15 December

Winter holidays around the world quizzes

7 free Winter holidays around the world quizzes with answers. Your group plays live on their phones.

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Preview slide from the Holiday Magic

Holiday Magic

Three easy Christmas trivia questions on Jingle Bells, the Christmas tree and Christmas crackers, followed by a poll on holiday drinks and a word cloud on favourite holiday films. Suits mixed groups.

  • 5 questions
  • 5 min
  • All ages
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Sample Winter holidays around the world quiz questions

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Question 1 · True or false · Winter holidays beyond Christmas

Hanukkah is also called the Festival of Lights.

  1. True
  2. False
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Answer:

True

Fun fact: Hanukkah celebrates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem and the lighting of the menorah over eight nights.

Question 1 · True or false · Holiday Magic

True or False: The song Jingle Bells was originally written for Christmas.

  1. True
  2. False
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Answer:

False

Fun fact: It was copyrighted in 1857 as 'One Horse Open Sleigh' and only became a Christmas favourite decades later, once its winter theme had caught on.

Question 1 · Pick answer · Holiday Traditions Unwrapped

Which country’s traditional Christmas dinner includes KFC?

  1. South Korea
  2. America
  3. Japan
  4. Philippines
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Answer:

Japan

Fun fact: KFC's 'Kentucky for Christmas' campaign went nationwide in 1974, and holiday sales now make up about a third of KFC's business in Japan.

Question 2 · True or false · Winter holidays beyond Christmas

Kwanzaa was first celebrated in the 1800s.

  1. True
  2. False
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Answer:

False

Fun fact: Kwanzaa began in 1966 in the United States, created by Maulana Karenga to celebrate African heritage.

Question 2 · Pick answer · Holiday Magic

Which country is credited with starting the tradition of Christmas trees?

  1. Germany
  2. Sweden
  3. France
  4. England
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Answer:

Germany

Fun fact: Guild records also place decorated trees in Reval (Tallinn) and Riga between 1441 and 1514, so the Baltic region has a rival claim to the earliest tree.

Question 2 · Pick answer · Holiday Traditions Unwrapped

Which historical figure inspired the modern image of Santa Claus?

  1. Saint Nicholas
  2. King Arthur
  3. Leonardo da Vinci
  4. Charles Dickens
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Answer:

Saint Nicholas

Fun fact: The name 'Santa Claus' comes from the Dutch Sinterklaas, and Clement Clarke Moore's 1822 poem helped popularise the idea of Santa arriving by chimney.

Question 3 · True or false · Winter holidays beyond Christmas

Lunar New Year is always celebrated on January 1st.

  1. True
  2. False
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Answer:

False

Fun fact: The date follows the lunar calendar and falls between late January and the middle of February.

Question 3 · Pick answer · Holiday Magic

Which country invented Christmas crackers?

  1. France
  2. England
  3. Scotland
  4. Italy
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Answer:

England

Fun fact: Tom Smith, a London confectioner, built crackers from his twisted-paper bon-bon sweets, and the first version was marketed under the name Cosaque.

Question 3 · Pick answer · Holiday Traditions Unwrapped

In the movie Home Alone, where is the McCallister family traveling to for Christmas when they leave Kevin behind?

  1. London
  2. Paris
  3. New York
  4. Rome
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Answer:

Paris

Fun fact: Released in 1990, the film sees Kevin's mum Kate make her way home to Chicago with a travelling polka band led by Gus Polinski.

Question 4 · True or false · Winter holidays beyond Christmas

Winter Solstice is the shortest day of the year.

  1. True
  2. False
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Answer:

True

Fun fact: In the Northern Hemisphere the winter solstice falls on 21 or 22 December. In the Southern Hemisphere the shortest day is in June.

About Winter holidays around the world

December and January are full of celebrations, and Christmas is only one of them. Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, lasts eight nights and falls in November or December. Kwanzaa runs from 26 December to 1 January and was created in the United States in 1966 by Maulana Karenga. The winter solstice, around 21 December in the northern hemisphere, is marked by Dongzhi in China and Yalda Night in Iran, among many others.

Because the season brings so many traditions together, a winter quiz is a good way for a mixed group to learn from each other. The templates here cover traditions, gift giving, culture at work and light discussion prompts, so you can pick one that suits a family table or a global team.

Hosting tips

  • Invite people to share how they mark the season, and let them lead on their own traditions.
  • Say "holiday season" rather than assuming everyone celebrates the same festival.
  • For a work group, pick a discussion template and keep the scored questions light.
  • Use a poll or a this-or-that round to get everyone answering before the first scored question.
  • Offer a small prize for the top three, or a team treat for everyone.

Related holidays

  • Hanukkah Before in the calendar

Winter holidays around the world quiz questions

How long does a winter holidays quiz take?

Most take 10 to 25 minutes. Each page shows the number of questions and an estimated time.

Can we use these with a mixed or global team?

Yes. They are written to work for groups who celebrate different festivals, and several are discussion templates rather than scored quizzes.

Can we play remotely?

Yes. Share your screen on Zoom or Teams and put the join code in the chat. Everyone answers on their own phone or laptop.

Can I change the questions?

Yes. Once you have your own copy, you can edit or delete any question before you present.

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