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Christmas Past
by W.Holidays

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer was created in 1939 by Robert L. May. He created a poem about an outcast reindeer that could be use as a promotion tool for his employer, Montgomery Ward.

The Christmas tree is an evergreen plant that symbolizes life amidst the cold, harsh winters. It was sacred to the Druids who tied golden apples to its limbs. It was even adorned by primitive cultures. Decorating trees is an age-old custom. Egyptians brought green date palms indoors to symbolize life over death during the winter months. 16th century Germany popularized the idea of a decorated Christmas tree. Folklore states that Martin Luther was so amazed by the twilight stars that he brought a tree into his house and decorated it with candles to capture the moment. The first Christmas trees were decorated with candles, fruits, sweetmeats, gilded nuts, ribbons, and small trinkets. During the Victorian Era glass blown ornaments became popular.

Lights were used in many pagan winter festivals The Romans bound candles to trees during the festival of Saturnalia. During Imbolic (Celtic) candles were placed in every window of the home and bonfires were set ablaze. During medieval times, a giant candle was lit and was kept glowing until Twelfth-night. However, Martin Luther is credited with placing candles on the tree in current times. The candles have now been replace with electrical lights and adorn not only the tree but the outside of the house as well. Many people still leave a candle burning in the window to "light the way for Joseph".

A quaint legend surrounds decorating trees with tinsel. A mother decorated a tree for her many children. Late at night spiders spun webs to cover the tree. The Christ-child turned the webs into silver stands as a blessing.

The Christmas pickle is from an old Victorian tradition (based on an even older German tradition).  A glass pickle was hidden in the tree on Christmas Eve and whoever found the pickle first would get a special gift or get to open the first gift) But the idea of pickles and Christmas goes back even further. A folktale suggests that during medieval times a horrible innkeeper stuffed two children into a pickle barrel. Well, St. Nicholas just happened to pass by the inn later that day and heard of the children's predicament. So, he tapped the barrel with his staff and freed the children who hurried home for Christmas dinner.

Mistletoe was a sacred plant of the Druids and was used during the Winter Solstice celebrations. Hung under the doorway, mistletoe awaits someone to wander beneath it, this person receives a kiss. Old traditions include giving a berry from the mistletoe to the person kissed. When the berries run out, no more kisses may be given.

Pagan cultures placed holly on the mantle and window sills to ward off evil spirits and bad weather in the winter. Christian traditions suggest the prickly leaves of the holly represents the thorns of Christ's Crown. The perennial green leaves represent eternal life and the red berries represent the blood that was shed. Holly berries have colors other than red and each has its own meaning: white representing Jesus' purity, green representing the cross of wood, and black representing his death.

Ivy, another evergreen, often symbolizes the female and the holly represents the male. The first to be brought into the house indicates who will rule the house in the coming year. This is an older tradition and can be heard in many Yuletide verses.

Poinsettias are native to Mexico. Legends tell of a poor Mexican girl and her brother on their way to church on Christmas Eve. They had nothing to give the Christ child so they gathered some weeds to make a bouquet. The other children teased them about their "poor" gift. However, when they laid the "bouquet" at the manger their gift was transformed into a brilliant plant with bright red and white leaves. Another version tells of a poor child who prayed for a gift to present to the Christ child. His prayers were sincere and as he knelt the poinsettia grew at the altar. Poinsettias were brought to the United States by Dr. Joel R. Poinsett who adapted them for use in the US and are their namesake.

The Yule log comes from ancient beliefs as well. Yule is derived from rol, a wheel that indicated the changing of the seasons. Celtic ceremonies would include large bonfires to welcome the return of the sun. Scandinavian cultures were the first to latch on to this idea, followed by England, and to a lesser degree Germany and France. Today, the Yule log is typically provided by the household and not brought by visitors. Each member of the family makes a wish and the log is set on fire with a piece last years Yule log. The log burns for twelve hours.

The candy cane started as a sweet treat to keep the children's choir quiet during the long ceremonies in the late 1600s. It was a simple candy that was bent to symbolize the shepherd's cane. At the turn of the century, the candy cane took on the peppermint flavor and the red and white stripes we know today. The white to symbolize the purity of life and the red to symbolize the Lord's sacrifice for man.

Wassail ("WAHS-AYL") is a very old custom that originates from the Norse. "Ves Heill", one would say, meaning "be in good health" as a toast before consuming a beverage of ale or wine sweetened with sugar and flavored with nutmeg, cloves, and ginger. Sometimes roasted apples were added along with eggs and cream. In England, carolers would be treated with a cup of wassail after singing.

Eggnog is a North American brew drawing from older European beverages. A strong ale simply called "nog" was popular in Britain. In German beer houses an egg-y beer named Biersuppe was served. In the 19th century, North Americans expanded on the French drink, "Lait de Poule," a mixture of sweetened egg yolks and milk by adding brandy (or rum) and nutmeg. Today, with the threat of salmonella the eggs in eggnog are cooked.

The turkey is a modern tradition, which sprouted as a result of Charles Dickens' "The Christmas Story" in which turkey was served. Historically swans, peacocks, cranes ,and sometimes boars were roasted for special occasions.

The curious mincemeat pie with its odd combination of dried fruit, nuts, and meat.  It is believed to come from an ancient Roman custom (as it seems so many things do). Around the 16th century these pies became a part of the Christmas tradition although they were more rectangular or cradle-shaped rather than round. There is a belief that the number of mincemeat pies one eats between Christmas and Twelfth night will determine the how many blessed and happy months the consumer will have. That's a pie a day for a good year!

Gingerbread has been enjoyed since the times of the Winter Solstice celebrations, but what about the gingerbread house? It is believed that sometime in the early 1800s Germany began to create gingerbread houses.

The Christmas stocking hung by the fireplace is associated with Saint Nicholas. A poor father had no money as a dowry for his daughter to marry. The Bishop anonymously gave money before each daughter was to marry. Before the final daughter was to marry the father was determined to find who this anonymous giver was; however, the Bishop dropped the dowry down the chimney. Now, in hopes of gifts we hang our stockings by the fireplace.

The first Christmas cards were printed in England in the1800's when a new color printing process lowered production cost. J.C.Horsley designed the first card, 1000 copies were produced and sold in London. It is believed that Sir Henry Cole initiated the tradition of sending cards to friends. Imprinted in that first card was "Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year to You."

The abbreviation Xmas for Christmas originated in ancient Greece. The first letter in the Greek word for Christ is chi that is represented with an X in the modern Roman alphabet.

Some information from Herbert H. Wernecke's Christmas Customs Around the World.

modified May 5, 2008