A Very Pop Hispanic Christmas
In this post you'll find:
- The most iconic ads for Christmas of all times,
- 7 Christmas songs in Spanish,
- 7 Hispanic Christmassy movies to dive into our culture.
If you’ve read our posts on Hispanic Christmas traditions and essential Christmas vocabulary, you’ll already have a lot of information about Christmas for Spanish speakers, but … would you like to discover what they don’t teach you in Spanish class? Do you want to be able to understand the cultural references that native speakers make? If you do, stay with us and enjoy this list of pop culture!
Unforgettable Tv Ads
Every year advertisers of typical Christmas products (nougat, cava, etc.) and not so typical ones (furniture, soft drinks, telephony…) try to create TV commercials that capture the attention of viewers and move them, while promoting their brands. Some of them have been so effective that they have become part of the popular imagination and a cultural reference that you need to know to understand Spanish culture.
Iconic ads for Christmas products
El Almendro
This turrón brand became famous for its “Come home for Christmas” and its emotional stories about separated families being reunited for the holidays. Here are some examples and an informative video about the origins of this Christmas classic.
How did this campaign begin?
El Almendro (2016)
El Almendro (2022)
Freixenet
Every year this Catalan cava brand prepares an advert which many people look forward to with curiosity. Numerous celebrities from the world of fashion, sport and art have been part of these campaigns: Gene Kelly, Antonio Banderas, Sharon Stone, Pierce Brosnan, the Spanish Olympic rhythmic gymnastics and synchronised swimming teams… The women who, dressed in gold, star in the spot are called “bubbles”.
Freixenet (1981)
Freixenet (2000)
Freixenet (2009)
Freixenet (2013)
Freixenet (2015)
Other iconic ads for non-Christmas products
In the late 1990s, a young boy appeared promoting a telephone company with the phrase “Hola, soy Edu. ¡Feliz Navidad!” (“Hi, I’m Edu. Merry Christmas!”) He became so famous that he did several Christmas campaigns with the company.
Hola, soy Edu – Airtel, 1997
Hola, soy Edu – Volkswagen, 2018
In 2018, Volkswagen reused this cultural reference to create their Christmas campaign using the same actor and his catch phrase.
Las muñecas de Famosa
In 1957, in the currently known as Valle del Juguete (Toy Valley) in Alicante, all the small toy factories decided to join forces to deal with the new challenges their sector was facing. That was the beginning of “Fábricas Agrupadas de Muñecas de Onil S.A.”, or FAMOSA.
In 1972 they created one of the most famous and beloved Christmas jingles: their very own Christmas charol “Las muñecas de FAMOSA”.
Famosa, 1972
Famosa, 2018
Ikea España
Christmas campaign, 2014
Christmas campaign, 2018
Ruavieja
The alcoholic beverage brand Ruavieja made an ad about the importance of spending more time with the people we love and less time on the internet. It was an ad that resonated with many people.
7 Christmas songs in Spanish
If you prefer listening to music or singing to practise your Spanish, here you have 7 Christmassy songs to learn with rhythm.
Un año más, Mecano (1988)
This is the song played after midnight on New Year’s Eve at Puerta del Sol in Madrid.
Llegó la Navidad, Ozuna & Generación Escogida ft. Christian Nieves (2018)
This song captures Christmas spirit, but with a Latin twist.
Propósitos de Año Nuevo, El Kanka (2023)
In this song, singer and songwriter El Kanka advocates for more realistic New Year’s resolutions.
El arbolito, El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico (1985)
This iconic Latin band celebrates the arrival of Christmas and the family traditions.
Mis deseos / ¡Feliz Navidad!, Michel Bublé y Thalía (2011)
Mexican singer Thalía joins Michel Bublé to celebrate Christmas with the Christmas classic by José Feliciano ¡Feliz Navidad! and Bublé’s Mis deseos.
Ya vienen los Reyes, Casi Creativo (2019)
The Three Wise Men have never been cooler. Listen to this hipster version of this Christmas tradition.
Cada vez que pienso en ti, Álvarez Guedes (1980)
Not everything is love and smiles at Christmas, and that’s why we’ve included this old classic by the Cuban comedian Álvarez Guedes. It’s the most Christmassy way of sending someone to hell.
7 Hispanic Christmas movies
If you want to have a Christmas movie marathon this holiday season, while improving your Spanish, check out our list of 7 Hispanic Christmas movies. Enjoy!
No controles, (España, 2011)
Maktub, (España, 2011)
La noche mágica, (Argentina, 2021)
Guadalupe Reyes, (México, 2019)
Klaus, (España, 2019)
A 1000 km de la Navidad (España, 2021)
Una Navidad no tan padre (México, 2021)
Keep learning with us!
Christmas with a Hispanic Twist
With this post you’ll learn to celebrate Christmas the Hispanic way. It’s a jolly and interesting way to keep up your Spanish and discover some interesting facts about our culture.
Key Vocabulary in Spanish for Christmas
In this post you will find all the vocabulary you need to talk about Christmas and all its traditions in Spanish. It’s time to improve your Spanish: Christmas edition!
