Norway is the westernmost country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in northwestern Europe. Norway's west coast is bordered completely by the Norwegian Sea, and the country shares borders with both Finland and Sweden.

As in most countries through out the world, the Norwegian Christmas celebration reaches its peak on December 24th, Christmas Eve. By this time, children have already made their paper baskets and decorated them with foil to hang on the Christmas tree, for they will be filled with candy and nuts during the night time. Christmas trees are a popular Christmas commodity in Norway; they were introduced to their first Christmas trees by Germany in the early 1900s, and these days they can be seen in every home where Christmas is celebrated. Some wealther homes in Norway may even have more than one Christmas tree in their home. Christmas trees are a big deal to the people in Norway; they spend a lot of time decorating their trees with ribbons, lights, and the paper baskets that the children have made.

The parents or older children of the family usually dress the tree in its baskets, lights, and ornaments in another room, and then bring it out for the family to see once it has been completed. This is made out to be a time of great anticipation, and younger children are always made to be very excited. Before gifts are opened, the family will traditionally dance in a circle around the Christmas tree. They hold hands and sing Norwegian Christmas carols; in Norway, Christmas is a time to spend with family and the people that are close to you in life.

In Norway, children are not visited in the night by a jolly old elf named Santa Claus, or even a bishop-like figure named Saint Nicholas. They are tended to by a man named Nisse, their version of Santa Claus. Nisse and the commercialized version of the man in red and white are not as similar as one might think; Nisse are small, stout men with facial hair that tend to the animals in the farm, if there are any. Nisse is a lot more fickle than other Christmas icons; it is said that if he does not receive a bowl of porridge on Christmas Eve when he visits the home, he may play practical jokes on the family, usually involving the farm animals or family pet. He usually has small elf like men with him called nisser that help him along.

In other areas of Norway there is a version of a Nisse called Julenissen that does somewhat resemble the traditional version of Santa Claus. Julenissen prefers to knock on the door on Christmas Eve with gifts rather than sneak down the chimney with them at night, though.

Gifts are most often opened on Christmas Eve. The following day, December 25th is normally a very relaxing day, used to clean up their homes and prepare for Boxing Day. The family usually shares in a large meal on or before Boxing Day, and children dress up on this day, usually in masks or costumes, and go out to ask the neighbors for treats--a lot like the American version of Halloween!