International Christmas Greetings

Have you ever wondered how to say “Merry Christmas” in other languages? Here’s a list of international Christmas greetings:

Language Greeting
Afrikaans: Een Plesierige Kersfees
Albanian: Gezur Krislinjden
Arabic: Idah Saidan Wa Sanah Jadidah
Armenian: Shenoraavor Nor Dari
Basque: Zorionak
Bengali: Shuvo Naba Barsha
Bikom (Cameroon): I Sanglii Krismas
Breton: Nedeleg Laouen
Bulgarian: Tchestito Rojdestvo Hristovo
Cantonese (China): Gun Tso Sun Tan'Gung Haw Sun
Catalan (Spain): Bon Nadal
Cornish (England): Nadelik Looan
Cree (Native American): Mitho Makosi Kesikansi
Croatian: Sretan Bozic
Czech: Veselé Vánoce
Danish: Glaedige Jul
Dutch: Hartelijke Kerstdagen
English (England): Happy Christmas
Esperanto: Gajan Kristnaskon
Estonian: Ruumsaid Juulup|hi
Farsi (Iran): Cristmas-e-Shoma
Finnish: Hyvaa Joulua
Flemish (Belgium): Zalig Kerstfeest
French: Joyeux Noel
Frisian: Noflike Krystdagen
Galician: Bo Nada
German: Frohliche Wiehnachten
Greek: Kala Khristougenna
Hausa: Barka da Kirsimatikuma
Haitian Creole: Jwaye Nowèl
Hawaiian: Mele Kalikimaka
Hebrew: Mo'adim Lesimkha.
Hindi (India): Bara Din Mubarak Ho
Hungarian: Boldag Karacsonyi Unnepeket
Icelandic: Gledileg Jol
Indonesian: Selamat Hari Natal
Irish Gaelic: Nodlaig Mhaith Chugnat
Italian: Buon Natale
Japanese: Meri Kurisumasu
Korean: Sung Tan Chuk Ha
Latin: Lorem Nativitatis
Latvian: Priecigus Ziemas Svetkus
Lithuanian: Linksmu Kaledu
Lingala (Phillipines): Mbote Mingi
Mandarin (China): Kung His Hsin Nien
Manx (Ilse of Man): Nollick Ghennal
Marathi (India): Shub Naya Varsh
Maori: Meri Kirihimete
Navajo: Merry Keshmish
Norwegian: Gledelig Jul
Pilipino: Maligayang Pasko
Polish: Wesotych Swiat
Portuguese: Feliz Natal
Rapa-Nui (Easter Is.): Mata-Ki-Te-Rangi
Romanian: Crăciun fericit
Romansche: Legreivlas Fiastas da Nadal
Russian: Hristos Razdajetja
Sami (Lappland): Buorit Juovllat
Samoan: La Maunia Le Kilisimasi
Scots Gaelic: Nollaig chridheil huibh
Serbian: Hristos Se Rodi
Singhalese (Sri Lanka): Subha Nath Thalak Vewa
Slovak: Vesele Vianoce
Slovene: Vesel Bozic
Spanish: Feliz Navidad
Spanish (Argentina): Felices Pasquas
Swedish: God Jul
Swiss German: Schone Wiehnachte
Tagalog (Phillipines): Maligayamg Pasko
Tamil (Sri Lanka): Nathar Puthu Varuda Valthukkal
Thai: Sawadee Pee Mai
Turkish: Mutlu Noeller
Ukrainian: Srozhdestvom Kristovym
Urdu (Pakistan): Naya Saal Mubarak Ho
Vietnamese: Chuc Mieng Giang Sinh
Welsh: Nadolig Llawen
Yugoslavian: Cestitamo Bozic

Classic Christmas Literature

The publication and popularity of several nineteenth century pieces of literature helped to bring Christmas out of obscurity, and have become important to the traditions and legends of the Christmas holiday. They include:
1. The Nutcracker and the Mouse King by German author E.T.A.Hoffmann in 1816, which became the basis for Tchaikovsky’s ballet The Nutcracker,
2. The Keeping of Christmas at Bracebridge Hall by Washington Irving in 1820,
3. A Visit from St. Nicholas by Clement C. Moore in 1822,
4. The Book of Christmas by T.H. Hervey in 1837,
5. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens in 1848,
6. The Fir Tree, and The Little Match Girl by Hans Christian Andersen between 1835 and 1872, and
7. Yes, Virginia, There is a Santa Claus, editorial response in the New York Sun by Francis P. Church on September 21, 1897.

Yes, Virginia, There is a Santa Claus

Letter and Editorial in the New York Sun, September 21, 1897


I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, "If you see it in The Sun, it's so." Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?
- Virginia O'Hanlon

Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a sceptical age. They do not believe except what they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours, man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The external light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies. You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if you did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there.

Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world. You tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived could tear apart. Only faith, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, Virginia, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

No Santa Claus? Thank God he lives and lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay 10 times 10,000 years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.
– Francis P. Church

T'was the Night Before Christmas, or "A Visit from St. Nicholas"by Clement C. Moore

T’was the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there.

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;

And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap,

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,

With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name:

'Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! on Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!

To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!'

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,

So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.



As I drew in my hand, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;


His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;

A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.

His eyes -- how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!

He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,

And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night."

Twas the Night Before Christmas - Read by Perry Como

Early Christmas Morning by Mary B. Peck

Four little feet pattering on the floor,
Two tangled curly heads peeping at the door,
Hear the merry laughter, happy childish roar,
Early Christmas morning.

Two little stockings full of sweets and toys,
Everything charming for little girls and boys.
How could they help, then, making such a noise?
Early Christmas morning.

Down beside the stockings many gifts were spread
Dollies, drums, a cradle and a brand new sled.
“Haven’t we too many?” little Nellie said,
Early Christmas morning.

Four little bare feet on the sidewalk cold,
Two little faces with want and hunger old
Peeping through the window where those gifts unrolled,
Early Christmas morning.

“Yes,” says John to Nellie, as he spied the two,
“We’ve so many presents, tell you what we’ll do
I’ll give half of mine away. Now, dear Nell, will you?”
Early Christmas morning.

Two little famished ones in the house were called,
Favors heaped upon them till they stood enthralled.
Was not this the angel’s song, “Peace, good-will to all?”
Early Christmas morning.

Christmas in the Coop by Stan Young

Script adaptation by Ken Young
Illustrations by Teresa Millet

This story was written by my brother Stan in the early 1970's. The family has made it a tradition, since his death in 1980, to read and act it out on Christmas Eve. It's a great story which involves the animals that we had at the time and includes our family at the end.

On the night of December 20th, four days before Christmas Eve, the snow was swirling gracefully as each flake fell upon and around the chicken coop behind the stone house, where the humans were sitting close to their fire.

But out in the chicken coop, things were quite different! A meeting was being held on what the chickens thought should be done this Christmas. “Silence!” shouted Henrietta Peckley, the Grand Madame of the Hen and Rooster Society.

“We have gathered here tonight to discuss what we are going to do this Christmas! In the past, we have sung the Christmas carols Deck the Coop with Boughs of Barley, Hark the Herald Roosters Sing and so forth. I think this year there is room for some change!”
“But Henrietta!” cackled Harriet, “What else is there to do?”

