The History of Christmas Traditions

Ever wondered the origins of the lovable candy cane, or mistletoe, or Rudolph? We have the answers!

Posted on

13 December 2015

| Last updated on 23 October 2017

If you celebrate Christmas, you may not think twice as to why you do certain things, eat certain things and do particular things over the festive period. In fact, some will argue that in the 21st Century, Christmas has become a popular consumerist holiday, which ignores the histories of everything it entails.

So, if you're curious as to why we put up a Christmas tree, eat mince pies and enjoy Boxing Day, continue reading...

The 12 days of Christmas

It's a popular song, one which everyone knows the lyrics to. Right? Well, besides being a memorable song from popular culture, the days each have their own historical significance.

Much to some beliefs, the twelve days of Christmas actually begin on Christmas Day, and end on the 5th January, which is also known as Twelfth Night.

The twelve days each traditionally celebrate a feast day for a saint, and/or an event. For example, th 26th December (a.k.a. Boxing Day) is St. Stephen's Day, 31st December (a.k.a. New Year's Eve) celebrates one of the earliest popes from the 4th Century.

The word "Xmas"

Some people often refer to Christmas as Xmas. While this appears to be just an abbreviated form of the word Christmas, sprouted by lazy texting and colloquial speech, there's actually a meaning behind why some use Xmas.

In the Greek language and alphabet, the letter that looks like X is the Greek letter chi (pronounced kye), which is the first letter of the Greek word for Christ, Christos.

But remember, the word Xmas must be pronounced Christmas, rather than "ex-mas"!

Boxing Day

Beginning in the UK over 800 years ago, Boxing Day was the day when collection boxes for the poor were traditionally opened so that the contents would be distributed to the poor.

Candy canes

The Christmas candy cane actually originated in German, roughly three centuries ago. At first they were straight white sugar sticks, but have since adopted the recognisable red stripes, with added peppermint or wintergreen flavour, that we have come to be so familiar with today.

Mince pies

Next time somebody jokes to you about mince pies being filled with real meat, agree with them! Because yes, mince pies were originally filled with meat, such as lamb, rather than a dried fruit mix that we all love and enjoy today.

In fact, the design of mince pies were originally oval shaped, to represent the manger that Jesus slept in as a baby, with the top representing his swaddling clothes.

Christmas tree

For thousands of years, the evergreen fir tree has traditionally been used to celebrate winter festivals. And since, there have been lots and lots of stories questioning the origins of the Christmas tree we all love to decorate today.

Some state that around 1000 years ago, early Christmas trees were hung upside down from the ceiling. Others used to use cherry or hawthorn plants as their trees, which were potted and decorated. And others, if they could't afford a real tree, built pyramids of wood and decorated them to look like a tree with paper, apples and candles.

The advent calendar

Advent is the period of four Sundays and weeks before Christmas Day (or sometimes from the 1st December to Christmas Day). The word "advent" means "coming" in Latin, which signifies the coming of Jesus into the world.

Some people fast during advent, others don't eat meat and dairy. And most commonly, advent is quite simply counted down by the use of a calendar or candle.

St. Nicholas, Santa Claus and Father Christmas

St. Nicholas was a bishop who lived in the 4th Century AD, in a place called Myra in Asia (modern day Turkey). He was a rich man, due to being orphaned from which he inherited lots of money. With this, combined with his kindness, he helped the poor and gave secret gifts to those who needed them.

Despite being exiled, imprisoned and later passing away, his name and kind values continued to carry importance. It was his kindness that inspired those in the UK to call him Father Christmas. It was in the Victorian era when writers, poets and artists rediscovered his old stories that he really made an imprint at Christmas time.

Mistletoe

The tradition of hanging mistletoe in the house goes back to the time of the ancient Druids. Apparently, they believed it to possess mystical powers, which brought good luck and warned off evil spirits. It was also used as a sign of love and friendship in Norse mythology, and that's where the custome of kissing under the mistletoe comes from.

Here's a random fact... Did you know that mistletoe is normally spread on trees through bird poo, and is actually a parasite? The plant attaches itself to the host tree and grows out of the branch.

Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer

The most famous reindeer of all was first introduced in the poem A Visit from St. Nicholas, published in 1823, where we meet Santa's team of eight flying reindeer.