Swedes, Danes celebrate Lucia Day

13 December is Lucia Day, celebrated around Denmark in nursing homes and hospitals as well as in many schools and day-care institutions. A small group, comprising mostly girls, processes along the corridors singing Santa Lucia. The girls are dressed in white and the Lucia Bride, who leads the procession, carries a candle-lit wreath. The custom originates from Swedish, and was introduced in Denmark in 1944 by ‘Foreningen Norden’ (The Norden Association) during the German Occupation of Denmark. Many people in Norway and Finland also observe Lucia Day.