“Plenty!” she returned. “I have been watching the Humans every Christmas and have observed their traditions. For one thing, they take a fir tree…”

“A fir tree!?! How ridiculous!” interrupted Helen.

Henrietta glared at Helen as hard and as menacingly as she could manage. Helen, very disgusted and insulted, sat down, and stuck her beak in the air.

“As I was saying,” continued the Grand Madame, “The Humans take a fir tree and decorate it with many beautiful and assorted decorations – beautiful shimmering balls and lights, and on the top, a beautiful star!”

“May I ask,” said Henry, the rooster, “just where you’re going to get all these…uh… decorations?”

Henry was in charge of keeping things in order and protecting the hens from any harm, but when it came to making rules, the Grand Madame was in charge of them all!

“Oh, Henry!” snapped Henrietta, “of course we can’t get all that stuff! The tree will be easy! As for the decorations, we can make our own simulations!”

“And how are you going to do that?” Henry asked.

“We could merely collect tin foil and other various pieces of material from the garbage cans. By Christmas, we’ll have a beautiful tree!”

Henry was not through asking questions. “It’s all very well, but you know how well those cans are covered! We chickens cannot lift such a thing!”

“Details! Details!” sighed Henrietta. “That’s precisely why I have called upon that…uh…‘dog’…Chips!”

The chickens were all in an uproar! “SILENCE!” shouted Henrietta. “Meeting adjourned! We shall re-meet tomorrow at 4:00 p.m.!” The chickens cackled and clucked and retired to their various roosts.

The next day, It had stopped snowing, but the sky was filled with gray clouds, which meant more snow. It was now only 3 days to Christmas, and the Hen and Rooster Society had to hurry with their plans. Henry the Rooster flew up to the window, looked in at the clock, and announced, “It’s 4:00!”

“Good!” said the Grande Madame. “Hagatha! Go get Chips!”

“Hagatha! Go get Chips!” mimicked Hagatha. The rest of the chickens filed into the coop. Henrietta flew up to her usual post, and said, “Let’s bring this meeting to order!” The hens settled down and the Grand Madame started the meeting.

“As you know, we were called here last night to discuss our plans for Christmas. You are probably wondering what Chips has to do with this. Ah! Here he comes now!” Hagatha came racing into the coop followed by Chips the dog, who had a bad habit of chasing her. Chips was a pitiful sight. A fat, overgrown, tan-haired mongrel.

“Duh…what is it you need ME for?” he asked, while lazily scratching at a flea.

“We the members of the Hen and Rooster Society have decided to do something different for Christmas this year. We’re going to have a Christmas party using Human traditions.”

“We’re going to have a Christmas tree,” explained Henry. “We need decorations for the tree, and the only place we can think of to get them is out of THEIR garbage cans!”

“Of course,” continued the Grand Madame, “we hens are too small to lift the cover, even combined! We want you YOU to knock them over for us!”

“OH NO!” shouted Chips, “I’ve done that before, and I won’t get any more doggie-donuts if I do!”

“We realize that,” said Henrietta, “and we plan to pick it all up afterwards!”

“Promise?”

“OF COURSE!!” yelled Henrietta. She raised her right wing and said, “Members of the Hen and Rooster Society NEVER lie, cheat, or steal!”

“O.K. When do you want me to do it?”

The Grand Madame leaned forward and whispered, “Tonight, at 12:30!”

“TONIGHT!” But when those cans fall over, they’ll wake the Humans up!”

The Grand Madame sighed. “Technicalities!” she said. “I have thought of that also! We hens have decided to drag one of those old sleeping bags up to the cans. They will fall on it with a very soft landing. Practically no noise!”

“Golly Gee! You think of everything!”

“I know,” she replied. “Oh! I almost forgot! Helen! Go contact Mr. and Mrs. Brown, and inform them they will be expected to furnish the refreshments!

Harriet! Notify Bradley Bull the Third and the rest of their oafish gang that they will be expected to furnish the tree! Now hurry along ladies, we’ve no time to lose!” The hens waddled off to their assignments, while Chips was still pondering his.

Helen came trotting into the shed (which wasn’t much of a shed at all because it had a hole in the roof) where Mr. and Mrs. Brown, the rabbits, were huddling into one corner of their cage, keeping warm from the swirling snow.

“MR. AND MRS. BROWN! GUESS WHAT?” screeched Helen.

“What now,” drawled Mr. Brown. “Didja lay a purple egg?”

“Oh shush!” snapped Mrs. Brown. “Pay no mind to him. What was it you wanted to say?”

Helen, still glaring at Mr. Brown for the insult, finally said, “Well…we’re holding a Christmas party…uh…the chickens that is, and we’ve invited you and …uh…him! She said as she glared at Mr. “Him.” “By the way, you’ve been assigned to furnish the refreshments!”

“We have!?! Well, I never!”

“Well, you have now!” said Helen as she hurried back to the coop.

When she got there, she discovered that Bradley Bull the Third and the rest of the Bull and Cow Society were there.

“What’s all this nonsense about us sophisticated cows furnishing some tree for some ridiculous party?”

“It’s not nonsense, and it’s not ridiculous!" said Harriet.  "And if you won’t even take the courtesy to listen, we won’t even bother inviting you!”

“Alright then,” he snorted. “What’s all this …uh…“news” I’ve been hearing lately?”

“We’re having a Christmas party! A Christmas party is not a Christmas party without a Christmas tree!”

“And you want us to furnish it! Oh…very well, the unpleasant chore is ours. I believe I know where I can get one.” And off he trotted with the others.

Henrietta sighed, “Well! That’s taken care of! Now! We’ve only to wait for 12:30 tonight! Now ladies, off to bed!”

The hours ticked away. At the right time, Henry crowed, “It’s 12:30! Up ladies!”

“Up ladies! 12:30” yawned the Grand Madame.

“Up ladies! 12:30” sassed Hagatha, “One of these days…POWIE! Right in the clucker!”

They all toddled up to the trash can, and found Chips, still asleep. Harriet snickered to herself, and said, “I’ll wake him up!” She went over to him, and screamed, “THE CATS ARE STAMPEDING!” Chips let out a terrified yelp, and raced under the car.

“Get back out here this instant, you repulsive animal!” shouted Henrietta.

“OH!… it’s only you!”

“It is now 12:35, past time to knock over the cans!”

Henry was now dragging the sleeping bags into place. Helen, very particular about things, noticed a wrinkle in the middle of the sleeping bag. She went over to straighten it out, when CRASH! The cans had fallen right on top of Helen! She was standing in a mountain of garbage, with her head covered with an empty cottage cheese carton.

“Really, Helen,” clucked the Grand Madame, “This is no time for trying out hats! Besides, it’s too big!”

“OH, SHUTUP!” she screeched. She knocked the carton off and stood looking embarrassed and angry at the same time. She turned on Chips and bellowed “Clumsy oaf!”

“Settle down!” ordered Henry. “Now, let’s sort through this stuff!”

