Moș Nicolae

On the night of 5 December Moș Nicolae fills Romanian children's polished boots with sweets, oranges and, for the naughty, a little switch.

St Nicholas Day, when children clean their boots on the evening of the fifth to find sweets and small gifts, or a twig.

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Opens Dec 6, closes Dec 7 · 48 hours

what Moș Nicolae is

Moș Nicolae is celebrated in Romania on 6 December, the feast of St Nicholas, and it opens the winter holidays a few weeks before Moș Crăciun, the Romanian Father Christmas. On the evening of 5 December children polish their ghetuțe, their little boots, and set them by the door or the window. During the night Moș Nicolae fills them with sweets, oranges, chocolate and a small toy; a child who was naughty finds a nuielușă, a little switch, though it usually comes with the sweets rather than instead of them.

In the morning the boots are inspected and compared, and the question of the day at school is 'Ce ți-a adus Moș Nicolae?', what did Moș Nicolae bring you. The saint is also patron of sailors and of the poor, and many churches hold a service; as the day is a name day, everyone called Nicolae, Nicoleta or Nicu gets wishes of 'La mulți ani'. Shops fill with chocolate figures and boots of sweets, and the boot by the window has become the image of the start of the festive season in Romania.

what you'll learn5 domains

The pack has 36 words spread across these domains.

GreetingsCommon phrases and greetings used during Moș Nicolae.

Event DayWhat happens on the day of Moș Nicolae.

ObjectsItems associated with Moș Nicolae, like boots and sweets.

CustomsTraditions and rituals specific to Moș Nicolae.

GiftsTypes of gifts children receive on Moș Nicolae.

the run — three rounds, about three minutes, unlimited practice

Round 1 · MatchPair the word with its meaning. Six pairs, one attempt each.

Round 2 · SpellType the word you hear, accents and all. Beginners see the meaning and complete the word instead.

Round 3 · MeaningSix questions on what happens at Moș Nicolae and what it is called.

how scoring works

How you are ranked

1AccuracyEvery correct answer counts the same. Anything you leave unanswered counts as wrong.

2Time, only to break tiesTime is read only when two people have the same accuracy. It never beats a better score.

For example

1100%3:41Marta

2100%4:02Joan — same score, slower

397%2:10Núria — fastest, still third

Two separate boards

BeginnerAdvanced

Same words in both. Beginner gets more help: matching and completing. Advanced listens and spells it out unaided. Pick it in practice; it locks when you take the scored run.

One scored run

Practise as often as you like, all year. The scored run happens once, while the competition is open, and cannot be retaken.