In Finland, what is the traditional sauna on Christmas Eve called?

In Finland, the traditional sauna on Christmas Eve is called Joulusauna.

Christmas Eve, or jouluaatto, is the central day of Finland’s Christmas celebrations, and many people traditionally take their sauna before the evening festivities. The custom is older than modern Christmas gift-giving and reflects the sauna’s important place in Finnish household life.

Historically, families washed in the Christmas sauna before the feast. In some traditions, food and drink were left there for the sauna elf, while older beliefs held that the spirits of deceased relatives might return and use the sauna. That helps explain why the Christmas sauna was treated as a quiet, respectful ritual rather than simply another bath.

Joulusauna should not be confused with löyly, the steam or vapor produced when water is thrown onto hot sauna stones, or kiuas, the sauna stove that heats those stones. “Sauna” is the general Finnish institution; Joulusauna specifically means the Christmas version.