All night long, Chips, Henry, Henrietta, Helen, Hagatha and Harriet picked out tin can lids, tin foil, strings, napkins, broken glass, and other various pieces of material they thought would look nice on their tree.

The early morning sun was soon appearing over the horizon, and they decided they had better pick up before the Humans awoke. Piece by piece, the garbage was put back into the cans, and with a mighty push, the cans were put back into place. All of their collections were on a pile on the sleeping bag, and they only had to drag it down to the coop. ‘Twas now only two days to Christmas, and the coop was buzzing with excitement.


Around noon, Bradley came walking in holding a scraggly, bony branch in his mouth. He dropped it in front of the Grande Madame and said, “Is this what you had in mind?” She looked the poor thing over and replied, “Well…not exactly…but…I think we’ll have to make it do. Come girls! Help me set it up!” They all came over, picked it up and put it into a can. They all stood back and looked at the sickly thing.

“Well,” sighed the Grande Madame, “maybe it will look better after we decorate it!” They got their collections and started placing them on the tree.Helen and Harriet worked on the tree, while Henrietta surpervised Henry and Hagatha on decorating the interior of the coop.

While all this was going on, Mrs. Brown was busy trying to figure out how she was going to furnish refreshments. Then she thought of the old abandoned garden beyond the wire fence. This garden, nobody ever picked clean, and nobody ever bothered with anymore. She thought it worth investigating. But how did she expect to get out of her cage? Then she began thinking. The next time the boy came to feed her, she would put a stick on the hinge of the door, which would prevent it from shutting all the way.

The next morning, one day to the party, sure enough, in came the boy with a bowl of food for her and Mr. Brown. He opened the door, put the food in, and shut the door. Not all the way of course, because of Mrs. Brown’s invention. When the boy left, she looked at Mr. Brown – still asleep! Then she hopped out.
She wound her way around the lumber pile, then hopped through the fence.

“CARROTS!” she exclaimed. “I just adore carrots! Now, for the chickens. Corn! Here’s a few ears! And for the cows, sugar beets. Oh, now there’s Chips. Why, he’d like a bone! But where’s little ol’ me gonna get a bone? Why, I think I remember seein’ one that other dog who used to live here left behind, of course! Now I’ll jest set myself to workin’ on this stuff!” She towed them back in her paper basket, and went to work.

Back at the chicken coop, things were nearly finished. Strung across the interior of the coop were gaily colored pieces of material, with a Santa Claus pasted on the wall.

“Who’s he?” asked Harriet, pointing at the Santa Claus.

“I guess he’s the chimney cleaner!” said the Grande Madame. “He’s always going up and down in them. The Humans like him, is all I know.” In the middle of the room, stood the finished Christmas tree.

“Charming! Simply Charming!” cackled Henrietta.

“No thanks to her!” mumbled Hagatha, “giving orders right and left!”

“All ready for the party tonight!” announced Henry.

Meanwhile, Chips was slicking himself up, and the cows were brushing their tails and Mrs. Brown was hurrying Mr. Brown to getting himself looking decent. Finally, it was time. The hens had their feathers smooth and shiny.

First to arrive was Bradley Bull III and the others, looking very distinguished. Next was Chips. His collar polished, and his nose glistening VERY strangely. “I saw him stick it in silver paint!” gossiped Helen. And lastly, was Mr. and Mrs. Brown.

Everyone gasped as they walked into the room. Mrs. Brown had her tail fluffed, but that was not what they were looking at! Both of them were holding a tray. On them were two luscious carrot cupcakes, a nice red bow tied around a nice white bone, five ears of corn covered with fat, juicy worms, and four sugar beets covered with blueberries!

Mrs. Brown set them on the table and said, “Come and get it!” They took her advice and raced to the table. Pecks, gloms, gnarls and chews were mannerlessly heard from the coop. When all was eaten, everyone complimented Mrs. Brown.

“ON WITH THE CELEBRATION!” ordered Henrietta. They all gathered around the tree and sang, “Randolph the Red-beaked Rooster,” then Henrietta gave them each a stocking.

“What in Jack Rabbits name are these for?” asked Mr. Brown.

“We’re going to hang them on the fireplace!” she replied.

Everyone stared to one corner of the coop, where a makeshift copy of a fireplace was standing.

“Now what are we going to do that for?” asked Bradley, very disgusted.

“HOW IN GREAT CHICKENS SHOULD I KNOW?!?!” she screeched. “All I know is that the Humans do it!”

“Humans!” scoffed one of the bulls. “Poor creatures, they have only TWO legs, can you imagine? Only TWO legs!”

“Oh hushup!” snapped Harriet. “YOU don’t have feathers so distinguished as ours!” she said as she smoothed herself. “NO feathers at all!”

“HMPH!” he said, and turned his head.

“Now!” announced the Grande Madame, “Let us dance!” Chips picked up a home-made fiddle and played “Chicken in the Straw.” Everyone found a partner, and the dance was on! Every time the cows took a dance step, the whole coop shook like an earthquake. When they were through dancing, everyone was so tired, that Henrietta invited them to sleep in the coop that night.

The cows settled themselves down in the back, Mr. and Mrs. Brown went under the tree, Chips laid beneath the “fireplace,” and the chickens, since their regular roosts were occupied, flew up to the rafters. In no time at all, they were all asleep.

The next morning, Christmas morning that is, it had finally stopped snowing but the world was covered with a blanket of white. Then, when the sun was shining, Henry flapped his wings, and gave his daily crow.

“OH …BE…QUIET!!!” haggled Hagatha. She jumped to the ground while everyone else was just awaking. But to their surprise, a gift was lying by each one of them! For Chips, a shiny, jeweled collar! For the cows, each had a silver bell! For the rabbits, a bonnet for Mrs. Brown, and a pair of boots for Mr. Brown! For Henry, a megaphone; for the Grande Madame, a fancy pair of theatre glasses, and for the other hens, knitted shawls!

“Who do you suppose gave us these?” asked the Grande Madame. But nobody heard her. They were all too busy with their gifts.

No one noticed the Humans peering into the windows. “I hope they like our gifts!” said Mrs. Human, and they walked back to the house to open their own gifts!

Christmas Traditions: The Yule Log

The origins of the Yule log as part of the Christmas holiday stem from an Old Norse winter solstice custom which began well before the time of Christ. To the Norsemen, the sun was a spinning wheel of fire, known as hweol (which became “yule”), that approached during summertime and receded during the wintry months. From hweolor-tid, meaning the "turning time of the sun", came our word Yuletide. The ancient Norsemen created a wheel-like calendar of the four seasons from a round section of “wheel” or Yule log. The Yule log would be kept burning all day and all night during the darkest days of the winter solstice. A piece of the log was saved to ignite the Yule log of the following winter.

The burning of the Yule log spread throughout in the Middle Ages. In some places, the custom occurred with a log of freshly cut wood being carried into the house on Christmas Eve with great ceremony. The log was often embellished with greenery and sometimes sprinkled with oil, salt and mulled wine. It was said that the cinders of this log could protect the house from lightning and evil.

