Pikkujoulut, ”Little Christmas” parties – a Finnish specialty

It's ”Little Christmas” party season. Pikkujoulut in Finnish. These parties are held in practically every workplace. As well as in schools, associations, sports clubs, among friends, within families, and so on.

The sheer number of pikkujoulut parties proves that they have a special meaning for Finns. In fact, Finns ask each other how many pikkujoulut they have this year.

One obvious explanation for the popularity of these parties is the weather in Finland in November and December. The days are at their shortest. It is still dark when people leave for work, and it is already dark when they return home. In southern Finland, the temperature typically hovers around zero. It snows, but mostly sleet and rain. The roads are wet or icy.

No wonder Finns have found a reason to celebrate at this time of year.

Participation is semi-compulsory

Participation is voluntary, but in theory semi-compulsory. Colleagues expect everyone to attend the festivities because pikkujoulut are fun. Who doesn't think so?

Employers often spend time planning the parties and money organizing them. Employees may think that their boss will interpret skipping the party as a lack of commitment. Let's be honest: this interpretation is not necessarily wrong.

Many people look forward to pikkujoulut parties. There is usually good food and enough to drink. You can dress up a little more than you would for work and chat with your coworkers in a more relaxed setting. 

From glögi to Christmas ham

Traditionally, Little Christmas parties have featured Christmas food, which in Finland means ham, swede casserole, smoked fish, gravlax and joulutorttu (Christmas star pastry) for dessert.

In recent years, party menus have become more diverse. 

When it comes to drinks, one has remained steadfast. Pikkujoulut often start with glögi, a hot mulled wine. At this point, guests may be asked if they want their drink spiked, which often means mixed with a dash of Finnish vodka, Koskenkorva.

Usually, the company provides drinks to accompany the meal, such as a couple of beers or a couple glasses of wine, and coffee with cognac or liqueur at the end of the meal.

Traditionally, men chose cognac and women chose a sweeter option. Nowadays, no one is surprised if a woman asks for cognac and a man asks for cream liqueur, for example.

Why so few drink tickets?

In the past, the company's financial situation could be deduced from how long the bar remained open at the company's expense. If the free drinks ended with the meal, it was thought that things were going badly for the company. 

Nowadays, most companies openly inform their staff of their results on a regular basis. The scarcity of drink vouchers may be a subtle hint to keep alcohol consumption within reasonable limits.

There is a reason for this. 

Pikkujoulut gone wrong

All Finns can tell stories of pikkujoulut parties that went wrong. Under the influence of alcohol, people have insulted their bosses, picked fights, discussed company matters with outsiders, made advances toward their supervisor's spouse, and so on.

Successful parties engage staff in the company, create team spirit, and send everyone home in a good mood. But sadly here have been Little Christmas parties that have led to dismissals, resignations, rifts between colleagues, and embarrassing returns home the next day.

The evening ends at a karaoke bar?

In recent years, it has become common to use company money for an inspiring program in addition to a good meal. Before dinner, people may go to the theater or do something a little different together.

However, many evenings end up at a karaoke bar. Karaoke arrived here from Japan in the early 1990s, when Finland was in the throes of a severe recession. To everyone's surprise, the craze did not fade away when employment improved and people started to have money again. 

No, Finns still think karaoke is really cool.

And if we go to karaoke with a group of friends once a year for a pre-Christmas party, everyone sings. Isn't that right? Who doesn't think this is fun?

And in that sense, it's not about laughing at someone's poor rendition of Simply The Best at work later on, but admiring the fact that even our reserved nitpickers know how to have fun...