Twelve Things You Never Knew about Christmas

1. Christmas Trees were first lighted with actual candles, which presented a fire hazard. As a result, containers filled with water had to be kept near the Christmas tree.

2. Workers in the construction industry are responsible for the tradition of having a Christmas tree on display at Rockefeller Center in New York City. They are credited with placing an undecorated tree at the site in the early 1930s.

3. Since the mid-1960s, The National Christmas Tree Association has maintained a presence in the White House at Christmas by donating a Christmas Tree to the First Family.

4. The former Woolworth department store first sold manufactured Christmas Tree ornaments in 1880.

5. Plastic became the primary material used to make tinsel after their use for decorative purposes was prohibited because lead was used in the manufacturing process.

6. The idea of Christmas greeting cards started in Britain in the late 1830s, when John Calcott Horsley started to produce small cards that had festive scenes and a holiday greeting written inside. Similar cards were also being made in the United States at about the same time by R.H. Pease, in Albany, New York, and Louis Prang, who was a German immigrant. The idea of sending the greeting cards during Christmas gained popularity in both countries about ten years later when new postal delivery services started.

7. The shortened form “Xmas” for Christmas has been popular in Europe since the 1500s. It is believed to be derived from the Greek word “Xristos” which means Christ.

8. According to the National Confectioners Association, for 200 years, candy canes were only made in the color of white, and it wasn't until the 1950s that a machine was invented that could automate the production of candy canes.

9. The day after Christmas is called Boxing Day in England and it is a national holiday. Several stories exist for the origination of the name. It is believed to have originated from the practice of boys who would be out collecting money in clay boxes. Another thought is that the term is derived from a custom in the Middle Ages, when churches would open their “alms boxes” and distribute the contents to poor people on the day after Christmas. Alms boxes are boxes in which donations of gifts and money would be placed. Yet another belief is that it comes from a custom of masters giving their servants Christmas presents in boxes on the day after Christmas.

10. Evergreen trees had a special meaning to people during winter, particularly in Europe, before Christianity started. Ancient peoples would hang evergreen branches over their doors and windows because evergreens were believed to ward off witches, ghosts, evil spirits, and illness. For worshipers of the sun god, evergreen plants were a reminder of all the green plants that would grow with the return of summer when the sun god would be strong again.

11. In ancient times, many people worshiped the sun as a god in December because they thought winter occurred every year because the sun god had fallen into ill health. They celebrated the winter solstice because it was a sign that the son god would begin to regain strength and return to good health.

12. Legislators in Congress conducted business on Christmas Day in 1789, which was the first one to be observed under the country's new constitution. The reason for the Congressional session was because it had become unpopular to observe and take part in English customs following the American Revolution. When Christmas celebrations were barred in Boston from 1659 to 1681, it became a costly thing to be seen participating in any event or activity related to Christmas. Anyone caught doing so had to pay five shillings.

The History of Christmas Traditions

Christians celebrate Christmas to observe the birth of Jesus Christ, which is an event and not a tradition; but many other activities related to celebrating the Christmas season evolved from certain traditions, many of which are from other countries, particularly from Europe.

Among common items used in Christmas decorations are holly and mistletoe. Both are used primarily in wreaths and garlands. The Druids started the tradition of using mistletoe as a decorative item two hundred years before Christ. To celebrate the winter season, the Druids would gather the plants and use them to decorate their homes. The Druids believed mistletoe would bring good luck and ward off evil spirits. They also believed that mistletoe had a healing quality and could be used for everything from healing wounds to increasing fertility.

In Scandinavia, mistletoe was seen as a plant of peace and harmony and was associated with Frigga, the goddess of love. This association is probably what led to the custom of kissing under the mistletoe. In the Victorian period, the English would also hang mistletoe from ceilings and in doorways during the holidays. The habit developed that if someone was standing under the mistletoe, someone else in the room would kiss that person. Such outright behavior was not generally seen in Victorian society.

The use of mistletoe in Christmas celebrations was once banned by the church because of its associations with pagan traditions and the use of holly was suggested as a substitute.

Poinsettias are another traditional decorative flower used at Christmas. It is native to Mexico and is named after Joel Poinsett, who was the first U.S. ambassador to Mexico, and who brought the plants to America in 1828. Mexicans believe the plants were a symbol of the Star of Bethlehem and that's one reason they are associated with Christmas. There's also the story that a young boy was going to see the Nativity Play at a church but realized he didn't have a gift for Baby Jesus. The boy gathered some green branches, which others scoffed at, but as he placed them near the manger, a bright red poinsettia flower started to bloom on each branch, which gave rise to their traditional use at Christmas.

