de Santa Llúcia. It’s not fun like German Christmas markets, but it’s a great way to get into the Christmas spirit in Barcelona (and to stock up on your fresh moss inlays for your nativity scene). Alternatively, you can also buy your pooping figurines at www.caganers.com. Now that really takes “crappy souvenirs” to a whole new level.

It wouldn’t be a Catalan Christmas without the caganer. In fact, when he was omitted from Barcelona’s nativity scene in 2005, it provoked public outcry! Apparently the council had just passed a law making public urination and defecation illegal, so the caganer would be setting a bad example. The Catalans weren’t convinced and saw it as an attack on their traditions. Following the campaign Salvem el caganer (Save the Caganer) and widespread media criticism, the chipper crapper was restored to his place of glory in 2006. ¡Viva el caganer!

So Now You Know About Catalonia’s Crappy Christmas Traditions

So there you have it, forget the singing Christmas tree and creepy Santa dolls this year. Get a crapping peasant figurine and a pooping log piñata instead. I’ll leave you with one last feculent fancy from the land of the poop obsessed good eaters and strong shitters: “menja bé, caga fort i no tinguis por a la mort!”. Translation: “Eat well, shit well and don’t be afraid of death!”

Sending you winter sunshine and positivity from Barcelona! 

To find out more about Spanish Traditions of the festive seasons, don’t miss Spain: The land of Sun, Sea and … the World’s Biggest Lottery?!, and How to Celebrate New Year’s Eve Like a Spaniard.

What do you think about these curious Catalan Christmas traditions? What strange Christmas traditions from other countries do you know? I would love to find out in the comments section below!

Where to find out more about Curious Catalan Christmas Traditions?

• Do Travel Mag’s Catalan Christmas Traditions: Celebrate like the locals
• Barcelona Tourist Guide’s Cultural Christmas Traditions In Barcelona
• TimeOut’s 11 Quirky Catalan Traditions
• Catalan Christmas traditions – The shitter, the pooping log and the 3 Wise Men
• Wikipedia’s full lowdown on the Caganer
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caganer