Advent in Sweden: dates 2026–2027, traditions and words
| Day | 2026 | 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Första advent | Sunday, 29 November 2026 | Sunday, 28 November 2027 |
| Andra advent | Sunday, 6 December 2026 | Sunday, 5 December 2027 |
| Tredje advent | Sunday, 13 December 2026 | Sunday, 12 December 2027 |
| Fjärde advent | Sunday, 20 December 2026 | Sunday, 19 December 2027 |
- The date
- The four Sundays before Christmas. Första advent is the Sunday between 27 November and 3 December.
- Day off?
- The advent Sundays are Sundays, so they are red days anyway. There is no extra holiday.
Advent is when Sweden lights up for Christmas. On the first Sunday of Advent, windows across the country fill with paper or straw stars (adventsstjärnor) and electric candle bridges (elljusstakar), and they stay lit through the darkest weeks of the year.
On the table stands the adventsljusstake with four candles. You light one on the first Sunday, two on the second and so on, until all four burn on the last Sunday before Christmas.
What Swedes do
- Putting up the advent star and electric candles in the windows on or just before första advent.
- Lighting a new candle every advent Sunday.
- Advent calendars from 1 December, and the TV advent calendar: SVT's julkalendern, a children's series with one episode a day until Christmas Eve.
- Ginger biscuits and a warm drink with friends, Christmas markets (julmarknader), and church services on första advent, when the hymn Hosianna is sung.
Food and drink
| Swedish | English | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| alkoholfri glögg | alcohol-free glögg (hot spiced drink) | Served warm with raisins and blanched almonds. The alcohol-free kind is sold in every supermarket. |
| pepparkakor | ginger biscuits | Thin and crisp, often with blue cheese. |
| lussekatter | saffron buns | Baked from early December. |
| knäck | toffee | Homemade Christmas toffee. |
Words for Advent
Nouns are given with en or ett where you would use them that way. Words in our dictionary are linked, with their forms and pronunciation.
| Swedish | English |
|---|---|
| advent | Advent |
| första advent | the first Sunday of Advent |
| en adventsljusstake | an Advent candle holder |
| ett adventsljus | an Advent candle |
| en adventsstjärna | an Advent star (for the window) |
| en elljusstake | an electric candle bridge |
| en adventskalender | an Advent calendar |
| julkalendern | the TV Advent calendar series |
| en lucka | a door (in an Advent calendar) |
| alkoholfri | alcohol-free |
| en pepparkaka | a ginger biscuit |
| en julmarknad | a Christmas market |
| pynta | to decorate |
| julpynt | Christmas decorations |
| tända | to light |
| mysig | cosy |
| mörker | darkness |
Phrases you will hear
- Glad första advent!Happy first Sunday of Advent!
- Nu tänder vi första ljuset.Now we light the first candle.
- Har du satt upp adventsstjärnan?Have you put up the Advent star?
- Kom hem till oss på pepparkakor!Come round to ours for ginger biscuits!
Songs
These are the songs you are likely to hear. We list them by title only; any Swedish songbook (sångbok) has the words.
- Hosianna: Sung in churches on the first Sunday of Advent. Music by Georg Joseph Vogler, 1700s.
- Bereden väg för Herran: An Advent hymn by Frans Michael Franzén, 1812.
Learn more Swedish
See every holiday and the full list of red days in the Swedish holiday calendar, and pick up one new word a day with the Swedish word of the day. Dates and weekdays are easier with our guide to days and months in Swedish and the Swedish numbers tool.
Sources
- Lag (1989:253) om allmänna helgdagar, Riksdagen: which days are public holidays.
Dates are calculated from the rules above and were checked against the law and published calendars. Last checked 7 October 2026. Customs vary between regions and families; this page describes the common ones.