Candy canes became a Christmas tradition not because their red and white stripes matched the colors of the season, but for the most unusual reason of discipline. They were first used as treats that were give to German children to keep them well-behaved for the duration of church sermons. Over time, the legend of candy canes at Christmas came to be associated with some of the strongest symbols and beliefs of Christianity: the Father, Son and Holy Ghost, known as the Trinity: the Blood of the son of God; Jesus, as the embodiment of holiness, purity, and without sin; and the son of God as the shepherd of man. The candy cane represents these symbols respectively with its three stripes, its red and white color, and its shape.

Sending greeting cards during Christmas and the holidays is as prevalent today as the custom of giving gifts. The tradition of sending Christmas cards started in 1840 in Britain with the start of public postal delivery service of the “Penny Post.” Then, from about 1860, large numbers of Christmas greeting cards started being produced. The popularity of the cards increased in Britain when they could be sent by the postal service for one half-penny, which was half the price to post a standard letter at the time, if they were in an unsealed envelope. Religious pictures of Mary, Joseph, Baby Jesus, the angels, shepherds, and Wise Men were traditionally placed on Christmas cards. Some cards today include scenes from the Nativity, but pictures of Santa Claus, winter scenery, Christmas trees, and gift packages are also depicted on contemporary Christmas greeting cards.

The History of Christmas

Commercial activities during Christmas are often decried as making the season too materialistic. This has caused comments that the religious aspect of Christmas is so overlooked and overshadowed that its celebration seems to be purely pagan. Today's comparisons aren't the first time there has been some link between Christmas and pagan celebrations. As a religious event, church leaders instituted Christmas during winter because that time of year was a popular time for the celebrations of many pagan festivals. The hope was that Christmas would also become a holiday that would gain much popularity.

Long before the birth of Jesus Christ, people in various parts of Europe would celebrate light and birth in the darkest days of winter. The winter solstice, when the harshest part of winter was over, was a time of celebration for many people because they would look forward to more hours of sunlight during the longer days ahead.

The Norse in Scandinavia celebrated Yule from the winter solstice on December 21 through January. Men brought home logs that were lighted and a feast would take place until the log was completely burned. Each spark from the fire was believed to represent a new pig or calf to be born in the coming year.

The pagan god, Oden, was honored by Germans during the mid-winter holiday. Oden inspired great fear in the Germans who believed that Oden traveled through the sky at night to observe people and make decisions about who would perish or prosper in life. This belief caused most people to stay inside during the period.

In Rome, it was the god of agriculture, Saturn, who was honored in a holiday called Saturnalia. It was a holiday that started during the week that led up to the winter solstice and continued for a month with hedonistic celebrations. There was plenty of food and drink and the normal social class rules of who had privilege and power in Roman society were totally disregarded as everyone participated in the festivities. Some Romans also had a feast called Juvenalia to honor children and the birthday of the sun god, Mithra, was sometimes celebrated by the upper classes.

In the early years of the start of Christianity, the main holiday was Easter. It was in the 4th Century that church officials made a decision to have the birth of Jesus celebrated as a holiday and Pope Julius I chose December 25 as the day of Jesus' birth. The holiday, which was first called the Feast of the Nativity, spread to England by the end of the 6th Century and to Scandinavia by the end of the 8th Century.

Church leaders achieved the goal of having Christmas celebrations, including attendance at church, become popular during the winter solstice, but they were unable to control other pagan-like celebrations during Christmas. Believers would attend church on Christmas and then participate later in raucous and drunken celebrations. But by the Middle Ages, from around the 5th to the 16th Century, Christianity had outgrown paganism as a religion.

The celebration of Christmas in Europe changed in the early 17th Century when Oliver Cromwell and the Puritans gained power in England in 1645. To remove decadent behavior from society, Cromwell cancelled Christmas as the Puritans noted that the Bible doesn't mention any date for Jesus' birth. The lack of this information and specific Biblical references to Christmas is also cited by religious groups like Jehovah Witnesses as the reason they don't observe or participate in Christmas. Christmas celebrations returned to England around 1649 when Charles II was restored to the throne.

Christmas wasn't a holiday in early America because the Pilgrims who came to America had even stricter beliefs than Cromwell and the Puritans. Christmas celebrations were even forbidden in Boston from 1659 to 1681. During the same time, however, settlers in Jamestown, Virginia were reported to have enjoyed Christmas.

After the American Revolution, Christmas again lost popularity and it wasn't until June 26, 1870 that Christmas was declared a federal holiday. Christmas in the United States gained popularity as a holiday period during the 19th Century. Christmas celebrations also changed at that time to be more family-centered rather than being carnival-like.