The tradition of burning a Yule log waned somewhat when the great hearths were gradually replaced by cast-iron stoves and furnaces. Today’s Yule log is usually a Christmas decoration placed in the center of the table with candles and greenery. The Yule log, or buche de Noel, is also a French pastry, a delicious cake roll, which is traditionally filled with chestnut cream and coated with marzipan. The pastry is sometimes covered with coffee or chocolate-flavored icing and decorated with sugared holly leaves and roses.

Christmas Traditions: The Wreath

Our modern term wreath is linked to the word wrist. It came from the Old English writha, denoting a twisted band or ring of leaves or flowers in a garland. The tradition of decorating with a wreath originates with the Roman use of a holly wreath as a symbol of the sun during the celebration of Saturnalia. Early Christians adopted this custom to avoid persecution, but associated the holly wreath instead, with its thorns and red berries, with Christ’s crown of thorns. It later became popular to make the wreath from evergreen boughs, representing eternal life, since holly was not always available (see The Tradition of Holly).

Today, it is a popular custom to hang a wreath, decorated in various ways, on the front door as well as other locations on or in the home. In the Philippines, colorful wreaths made of tropical flowers are made and worn by all in a great parade following Christmas Mass.

Christmas Traditions: Wassail

The word “wassail” comes from the Old Norse phrase “ves weill”, meaning “be in health”. Thus, a holiday tradition sprang up from toasting others’ health with a spicy drink. There are many wassail recipes, but most are based on a hot-spiced ale or cider with roasted apples.

In old times, a group of carolers would carry around a wassail bowl during the Twelve Days of Christmas, offering samples, and sometimes being invited into homes and offered food, money or a re-fill of the wassail bowl. In older times, there was a wassail ceremony performed at the roots of apple trees, blessing them to be especially fruitful during the coming year. Wassail was poured around the roots, and a shot-gun was fired up through the branches while a wassail song was sung: “Oh, here we come a-wassailing among the leaves so green…”. (See The Tradition of Caroling)

Traditional Christmas Food

Feasting during the Christmas holiday has long been a tradition. In the Middle Ages, King Henry III of England raised the level of feasting and revelry to great heights. He was also attributed to have started the custom of giving food to the needy during the holiday season of 1248.

One of the earliest traditional Christmas foods is the mince pie, which originated in the Middle Ages. Originally, it contained a mixture of chopped poultry, rabbit, pheasant and partridge. Later, sugar, apples, raisins, oranges and lemons were added. Eventually, the meats were omitted, leaving only the sweet ingredients. Closely related is the English Christmas plum pudding, a concoction of fruits and sweets, sprinkled with brandy and flamed when served. The fruitcake was derived from the Christmas plum pudding, which traditionally includes raisins, dates and candied fruit.

The greatness and variety of the traditional English Christmas feast was described by Charles Dickens in A Christmas Carol, when Scrooge met the Ghost of Christmas Present in a room surrounded by all kinds of food:

“Heaped up on the floor, to form a kind of throne, were turkeys, geese, game, poultry, brawn, great joints of meat, sucking-pigs, long wreaths of sausages, mince-pies, plum-puddings, barrels of oysters, red-hot chestnuts, cherry-cheeked apples, juicy oranges, luscious pears, immense twelfth-cakes, and seething bowls of punch, that made the chamber dim with their delicious steam.”

Many main dishes have adorned the Christmas table, but throughout Europe and America it has usually been a roasted turkey, goose, beef or ham. Each country has it’s own Christmas dinner specialties unique to the historic culture of the people. In some places, fish is a main dish, such as lutfisk (cod) in Scandinavian countries and baked carp in Austria. In America, a land which has been a melting pot of many cultures, many kinds of foods are served at the Christmas dinner. For many, the Christmas dinner menu is similar to that of the Thanksgiving feast.

And he…He HIMSELF…!
The Grinch carved the roast beast!!
- From Dr.Suess’
How the Grinch Stole Christmas

Holiday desserts are many and varied. From France comes the buche de Noel, or yule-log, a cake rolled and filled with chestnut cream and coated with either marzipan or flavored icing, and decorated with sugared holly leaves and roses (see Tradition of the Yule Log). In Italy, the meal is topped off with torrone, a candy made of egg whites, honey, and nuts. Fruit-filled breads called stollen are favorites in Germany. In Mexico and other Latin-American countries, thin, round pastries called bunuelos are usually eaten with cinnamon and sugar. Various kinds of Christmas cookies, including frosting-covered sugar cookies, have long been a popular part of the holiday goodies prepared in the kitchens of America and Europe.

Traditional holiday drinks are popular in some areas. In Sweden, glogg, a hot punch made with spices, liquors, raisins, and nuts, and julmust, a soft-drink similar to root-beer, are favorite for the holidays. Eggnog is a dairy holiday drink popular in England and America, which is a descendant of the Old English drink syllabub, a spiced mixture of wine and creamed milk. But perhaps the most celebrated English holiday drink is wassail (see Tradition of Wassail).

It is unlikely that most of our “traditional” Christmas foods would have been eaten in Jerusalem when Christ was born. So what types of food would have been customary to that place and time? The Bible makes mention of several foods which would have been common in a Holy Land meal. Mentioned at least 230 times, bread, usually made from wheat, was indeed the staff of life. Meats, usually from cows and sheep, were reserved for special occasions. Common food items included fish, olives, grapes, figs, lentils, nuts, salt, honey and cakes. Cakes? Yes, they even had a dessert, usually made from flattened dough that was fried or baked. Sometimes dried fruit was added to the dough, establishing, perhaps, a forerunner to the fruitcake.

Christmas Traditions: Stockings

The tradition of hanging stockings by the chimney can be traced to an early legend of the original St. Nicholas in the 3rd Century. The legend tells of how he tossed a small bag of gold down the chimney belonging to a family with three daughters that needed help. The gold landed in a stocking that was hung up to dry.

In Holland, the stocking tradition took the form of a shoe. As early as the sixteenth century, children placed wooden shoes by the hearth on the night of St. Nicholas's arrival. The shoes were filled with straw and sugar, a meal for the saint's gift-laden donkey. In return, Nicholas would insert a small treat into each clog. However, if the children had been bad, they might expect a lump of coal instead. Today’s clogs are usually filled with candies and small toys.

Clement C. Moore seems to have popularized the American replacement of the shoe with the stocking in his 1822 poem A Visit From St. Nicholas: “stockings hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there”. American author Theodore Ledyard Cuyler wrote of how his family hung stockings at the fireplace for Santa Claus at their farm in western New York in the 1820's.

Hanging stockings was a more prevalent custom prior to the popularization of the Christmas tree. In the mid to late-1800’s, a debate as to whether one should observe the custom of hanging stockings versus decorating a tree with presents underneath continued for many years. Though the stockings were filled by St. Nicholas in Clement C. Moore’s poem, a Christmas tree was not mentioned. In the books Kriss Kringle's Book, and Kriss Kringle's Christmas Tree - A holiday present for boys and girls, Kriss Kringle ignored the stockings hung by the fireplace and hung his presents on the branches of the small tree that he brought with him. The debate over which custom should be followed soon gave way to the idea of having both.

The stockings that were hung by the fireplace, were initially, and remained for many years, those actually worn by the children. Today’s specially produced Christmas stockings are much bigger, allowing for more and larger-sized presents and treats.

