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	Xmas Pinatas Xmas History Xmas Ornaments Xmas Costumes Xmas Recipes Xmas Party Xmas Gift Baskets Happyland xmas games Christmas Crafts Xmas Cookies	History of Christmas Traditions Find below interesting details on the history of Christmas and the evolution of the most popular Christmas traditions. December 25 It is said that December 25th was chosen as Christ's birthday to correspond to pagan festivals that took place around the time of the winter solstice. These festivals celebrated the "rebirth of the sun" as the giver of light, warmth, and life. The Roman Saturnalia (a festival dedicated to Saturn, the god of agriculture, and to the renewed power of the sun), also took place at this time, and some Christmas traditions are rooted in this ancient pagan celebration. The early church did not celebrate the anniversary of the birth of Christ, as the Gospels didn't even indicate the exact date of His birth. The Christmas Tree The Christmas tradition of having a tree in the house comes from Germany, where an evergreen tree would be brought into the house as a symbol of of fertility and regeneration. This tradition was brought by the Dutch to the United States, were trees began to be decorated with candies, toys and candles, transforming this ancient fertility symbol into a symbol of the home as a spiritual sanctuary from the world. Christmas Carols The word "carol" is thought to have originally denoted a dance accompanied by singing. Thirteenth century Italy is considered the birthplace of the real Christmas carol, and St. Francis of Assisi, who led songs of praise to the Christ Child, is thought to be the father of this custom. Christmas Gifts The early Christians refrained from gift-giving at Christmas because it was a popular custom of the Romans during their pagan harvest celebration. However, German Moravians and non Puritan English revived the custom. By the 19 th century gift-giving became a prevalent Christmas tradition in the United States. Mistletoe This was the sacred plant of the druids in ancient Britain. The arch druid and his priests would perform elaborate ceremonies around it at the winter solstice. Traditionally, a girl would stand under it, when a male would approach and pick a berry and kiss the girl. When the berries were all gone then there were no more kisses. Santa's Reindeer and the elves from the North Pole The figure of Saint Nicholas has undergone a long evolution in the history of Christmas. This popular character was brought to America by the Dutch. It was the American writer Clement Clarke Moore who introduced details such as Santa's laughs and the reindeer in his poem "A Visit From Saint Nicholasmore", commonly known as "The Night Before Christmas." Moore depicted Santa as an elf, but in modern versions of the Santa Claus legend only his toy-shop workers are elves. The American image of Santa Claus was further elaborated by illustrator Thomas Nast who depicted a fat human Santa for Christmas issues of Harper's magazine since the 1860s. Later, in 1939, Rudolph, the red-nose reindeer, was invented for an advertising campaign. Click on the following link for more information on the history of Santa Claus and go back to our homepage for a brief description of how Christmas received its name.	Other Sites New Years Day Valentines Day
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History of Christmas Traditions

Find below interesting details on the history of Christmas and the evolution of the most popular Christmas traditions.

December 25
It is said that December 25th was chosen as Christ's birthday to correspond to pagan festivals that took place around the time of the winter solstice. These festivals celebrated the "rebirth of the sun" as the giver of light, warmth, and life. The Roman Saturnalia (a festival dedicated to Saturn, the god of agriculture, and to the renewed power of the sun), also took place at this time, and some Christmas traditions are rooted in this ancient pagan celebration. The early church did not celebrate the anniversary of the birth of Christ, as the Gospels didn't even indicate the exact date of His birth.

The Christmas Tree
The Christmas tradition of having a tree in the house comes from Germany, where an evergreen tree would be brought into the house as a symbol of of fertility and regeneration. This tradition was brought by the Dutch to the United States, were trees began to be decorated with candies, toys and candles, transforming this ancient fertility symbol into a symbol of the home as a spiritual sanctuary from the world.

Christmas Carols
The word "carol" is thought to have originally denoted a dance accompanied by singing. Thirteenth century Italy is considered the birthplace of the real Christmas carol, and St. Francis of Assisi, who led songs of praise to the Christ Child, is thought to be the father of this custom.

Christmas Gifts
The early Christians refrained from gift-giving at Christmas because it was a popular custom of the Romans during their pagan harvest celebration. However, German Moravians and non Puritan English revived the custom. By the 19 th century gift-giving became a prevalent Christmas tradition in the United States.

Mistletoe
This was the sacred plant of the druids in ancient Britain. The arch druid and his priests would perform elaborate ceremonies around it at the winter solstice. Traditionally, a girl would stand under it, when a male would approach and pick a berry and kiss the girl. When the berries were all gone then there were no more kisses.

Santa's Reindeer and the elves from the North Pole
The figure of Saint Nicholas has undergone a long evolution in the history of Christmas. This popular character was brought to America by the Dutch. It was the American writer Clement Clarke Moore who introduced details such as Santa's laughs and the reindeer in his poem "A Visit From Saint Nicholasmore", commonly known as "The Night Before Christmas." Moore depicted Santa as an elf, but in modern versions of the Santa Claus legend only his toy-shop workers are elves.

The American image of Santa Claus was further elaborated by illustrator Thomas Nast who depicted a fat human Santa for Christmas issues of Harper's magazine since the 1860s. Later, in 1939, Rudolph, the red-nose reindeer, was invented for an advertising campaign.

Click on the following link for more information on the history of Santa Claus and go back to our homepage for a brief description of how Christmas received its name.

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