If you’ve never heard of a Christmas Poop Log before, there’s plenty to learn. Let’s begin with five things you didn’t know about the Poop Log. Like other cultural Holiday traditions around the world, the exact beginnings of the Poop Log are wrapped in folklore. It is especially hard to trace roots because it is a tradition of a language, culture, and people whose ancestors have become inhabitants and citizens of multiple countries.
The ancestry of the Poop Log in language and lineage is Catalan, a heritage of the inhabitants of Catalonia. The northeastern corner of the Iberian Peninsula is home to the independent Catalan people who have protected their unique language, culture, and heritage even as their lands were absorbed by parts of Spain and France.
The over nine million people who keep the language, culture, and traditions of Catalan alive are inhabitants of eastern and northeastern Spain, the Balearic Islands, the Roussillon region of France, in Andorra, in Alghero, and Sardinia, Italy.
Catalan is often misidentified as a Spanish dialect; it is much more than only a dialect. Along with a unique language there are unique traditions with origins that are hard to pinpoint. One is the whimsical Christmas Tradition of The Christmas Poop Log. So without further ado let’s explore the five things that You Didn’t Know about the Christmas Poop Log that you should know.
5 Things to Know about The Poop Log
What’s in a Name?
- In the Catalan language it is called Caga Tió, which is translated as “Poop Log”. It derives its name not from what it looks like, as one may think on first glance, but for what it does. At Christmastime, it poops treats.
How Did it Begin?
- Caga Tió is a Catalan Tradition which is embraced by an unknown number of the over nine million people in the Catalan region. Even the most ardent history buff of Catalan culture is hard pressed to answer the question of origin of the Christmas Poop Log.
Why Is It a Christmas Tradition?
- The Poop Log, Caga Tió, oddly makes its appearance in homes on a sacred Roman Catholic Holiday, December 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Its “birth,” when it first appears in the home each year and its final day, Christmas Day, are both important Catholic Holidays.
Why Is it Covered With a Blanket?
- It is covered with a blanket to keep it warm. Not only does the blanket serve to keep it warm, but it also hides the presents that will be “pooped” out when children hit it with sticks at Christmas.
What Treats Does It Leave on Christmas Day?
- On Christmas Day, the Poop Log leaves behind presents for the children. The Caga Tió is “fed” by leaving favorite foods in front of it, favoring oranges and other small cookies and nuts. These feedings throughout the season allow it to poop out the favored candy, turron, along with Christmas treats and presents.
More To Learn About the History and Tradition of the Christmas Poop Log
This short Q&A provides the bones of the Caga Tió, “Poop Log” Tradition. Look for more questions and answers as the Christmas Poop Log Blog continues.