Christmas Traditions with Snow

Many of the traditions and stories surrounding the Christmas holiday were developed in countries where snow is usually on the ground at Christmas time. Snow plays an integral part of the celebration for many people, whether or not they actually have snow during the holiday. Several popular Christmas carols are about or involve the enjoyment of snow, such as Let it Snow, Winter Wonderland, Sleigh Ride, Jingle Bells, Frosty the Snowman, The Christmas Song and White Christmas.

A popular 20th Century American custom was to bring snow inside the house with a flocked Christmas tree, and a fake snow spray for the windows. Popular indoor Christmas decorations include paper snowflakes, plastic icicles, and holiday villages on replicated snowy ground cover. Building snowmen, sleigh riding, sledding, ice-skating, and skiing are snowy, wintertime activities often associated with the Christmas holidays.

Snow is a key element in the entire legend of Santa Claus, reflected in the home-workshop at the North Pole, Santa’s warm fir suit, the reindeer, and the sleigh.

Christmas Poinsettia

The poinsettia, a plant on which the leaves form a flaming red star with a brilliant yellow center, was introduced to the United States by Joel Roberts Poinsett, a botanist and the first United States Ambassador to Mexico. Between 1822 and 1830, he had been intrigued by a tropical plant, and twice brought it home to his greenhouses in Charleston, South Carolina. It quickly became popular among his horticulturist and botanist friends. In the early 1900's, Albert Ecke and his sons, flower growers in Hollywood, California were among the first to develop and popularize the potted Christmas poinsettia. In Mexico, poinsettia are known as the Flores de la Noche Buena, or the Holy Night Flowers.

Christmas Entertainment

Before movies and television, several important Christmas performances were presented that have remained key to the celebration of Christmas, including various stage versions of Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol and Tchaikovsky’s ballet The Nutcracker, based on a story by E.T.A. Hoffmann.

One of the greatest Christmas productions ever created was Handel’s Messiah, first performed in Dublin, Ireland in 1742. Handel composed this inspired production during a brief period of 3½ weeks. At the first London performance, King George II had the impulse to stand during the “Hallelujah Chorus”, and this has remained a tradition for the audience today. Other significant staged Christmas performances include Amahl and the Night Visitors, an opera by Gian Carlo Menotti, and The Other Wise Man by Henry Van Dyke.

Hollywood has done more than its share of shaping the modern celebration of the Christmas holiday through the many movies and television shows that have been produced. Some of the early Hollywood movies that remain popular today include: A Christmas Carol, Miracle on 34th Street, The Bishop’s Wife, It’s a Wonderful Life, Holiday Inn, and White Christmas.

There are multitudes of Christmas television specials produced and re-televised every year. Certain early television specials have become a significant part of celebrating Christmas for many people. They include: Rudolph, the Red-nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, A Charlie Brown Christmas, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

Christmas Traditions: Mistletoe

Mistletoe is a white-berried parasitic plant that grows on the trunk of trees, usually on apple and oak trees. Early pagan beliefs held that the mistletoe had magical powers of peace and joy. A story of the Norse goddess Frigga, tells how she blessed the plant to bestow a kiss on all who passed beneath it.

In the Celtic language, mistletoe means “all-heal”, and was thought to be a cure for sterility and diseases. Celtic druids would hang them over doorways as protection against lightning and other evils. A sprig over the cradle would protect the child, and an entire herd of cattle would be protected by giving a sprig to the first cow calving after the New Year. Enemies meeting under a mistletoe had to call truce until the following day. From this comes the custom of hanging mistletoe from the ceiling or doorway and exchanging kisses.

I stood for a moment in tremor of doubt,
Then kissed her, half looking for war:
But – “Why did you wait, Sir!” she said with a pout,
“Pray, what is the mistletoe for?”- from a poem by Clinton Scollard

According to British superstition, a young woman who was not kissed under the mistletoe would not be married during that year. Since a berry was always plucked off at every kiss, maidens in former times saw to it that the branches did not fail to have a plentiful supply of berries. One who stands underneath the mistletoe cannot refuse to be kissed.

Christmas Traditions: Holly

Romans used holly, either as the sun-symbol wreath, garlands or separate branches, to deck their homes during the celebration of Saturnalia. This custom was followed by many early Christians as well to avoid persecution. The holly wreath, with its thorns and red berries, became a representation of Christ’s crown of thorns and His sacrifice. In the year 601, Pope Gregory instructed Augustine of Canterbury to “deck the halls” of the churches in the same manner as the Romans, to solemnize the time by Christian feasting. Ivy, another green leafy plant originating with the celebration of Saturnalia, has often accompanied holly as holiday greenery.

Christmas Traditions: Gingerbread

Decorating gingerbread houses and men has been a favorite holiday activity for many years. Not always associated just with Christmas, gingerbread has been baked in Europe for centuries, and came to America with the early settlers. The word “gingerbread” comes from the Old French gingebras, which means "preserved ginger".

The earliest and strongest tradition of flat, shaped gingerbreads comes from Germany. Gingerbread was a popular item at the Christkindlmarkt, a December street festival held in Nuremberg, Germany in the 1600’s. Gingerbread became a part of children’s literature in the 1800’s with the Brothers Grimm fairy tale Hansel and Gretel, in which the two children discover a house made of gingerbread and candies, and also with the story of the oven-escaping Gingerbread Man.

Today, it is at Christmas that gingerbread makes its most impressive appearance. Houses of all styles and sizes, from the Hansel and Gretel style-houses heavy with candies and sugar icicles, to elaborate Victorian houses richly decorated and ornamented, are built and displayed during the holiday season. Gingerbread cookies are also a common Christmas goodie, from decorated shapes of men and women to the round Scandinavian-style pepparkakar.

Symbolism relating to Christ can also be drawn in gingerbread. One of the Savior’s titles is the Bread of Life, and it is bread that He divided to feed the multitudes and that He broke at the Last Supper. The spice of ginger can be related to the spice oil of myrrh given by the Wise Men to the baby Jesus.

Christmas Traditions: Gift Giving

Scholars believe that the custom of gift-giving originated in the Roman empire, during the celebration of Saturnalia. The gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, given to the baby Jesus by the Wise Men are looked upon as the original Christmas gifts. In Europe, the tradition of Christmas presents dates back to at least as far as the sixteenth century.

Before that, people exchanged gifts at New Year’s. Stories about the original St. Nicholas told of a kind man who helped and bestowed gifts on many people. The anniversary of his death, December 6th, became the day to give gifts, especially to children.

Boxing Day, the day after Christmas, became a tradition in Old England as the day to give gifts of money to the needy that were gathered in boxes at churches, as well as boxed-presents of appreciation to servants (see Boxing Day).

Of all who give and receive gifts, such as they are wisest. Everywhere they are wisest. They are the magi.
- from Gifts of the Magi by O. Henry

The Christmas Tree

Early Evergreens

The use of an evergreen tree in association with the Christmas celebration stems back to pre-Christian pagan celebrations. At this time, people would take in evergreen boughs or trees at the time of winter solstice to protect the home and to insure the return of green vegetation. The evergreen was a symbol of rebirth and life amid winter whiteness. During the winter solstice, around December 21st, the Druidic priests of ancient Britain decorated trees outdoors with apples and lit candles, placing them ever so cautiously on the branches, in order to express their gratitude to their god Odin for his bestowing fruits upon them. The Druids are the first known people to have decorated trees for a religious purpose in the winter.

