For most 62 per cent of Canadians, Merry Christmas is the preferred way to greet others during the festive season
“Merry Christmas” greeters have the firmest grip on tradition in Canada, according to a new poll.
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For most Canadians (62 per cent), Merry Christmas is the preferred way to greet others during the festive season. Just under one-in-four (24 per cent) go with the more secular “Happy Holidays,” while 14 per cent don’t care much either way, says Mario Canseco, president of B.C.-based Research Co.
“It’s a delicate balance, says Canseco. “While we have seen a drop in the proportion of Canadians who are interested in religion and who attend services (more on that next week), we continue to see more than 60 per cent saying they prefer ‘Merry Christmas.’ For many, it’s the phrase they’ve always used. That said, ‘Happy Holidays’ has gained 10 points since 2018, particularly with younger Canadians…’Merry Christmas’ is not an affirmation of religion, and ‘Happy Holidays’ is not a capitulation to wokeness. It’s just what we like to say, not an imposition one way or another.”
More than two thirds of Atlantic Canadians (73 per cent) and Albertans (67 per cent) choose “Merry Christmas” as their greeting. The proportions are lower in Ontario (64 per cent), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (63 per cent, British Columbia (62 per cent) and Quebec (52 per cent).
When do we find out the ‘truth’ about Santa?
Another key question presented to respondents was about the perennial mystery: When did you find out that Santa Claus isn’t real? (Editor’s Note: “What? No!”)
“You have this crazy logistics exercise of dealing with friends with younger children who ‘know’ and others with older children who do not know. And you get into this mode of no comments about Santa because so-and-so still believes. It’s worse than discussing politics at the dinner table!,” says Canseco. “(We) wanted to see if there was a consensus on age, but there is none. Every kid and parent is different. However, 20 per cent of those 18-to-34 are dissatisfied with the way their parents and/or caregivers managed the transition. It may not seem like a lot, but it’s one-in-five young adults looking at their parents and thinking: “You could have done this differently!”
According to the poll, more than half of Canadians (56 per cent) say they found out by age 9 or even younger, while a few (28 per cent) figured out the St. Nick mystery at age 10 or older. Half of Canadians (50 per cent) think the appropriate age for children to be told “the truth” about Santa is age 9 or younger, while more than a third (36 per cent) believe this should happen at age 10 or older.
It seems Atlantic Canadians are the keenest to hold on to Santa. Almost half of Atlantic region parents wait till after their kids turn 10. The number drops in Ontario (42 per cent), Alberta (40 per cent), British Columbia (35 per cent), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (34 per cent) and Quebec (24 per cent).
The folks among us with the highest level of dissatisfaction is drawn from a quite a mixed group: Canadians aged 18-to-34 (20 per cent), Canadians of South Asian descent (19 per cent), Ontarians (18 per cent), Conservative Party voters in the 2021 federal election (16 per cent) and Canadians in the highest income bracket (also 16 per cent).
What are our Christmas dinner table favourites?
Turning to the Christmas dinner table, three staples of the holiday season remain popular across the country. At least three-in-five Canadians say they like turkey (85 per cent), cranberry sauce (68 per cent) and Brussel sprouts (60 per cent).
However, eggnog, fruit cake and minced pies don’t fare as well. Their ratings are: egg nog (59 per cent), fruit cake (58 per cent), mince pies (49 per cent), plum pudding (47 per cent) and mulled wine (40 per cent).
It appears egg nog is least liked within La Belle Province. Quebec remains the province with the smallest proportion of residents who like egg nog (49 per cent). The number of egg nog lovers are higher in Ontario, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Atlantic Canada (63 per cent in each), British Columbia (59 per cent) and Alberta (55 per cent).
Then there’s the potential tension at the dinner table, even if the turkey is properly cooked.
A tense or fun holiday?
The proportion of Canadians who foresee a tense holiday season has increased since 2023, according to Research Co.
Sure, 53 per cent of Canadians expect the current holiday season to be “more fun than stressful” but 31 per cent believe it will be “more stressful than fun.” The latter number is up 4 per cent from the previous year.
“About a third of Canadians aged 18-to-34 and aged 35-to-54 (both at 34 per cent) think the holiday season will be stressful,” says Canseco. “Only 27 per cent of Canadians aged 55 and over share this view.”
“It was shocking to see a slightly higher level of stress now than in 2020, when we didn’t even know how Christmas would be celebrated during the pandemic. It’s a combination of factors: dismay with politics, things being more expensive, Donald Trump about to become president of the United States again… There is a sense of dissatisfaction with the way things are going as a whole, but we still see a majority of Canadians who expect ‘more fun than stress’, says Canseco.
The survey discussed here is based on an online survey conducted from December 5 to December 7, 2024, among 1,004 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region Canada. The margin of error — which measures sample variability — is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, nineteen times out of twenty.
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