Christmas in Ukraine is a special supper, called "Sviata Vecherya" (Holy Supper). Kutia (sweet grain pudding) is traditionally served at the Ukrainian Christmas dinner table. It is often the first dish in the traditional twelve-dish Christmas Eve supper (also known as "Svyaty Vechir") and is rarely served at other times of the year. At the end of the Holy Evening the family often sings Ukrainian Christmas carols. In many communities the ancient Ukrainian tradition of caroling is carried on by groups of young people and members of organizations and churches calling at homes and collecting donations. The Ukrainian song "Shchedryk" became the basis
Christmas in Ukraine a vase are often used to decorate the table. Shopka is a traditional portable nativity scene used to represent nativity and other figures in a puppet form. "Kutia, Star of the Ukrainian Christmas Eve Supper" Kylymnyk, Stepan, 1955–1969; "Ukrainskyi Rik u Narodnykh Zvychayakh v Narodnomu Osvitlenni" [Ukrainian Year in Folk Customs from Historical Perspective], Winnipeg, Toronto Tracz, Orysia 2015, "First Star I See Tonight", Mazepa Publications Zhuravli, Winnipeg "Ukrainian Christmas Traditions", Ukrainian International Directory Voropai, Oleksa 1958, "Zvychai Nashoho Narodu" [Customs of Our People], Ukrainske Vydavnytstvo, Munich Yakovenko, Svitlana 2016, "Ukrainian Christmas Eve Supper: Traditional village recipes for Sviata Vecheria",