The Christian Tree

Following the advent of Christ, the evergreen became a symbol used by Christianity to represent eternal life, which is “the greatest of all the gifts of God” (Doctrine and Covenants 14:7).

A legend of St. Boniface, an English monk who lived in the 7th Century, tells of how he used the fir tree as an example of the tree of life and used its triangular shape to describe the Holy Trinity of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, evergreens with apples hanging from their boughs were used as part of miracle plays presented on December 24th, which was known as Adam and Eve’s Day. The evergreen, the main prop used in the play, was used since apple trees were bare at that time of year.

The first historical reference to the use of an evergreen for a Christmas celebration occurred in Riga, Latvia on Christmas Eve, 1510. After a festive dinner, black-hatted merchantmen carried an evergreen decorated with artificial roses to the marketplace. After dancing around the tree, they set fire to it. As early as 1531 in Strasbourg, France (formerly a part of Germany) Christmas trees were known to be sold in the market and taken to be set up undecorated in homes for the holiday. This can be assumed to have been a common practice since there was a 16th century ordinance passed in nearby Ammerschweier which limited the height to no “more than eight shoe lengths”.

The Indoor Tree

A German legend of the Christmas tree is attributed to Martin Luther’s celebration of Christmas Eve of 1519. On his way home at night, Martin Luther saw his way clearly because of the stars that shone so brightly in the reflected snow. He went out into the forest and returned with a beautiful fir tree, bringing it into his home so his family could admire it. He then placed glowing candles atop the branches to emulate the starlight outside, and stated that the candles represented the shining stars in the heavens above Bethlehem, some fifteen centuries earlier.

The earliest recorded Christmas tree to be standing up and decorated inside the home as the tradition occurs today was described in a travel diary of an unidentified visitor to Strasbourg in 1605 which was decorated with many colored paper roses, flat wafers, gilded candies, and sugar. The rose was a symbol for Mary, and the wafer was a symbol of the communion or sacrament wafer.

By the 1600’s, such trees were a common sight in German Christian homes each Christmas. In parts of Austria and Germany, some trees were hung upside down from the ceiling, and decorated with strips of red paper, apples and gilded nuts. Trees were usually set up on a table. Candles fastened to branches also became a popular decoration in the seventeenth century. Other ornaments included candies, cookies, fruits and potatoes, sweetmeats, dolls, and toys.

The American Tree

The oldest known reference to the Christmas tree in America was in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in 1747 among German speaking Moravians, who also gave the first Christmas presents in the New World. These were actually pyramid constructions of evergreen boughs. The earliest Christmas trees were small table-size trees; the idea of a floor to ceiling Christmas tree didn’t become popular until the mid-1800’s. Christmas trees were originally present-bearers, decorated largely with gifts of toys and edibles. Originally, family trees were unveiled on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning; the children believed the tree was brought by Santa.

The first “flocked” trees were also introduced by the Pennsylvania German immigrants. The trees were stripped of their needles after they were dried out, and then wrapped in cotton. These trees were often stored for use again in future years.

The widespread use of a Christmas tree in both America and England did not take hold until the mid to late 1800’s. Although Clement C. Moore’s A Visit From St. Nicholas, written in 1822, and Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, written in 1848, created a solid foundation for modern-day Christmas traditions, neither of them make mention of the Christmas tree. In 1834, Britain’s Queen Victoria and her German husband Prince Albert were the first to bring a Christmas tree into Windsor Castle, introducing the tradition to the British Empire. Not until 1850 did Charles Dickens make mention of a Christmas tree in his writings, which he described as a “German toy”.

In the 1850’s, the German company Lauscha began to manufacture glass ornaments for Christmas trees, including shaped glass balls, icicles, bead garlands and gilded-tin angels. These soon became popular throughout America. In the 1860’s the idea of stringing popcorn and hang as garlands on the tree became popular. Wax ornaments of baby Jesus, angels and animals, as well as designed cardboard ornaments, were common in the latter half of the 1800’s.

In 1882, New Yorker Edward Johnson invented the first electric tree lights. The tree-lighting ceremony, a favorite American holiday event, had its origins in Germany.

The Tradition of Christmas Cards

The first Christmas and New Year’s card was designed by John Callcott Horsley in London in 1840 at the request of his friend Sir Henry Cole. It was later reproduced in lithography (finely-textured stone drawings reproduced on cardboard or paper) and became the first commercial Christmas card in 1843. The card showed a family raising their toasts to Christmas and said “A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You”. The Christmas card quickly became very popular, and others soon followed Horsley’s concept.

The idea of sending holiday greetings on a card actually began in the late 1700’s with the perfection of lithography, when merchants would send New Year’s greetings to their customers. Today, greeting cards are a multi-billion dollar industry.

In the same year that the first Christmas card was produced, 1840, the first prepaid postage stamp went on sale in Britain. The first Christmas postage stamp was issued by Canada in 1898. Christmas seals were conceived in 1903 by Danish postal worker Einar Holboell as a method to raise money for tuberculosis.

Christmas Traditions: Caroling

The word carol is derived from the Greek choraulein, a dance that was done in a circle and accompanied by flute music. The dance became popular with the French, who replaced the flute music with singing. Soon, the singing became the focus of the carol, often performed as a part of religious plays. Although carols were traditionally sung throughout the year, by the 1600's the most popular time for singing them was at Christmas.

During the 12th Century, St. Francis of Assisi formally introduced Christmas carols as part of Christian church services. One of the earliest known Christmas songs, Jesus Refulsit Omnium, was composed by St. Hilary of Poitiers. O Come, O Come Emmanuel is one the early Latin carols which remains popular today. Martin Luther was known to have accompanied family and friends on his lute as they went caroling.

The earliest known English carol was written by Ritson about 1410. The first American Christmas carol, Jesus is Born, was written by John de Brebeur in 1649. One of the greatest works of Christmas music was Handels Messiah, composed and first performed in Dublin, Ireland in 1742 (see Performances, Movies and Television).
As the celebration of Christmas became more widespread in the early to mid-1800’s, the singing of carols grew as a holiday custom. Musicians called “waits” would stroll the community singing favorite Christmas songs.

Popular Carols

Away in a Manger
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
Hark the Herald Angels Sing
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
I’ll Be Home for Christmas
Jingle Bells
Joy to the World
Let it Snow
O Come All Ye Faithful
O Holy Night
O Little Town of Bethlehem
Santa Claus is Coming to Town
Silent Night
Silver Bells
The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting…)
The First Noel
We Wish You a Merry Christmas
What Child is This
White Christmas
Winter Wonderland

In the same year that Clement C. Moore published A Visit From St. Nicholas, in 1822, Davies Gilbert published one of the first books of carols music, Collection of Christmas Carols. It contained several old French carols and Swedish melodies set to new words. An extensive repertory of today’s Christmas carols originates from Britain, Germany, France and Hungary, from the 15th to the 17th Century.

