Ethiopian Christmas 2025

After 43 days of fasting, all followers of Christianity find themselves looking forward to Genna, the Ethiopian Christmas. As one of the most important national holidays of the year, it is celebrated on the 7th of January. The next Christmas Day will fall on Wednesday, 07 January 2026. Another festival, Timkat (Epiphany), is also celebrated in January – offering another opportunity to enjoy both events. Genna is a religious holiday that bears many similarities to global Christmas celebrations, yet it comes with its own unique traditions, making the Ethiopian Christmas a highly anticipated event.

The Nativity Fast in Ethiopia

Practiced by both the Orthodox and Catholic churches, the nativity fast lasts around 40 days. With the aim of limiting the pleasures of food and other passions, followers adhere to a specific diet. In fact, a strictly vegan diet is adopted throughout the entire fast. A delicious variety of vegan dishes are prepared around injera, a fermented flat bread made of teff flour. They are mostly based on powdered chickpeas (shiro), lentils (missir), and various vegetables.

The Eve of Ethiopian Christmas

Christmas Eve in Ethiopia is known as the gahad of Christmas. Throughout this special day, families spend time preparing for Christmas Day. After a long, tiring day of cooking and cleaning, they head to church for the Christmas Eve mass. Traditional garments like netela or gabi (white with woven colored borders) are worn. Following several hours of religious chants and prayers, they return home around 3AM to finally break their fast. The Nativity fast is broken with a series of non-vegan delicacies. Doro wet—a spicy chicken stew with boiled eggs, usually served with a side of cottage cheese (ayib)—is one such dish.

Christmas Day in Ethiopia

Unlike Western traditions, gift giving is not common on this day. Instead, the celebration revolves around enjoying traditional dishes and spending time with loved ones.
Genna Chewata—a traditional game akin to field hockey—originated among shepherds in the Highlands. Played in teams with a curved wooden stick and a small ball, it is a unique Christmas tradition in Ethiopia.

Genna is a wonderful time to experience Ethiopia's rich culture and warm hospitality. Come and be a part of this unique celebration!

Ethiopian Christmas Wishes and Messages in Amharic

Here are some happy Christmas messages to send to your loved ones:

መልካም የገና በዓል!
🎄☆ መ࿚ል࿚ካ࿚ም ⭐ የ࿚ገ࿚ና ⭐ በ࿚ዓ࿚ል ☆🎄
እንኳን ለጌታችን ለመድሃኒታችን ለእየሱስ ክርስቶስ የልደት በዓል በሰላም አደረሳችሁ።
ለመላዉ የክርስትና እምነት ተከታዮች በሙሉ እንኳን ለገና በዓል በሰላም አደረሳችሁ።
በደስታ የተሞላ የገና በዓል እንዲሆንልህ/ሽ/ዎ እመኛለው። መልካም ገና!
በግና ጨዋታ አይቆጡም ጌታ! መልካም የገና በዓል!
        🌟
        🎄
      🎄🎄
    🎄⁣🎄🎄
  🎄🎄🎄🎄
🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄
መልካም የገና በዓል
  🎁🎁🎁

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