Japan: A Kentucky Fried Christmas
By David Williamson
Christmas celebrations in most cultures which celebrate it are centred around the family feast. Even those who have never experienced a Christmas Dinner through cultural mitosis will be able to picture the ‘textbook version’ of it. This feast sees your family all gathered under one roof. A turkey, with all the trimmings, which is often accompanied with ham, roast potatoes, gravy and of course Brussel sprouts. The food furthest thing from your mind right now is probably Colonel Sanders.
Japan is not a culturally Christian country. With only 1.5% of the country practising the faith, the country is dominated by Buddhism and Japan’s indigenous Shintoism. The Origin of Toji at the winter solstice marks the start of the return to the warmth and light of spring. It is poetic, important, and ancient. Yet, it is not what we are her today to discuss.
Instead, we now turn our attention to a new tradition Kurisumasu ni wa Kentakkii. Kurisumasu ni wa Kentakkii or Kentucky for Christmas spawned in the 1970s. A more talented writer may argue that this tradition embodies the Christmas spirit or is almost a parody of the notion that Christmas has become corparatised or even the strength of American hegemony. I will not, instead I will gesture at these ideas whilst explaining this incredible feat of marketing which has become a nation-wide phenomenon.
The story told by KFC is that the idea came to the first owner of a franchise in Japan after overhearing non-Japanese customers lamenting that they would not have a turkey for Christmas. That night an idea came to Okawara is a dream, he would sell a Christmas Party Barrell.
The Party Barrell captured the zeitgeist and quickly spread nationwide. Today to secure the Party Barrell it is not uncommon to spend the equivalent of $40 dollars months in advance. The Barrells are now made up of not only chicken but also wine and cake. For those who do not order in advance the only option is to queue for hours for the chance to secure a barrel.
This tradition has become engrained in Japanese culture as the company answered a question that no one was asking. How do you celebrate Christmas without even a hint of Christ? The answer, get together with those closest to you and enjoy chicken coated in 7 herbs and spices.
Nonetheless I could not shake the question of what would happen if a KFC was brought to an Irish Christmas day dinner. And so, to conclude I asked two students, who gave their opinion on what they believe would happen should someone be brave enough to bring a KFC to Christmas.
- “I wouldn’t personally care but I feel like the carrier would get disowned” – Padraig Manning
- “I don’t know if I would speak to them, especially if I made the dinner” – Eimear O’Keefe
David Williamson is the Editor for Written Content at The Scoop.