Perhaps the best-known Christmas Carol is Silent Night, which was written in 1818 by Austrian Father Joseph Mohr and Church organist Franz Gruber. The story is told of how Father Joseph Mohr learned on the day before Christmas that the organ in the Church of St. Nicholas, in Oberdorf, Austria was broken and would not be repaired in time for that night’s Midnight Mass service. Determined to have music that night, he sat down and wrote three stanzas, and convinced Franz Gruber to set the words to music. That night, the two men performed their new song, originally titled in German Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht, accompanied by Father Mohr’s guitar. Today, Silent Night is sung in more than 180 languages by millions of people. (For more on Carols, see the post on History of Christmas Carols)
The biggest selling recorded Christmas carol of all time is Bing Crosby’s White Christmas, with over 30 million copies sold. Although the list of popular Christmas carols grows longer every year, there are some popular carols that have been around for a long time and will probably remain a part of the Christmas celebration for many years.

The custom of caroling has its roots in old England, with the tradition of wassailing, when a group of carolers would carry around a wassail bowl during the Twelve Days of Christmas, offering samples. Thus, the song “Here we come a-caroling (or a-wassailing) among the leaves so green”. Sometimes after singing carols in front of homes, the carolers would be invited in and offered food, money or a re-fill of the wassail bowl. The tradition of caroling has continued through the years, especially in England and America, although without the carrying of the wassail bowl (see The Tradition of Wassail).

Christmas Traditions: Candy Canes

Shaped as a shepherd’s staff, the candy cane represents the staff of Jesus as the Good Shepherd. It also reminds us of those humble shepherds who heard the angels sing, were the first to worship the new-born Savior and who spread the news of his birth (see The Shepherds).

The symbolism in the candy cane has also been extended to include: 1) a stick of hard candy to symbolize the solid foundation of His gospel, 2) colored pure white to symbolize the virgin birth and the purity of Jesus, 3) stained with red stripes for his sacrifice that we might have the promise of eternal life, 3) flavored with peppermint to symbolize the regal gift of spice (myrrh), and 4) shaped, when held upside down, in the form of a "J" to symbolize the name of Jesus and Jehovah.

Legend has it that the candy cane was invented in 1670 by a choirmaster at the Cologne Cathedral who handed out the bent sugar sticks among children to keep them quiet during the long Living Nativity ceremony.

The use of candy canes during the Christmas service spread throughout Europe. In northern Europe, sugar canes decorated with sugar roses were used to brighten the home at Christmas time. In the mid-1800's, the candy cane arrived in the U.S. when a German-Swedish immigrant in Wooster, Ohio, decorated his spruce tree with paper ornaments and white sugar canes. The red stripe was added to the candy cane at the turn of the century, when peppermint was added and became the traditional flavor for the candy cane.

Christmas Traditions: Candles

The burning of candles is a tradition which originated with the Roman celebration of Saturnalia and the Jewish Feast of the Dedication, both which occurred near the end of December. Christians borrowed the custom and made the light of the candle a symbol of Jesus Christ being the Light of the World. Christ admonished his believers to hold up their light “that it may shine unto the world” and that he was light which they should hold up (see 3 Nephi 18:24).

The Old Norse Yule celebrations used the candle as a promise that light would return to the cold, dark winter world of Scandinavia. The candle today plays a key role in the Swedish Christmas celebration of St. Lucia, a tradition originating from the story of the Italian virgin saint who was martyred. The Swedish version goes that during the early days of Christian persecution, St. Lucia risked her life to bring food to fellow Christians in hiding in unlit tunnels. She would light the way with a wreath that she wore on her head containing lit candles. In the same manner, her representatives today promise the return of light to the land. On December 13th, St. Lucia, dressed in white and wearing a crown of candles, leads a procession of candle and star bearers, singing carols and offering yuletide treats to family and friends. This officially begins the Swedish Christmas season.

German legend has it that it was Martin Luther who first introduced the candle-lit tree to German homes, although it may have originated with the custom of indoor trees, which began in the Alsace region of France.

For over a thousand years, candles have been lit on Christmas Eve in churches and homes to welcome the Christ child. People in many countries observe the custom to light advent candles on the four Sundays prior to and including Christmas Eve. One candle is lit on the first Sunday, two on the second, etc. The word “advent” means coming, thus candles are lit in preparation of the coming of Christmas.

An old Irish candle custom is to set lit candles in windows and leave the doors unlocked on Christmas Eve in hopes that a priest traveling by would be welcomed to enter and celebrate the holiday, or be guided safely home at night. This is similar to the old Celtic tradition on All Hallow’s Eve, or Halloween, to set lit candles inside carved gourds to light the way for dead saints and spirits passing by.

Christmas Traditions: Bells

Church bells, hand-held silver bells, and jingle bells have long been used in the celebration of Christmas. Church bells have for many centuries announced the time or a special event for the community. On Christmas, these bells would be especially active. In Norway, a tradition still exists where church bells “ring in Christmas” at 5:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve. Hand-held silver bells are often used for special Christmas music concerts, or can often be seen and heard on city streets and near stores to solicit donations for the Salvation Army and other charities.

Jingle bells worn by horses have long been used to announce the coming of a fast moving sleigh through the forest. In fact, a ride on a sleigh without jingle bells does not seem possible. This may have a foundation in the Old Testament prophet Zechariah’s prophecy wherein he described the bells of horses proclaiming holiness unto the Lord at his coming (see Zechariah 14:20). For today’s children, jingle bells worn by reindeer pulling Santa’s sleigh signify the coming of another exciting arrival.

Popular Christmas carols, such as “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”, “Silver Bells”, “Jingle Bells” and many others have all told of the importance of bells in the Christmas celebration.

Every Who down in Who-ville, the tall and the small,
Would stand close together, with Christmas bells ringing…
- From Dr.Suess’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas

Santa's Home at the North Pole

Thomas Nast, illustrator for Harpers Weekly, created several illustrations of St. Nicholas, each year from 1863 to 1886. Santa’s home-workshop at the North Pole was one of the details added to his version of the Santa legend. Newer legends have created an entire village at the North Pole, where the Christmas magic originates and preparations for the holiday continue throughout the year.

Santa's Reindeer

Before the reindeer, a goat was the animal that pulled the sleigh of the Norse God Thor. Today in Scandinavia, it is still the Julbukk, or Yule goat that carries the gift-bringing Yule elf.

Although earlier stories told of St. Nicholas in a sleigh being pulled by one reindeer, it was Clement Clarke Moore who introduced the number and names of Santa’s eight flying reindeer in his 1822 poem A Visit from St. Nicholas, sometimes known as The Night Before Christmas. The names of Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donder (aka Donner) and Blitzen, have become widely accepted as the official reindeer names.

The ninth reindeer, Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer, was introduced in 1939 by Robert May who wrote about him in a story for the Montgomery Ward Christmas catalogue. In 1949, Gene Autry recorded a musical version of the story which rocketed to the top of the Hit Parade. This recording is second only to Bing Crosby's White Christmas as the best-selling Christmas record of all time.

