Toronto Swedish Folkdancers and Singers @ SWEA Jul Harbourfront, Toronto 2018-11-25 4.00pm

The SWEA Annual X-Mas Festival and Julmarknad (Yule Market) took place over the weekend on Nov.24-25, 2018 at Harbourfront in downtown Toronto where it had been for many years. The were various vendors with Scandinavian goods and food and drinks available.
The Lucia pageant was performed several times per day in the theater. This was the final performance of the event at 4:00pm on Sunnasday (Sunday). This is the first part of it, with the Toronto Swedish Folkdancers and Singers. The second part is a children's performance with Lucia.
There was a long line up for each performance, but it was possible to register online ahead of time to avoid it. As is usual it was well-attended. There were some folk dance performances in the Brigantine Room which also had vendors and food.
Toronto Swedish Folkdancers & Singers
tsfs.ca/
/ torontoswedishfolkdanc...
Swedish Women's Educational Association (SWEA) Toronto
toronto.swea.org/
/ sweatoronto
/ sweatoronto
In Scandinavia and traditionally in Germanic cultures, X-Mas is called Jul, pronounced Yule in English. Yuletide means Jul-time. It is one of the most important traditional festivals during the year, coinciding with the Winter Solstice Dec.21-22, the shortest day of the year. Midsommar (Midsummer) is another important festival on the Swedish calendar, on the Summer Solstice June 21-22, on the longest day of the year.
The scientific explanation of the solstices, equinoxes, day, night and the seasons is that they are created by the unique relationship between the Earth and Sun. The Earth rotates on an angle, called the axial tilt every day, and revolves around the Sun once a year. Longer cycles affecting the shape of the Earth's revolving course around the Sun every 100,000 years, called Milankovitch cycles, cause the periodic ice ages.
Scandinavian Christmas Traditions - Ancient Yule
www.scandinavi...
German X-Mas Traditions
germanfoods.or...
Samfundet Forn Sed
www.samfundetf...
Forn Siðr
www.fornsidr.dk/
Germanische Glaubens-Gemeinschaft
www.germanisch...
Free e-books about Scandinavian traditions in English published by Rasmus Anderson (1846-1936) on Internet Archive
archive.org/se...
The Religion of the Teutons - Chantepie de la Saussaye
archive.org/de...