December 25th: 11 countries that banned Christmas in the past

Here are 11 other countries where celebrating Christmas is forbidden.

The tiny nation of Brunei went viral recently after king Sultan
Ha$$anal Bolkiah made celebrating Christmas forbidden.

The Muslim nation stated that anyone illegally found celebrating Christmas, sending holiday greetings, or even wearing Santa hats could face up to 5 years in prison! According to the Ministry of Religious Affairs, this law has been pa$$ed to make sure that ‘Christmas doesn’t damage the true beliefs of the Muslim community.’ India times reported.

But Brunei isn’t the only country where celebrating Christmas is illegal,  here are 11 other countries that banned Christmas in the past as compiled by India Times.

1. Saudi Arabia



Almost all Saudi citizens are Muslims, and although only a marginal number living in the country call themselves Christians, the country still does not allow anyone to celebrate the festival. Buying a Christmas trees at the local mall, even sending out Christmas cards could land you in trouble. In fact, in 2013, more than forty people were detained for “plotting to celebrate Christmas.”

2. United States Of America



Because America was largely led by the Puritans (a group of English Reformed Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who wanted to purify the Church of England from all Roman Catholic practices), the General Court of Ma$$achusetts Bay Colony pa$$ed an order which said that anyone caught celebrating Christmas would be fined.

They felt that there was no reason for celebrating the birth of Jesus on the 25th. They even termed the holiday “Foolstide”. The ban was eventually lifted in 1689, but the festival wasn’t recognised in Ma$$achusetts for almost 200 more years, until 1869. The India Times reported.

3. Tajikistan



Christmas is also forbidden in Tajikistan till now as the government has issued its toughest-ever ban on seasonal celebrations, banning Christmas trees and gift-giving in schools.

The country has been cracking down on Christmas and New Year’s in recent years, and banned Father Frost – Russia’s equivalent of Santa Claus – from television screens in 2013. Halloween celebrations in the capital, Dushanbe, have also been targeted by police, with revellers dressed as zombies and vampires reportedly being detained in 2013 and 2014.

4. Cuba



Fidel Castro played Grinch for Cubans for the longest time actually. During his time in power, any religious observations and celebrations were simply not allowed. He made sure Christmas wasn’t a holiday and asked the people to work on the sugar harvest instead. Thirty years later the ban was lifted on the 20th of December 1998, apparently after John Paul II urged Castro to rethink his decision.

5. North Korea



Forget celebrating Christmas, all religious practices that are not approved by the supreme leader are punishable by the law. There are no holidays in North Korea, except for the ones that celebrate the birthdays of its supreme leaders of course.

6. Somalia



Somalia has had a ban on the festival and New Year celebrations for the last two years, but they don’t shy away from announcing it every year just before the 25th of December just to make things loud and clear. Like Brunei, they too feel that Somalia is a Muslim nation and celebrating it might damage the faith of the young Muslims in the country.

New Vision reported that the, Director General of Somalia’s Ministry of Religious Affairs,Sheikh Mohamed Khayrow released a statement this year again reaffirming the ban. He said, “We Islamic Scholars are warning against the celebration of such events which are not relevant to the principles of our religion. Such events give also al-Shabaab to carry out attacks.’’

Al- Shabaab, a militant group in Somalia, launched a deadly attack last year on the main African Union (AU) base in Mogadishu as a Christmas party was going on. More than 5 peacekeepers and eight militants died in the battle which lasted for several hours, the daily reported.