Santa's Elves

Traditions and stories about gnomes and elves have existed in Scandinavia for many centuries. They were mostly thought of as being good-natured and friendly, but could turn nasty if they weren’t treated right. The perception of how good the gnomes were depended on whether a person was naughty or nice.

When Christmas became popular again in the mid-1800’s, the gnomes, or elves, were portrayed by Scandinavian authors and artists as miniature, magical and somewhat mischievous beings that were the helpers of the Yule elf, or Santa Claus. Scandinavian artists Hansen and Nystrom helped develop the image of the elves as we know them.

Santa’s Elves are known to be very clever and intelligent, with the main responsibility to make toys for Christmas distribution to children throughout the world. Other elf responsibilities include maintaining the sleigh, caring for the reindeer, helping Mrs. Claus with the making of candies and sweets, and helping Santa administer the Naughty and Nice list.

Mrs. Santa Claus

The tradition of Santa having a wife was introduced by Katherine Lee Bates in her 1899 book Goody Santa Claus on a Sleigh Ride. However, no solid legend has developed about who Mrs. Santa Claus is, where she is from or how she met Santa. Some influence in developing the Mrs. Santa Claus character can be attributed to various European legends, which tell of a female Christmas character in the gift-giving enterprise. Babushka, a kindly grandmotherly sort, is known in some parts of Russia to deliver the holiday gifts. In Italy, a merry witch known as Befana is the gift-giver. In Switzerland, Father Christmas is sometimes accompanied by Mother Christmas on his journeys of gift delivery.

Some might surmise that it is only natural that if there is a Father Christmas, there must also be a mother. How could such a nice, loving man not have a nice, loving companion?

Mrs. Santa Claus did not become a part of the Christmas holiday until the 20th Century, when she was included in popular children’s stories about Santa. Known as Santa’s doting wife and a housemother to the elves, Mrs. Santa Claus plays an important role in the magical mythology surrounding Santa’s home at the North Pole. Most of the stories that include Mrs. Santa Claus portray her as a jolly, loving and kind grandmotherly figure. Often she is shown as baking and making sweets of all kinds in her kitchen. Santa’s Elves assist her in making the treats that fill children’s Christmas stockings throughout the world. Her hot chocolate is what is known to warm Santa after his long and cold journey. Other activities attributed to Mrs. Claus are making Christmas crafts, knitting and sewing clothing for Santa and the Elves.

Always there to encourage and support Santa and the elves, it can be said that Mrs. Santa Claus is in charge of making everyone warm and happy and that she is the one that provides sweet things to life.

Santa in Other Lands

Known as Father Christmas in Great Britain, the gift-giver has many names and characterizations in many lands. Others include:

Brazil: Papa Noel
China: Lam Khoong-Khoong (Nice Old Father)
Czech Republic: Svaty Mikulas
Denmark: Julenissen
Finland: Joulupukki
France: Pere Noel
Germany: Weihnachtsmann
Hungary: The Angels
Italy: La Befana or Babbo Natale
Japan: Hoteiosho
Middle East: The Little Camel
Norway: Julesvenn
Poland: Star Man or Mother Star
Russia: Grandfather Frost or Babushka
Sweden: Jultomten

La Befana - The Italian legend of La Befana, the merry gift-giving witch, tells of a woman who was invited by the Wise Men to join them on their journey to offer gifts to the newborn King. Because of her unfinished chores, she declined the invitation, which she later regretted. Her now unceasing journey now takes her from house to house on Christmas, leaving gifts for all children in the hopes that she will someday find the Christ child. In some parts of Russia, the grandmotherly Babushka is the gift-giver with a similar story.

The American Santa

The name of “Santa Claus” is an American pronunciation of “Sinter Klaas”, which is the Dutch name for St. Nicholas. The Dutch name and traditions of Sinter Klaas came to America with the early Dutch settlement of New Amsterdam (now New York).

The name Kriss Kringle came from the Pennsylvania German “Christ-kindl”, or Christ child, which became altered with English pronunciation. This name, which was meant for the young gift-giving boy Jesus, became confused in America to be another name for St. Nicholas. Two books published in the 1840s established a bridge to the new character, which looked more like Santa Claus: Kriss Kringle's Book, and Kriss Kringle's Christmas Tree - A holiday present for boys and girls.

Transforming the Old World St. Nicholas into the American Santa Claus was primarily the work of the following nineteenth century New Yorkers of varied national backgrounds:

* Washington Irving offered the first literary description of St. Nicholas in America in his 1809 book A History of New York from the Beginning of the World to the End of the Dutch Dynasty, under the pen name of Diedrich Knickerbocker. In this story, St. Nicholas came riding over the tree-tops in a wagon, bringing presents to children.

* John Pintard included the first known picture of St. Nicholas to be made in America in his 1810 poem Sancte Claus Goed Heyligman, adapted from the old Dutch song about the gift-bringer.

* William B. Gilley, a friend to Clement C. Moore, described Santa's sleigh being pulled by a lone reindeer in his 1821 book A New Year's Present for Little Ones from Five to Twelve.

* Clement C. Moore, in 1822, provided the first definitive description of the Santa Claus we know today in A Visit from St. Nicholas, also known as The Night Before Christmas. His fifty-six line poem, written as a gift to his children, changed the Old World St. Nicholas into Ajolly St. Nick,@ a plump, happy-go-lucky elf with a sleigh full of toys and eight flying reindeer. Illustrations in the original edition show Santa to be an elf only three to four feet high and the reindeer only as large as collie dogs. A short, rotund Dutch gardener in Moore's neighborhood may have served as the model for the new St. Nick.

* Thomas Nast, illustrator for Harpers Weekly, created several illustrations of St. Nicholas, each year from 1863 to 1886. These creations assisted in the visual definition of the modern day Santa Claus. Each year Nast added more details to his version of the Santa legend, including the home-workshop at the North Pole and the Naughty and Nice list.

* Theodore Ledyard Cuyler wrote of his childhood memories of Christmas on the farm in western New York in the 1820's. He told of how they hung stockings at the fireplace for Santa Claus, and mentioned that their black cook witnessed Santa writing him a letter.

An important step in the final picture of the man Santa Claus occurred in the 1930’s when the Coca-Cola Company ran a series of advertisements with Santa Claus. Illustrated by artist Haddon Sundblom, these advertisements created more solidly the modern-day depiction of Santa Claus with a jovial face and a big beard.

In 1890, the tradition of visiting Santa at the store began when the owner of the Boston Store in Brockton, Massachusetts dressed up as Santa and invited children to sit on his lap and whisper in his ear what they wanted for Christmas.

Sending letters to Santa became a popular tradition in the 1870’s, and within 20 years, they were inundating the Post Office.

In England and America, the tradition of the visit of Santa Claus occurs in secret in the middle of the night on December 25th, and he usually enters the home through the chimney. Often, a plate of cookies and a glass of milk are left for him near the hearth. Children arise in the morning to see and open their surprises.

In places such as Scandinavia and Germany, however, Santa’s visit happens a little differently. Santa comes on the evening of the 24th of December, knocking on and entering through the door like normal people. Once inside, he greets those inside and hands them his gifts, which are then opened. The gift-giver of many other countries will likewise enter through the door.