Christmas traditions

Overview of the various traditions practised at Christmas For a breakdown of traditions by country, see Observance of Christmas by country. Adoration of the Shepherds by Dutch painter Matthias Stomer, 1632 Christmas traditions include a variety of customs, religious practices, rituals, and folklore associated with the celebration of Christmas. These traditions are diverse in their origins and nature, with some having an exclusively Christian character with origins from within the religion. Other traditions are considered more cultural or secular in nature and have originated outside Christian influence. Christmas traditions have also changed and evolved significantly in the centuries since the Christmas holiday was first instituted, with celebrations often taking on an entirely different quality depending on the period and geographical region.

[edit] Christmas Day (including its vigil, Christmas Eve), is a Festival in the Lutheran Church, a Solemnity in the Roman Catholic Church, and a Principal Feast of the Anglican Communion. Other Christian denominations do not rank their feast days but place importance on Christmas Eve/Christmas Day, as with other Christian feasts like Easter, Ascension Day, and Pentecost. As such, for Christians, attending a Christmas Eve or Christmas Day church service plays an important part in celebrating the Christmas season. Christmas and Easter are the periods of highest annual church attendance. A 2010 survey by Lifeway Christian Resources found that six in ten Americans attend church services during this time. In the United Kingdom, the Church of England reported an estimated attendance of 2.5 million people at Christmas services in 2015.

[edit] Main article: Christmas decoration Neapolitan presepio at the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh The practice of putting up special decorations at Christmas has a long history. In the 15th century, it was recorded that in London, it was the custom at Christmas for every house and all the parish churches to be "decked with holm, ivy, bays, and whatsoever the season of the year afforded to be green". The heart-shaped leaves of ivy were said to symbolize Jesus coming to Earth, while holly was seen as protection against pagans and witches, its thorns and red berries held to represent the Crown of Thorns Jesus wore at the crucifixion and the blood he shed. The tradition of the nativity scene comes from Italy. Nativity scenes date from 10th-century Rome. They were popularised by Saint Francis of Assisi from 1223, quickly spreading across Europe. Different types of nativity scenes developed across the Christian world, dependent on local tradition and available resources, and can vary from simple representations of the crib to far more elaborate sets – renowned manger scene traditions include the colourful Kraków szopka in Poland, which imitate Kraków's historical buildings as settings, the elaborate Italian presepi (Neapolitan, Genoese and Bolognese), or the Provençal crèches in southern France, using hand-painted terracotta figurines called santons. In certain parts of the world, notably Sicily, living nativity scenes following the tradition of Saint Francis are a popular alternative to static crèches. The first commercially produced decorations appeared in Germany in the 1860s, inspired by paper chains made by children. In countries where a representation of the nativity scene is prevalent, people are encouraged to compete and create the most original or realistic ones. Within some families, the pieces used to make the representation are considered a valuable family heirloom.

Clifton Mill in Clifton, Ohio, is the site of this Christmas display with over 3.5 million lights. The traditional colors of Christmas decorations are red, green, and gold. Red symbolizes the blood of Jesus, which was shed in his crucifixion. Green symbolizes eternal life, particularly the evergreen tree, which does not lose its leaves in the winter. Gold is the first color associated with Christmas, as one of the three gifts of the Magi, symbolizing royalty. The Christmas tree was first used by German Lutherans in the 16th century, with records indicating that a Christmas tree was placed in the Cathedral of Strassburg in 1539, under the leadership of the Protestant Reformer, Martin Bucer. In the United States, these "German Lutherans brought the decorated Christmas tree with them; the Moravians put lighted candles on those trees." When decorating the Christmas tree, many individuals place a star at the top of the tree symbolizing the Star of Bethlehem, a fact recorded by The School Journal in 1897. Mount Ingino Christmas Tree in Gubbio in Italy is the tallest Christmas tree in the world.

[edit] Main article: Nativity play St. Francis at Greccio by Giotto, 1295 The tradition of the Nativity scene comes from Italy. One of the earliest representation in art of the nativity was found in the early Christian Roman catacomb of Saint Valentine. It dates to about AD 380. Another, of similar date, is beneath the pulpit in Sant'Ambrogio, Milan. For the Christian celebration of Christmas, the viewing of the Nativity play is one of the oldest Christmastime traditions, with the first reenactment of the Nativity of Jesus taking place in A.D. 1223 in the Italian town of Greccio. In that year, Francis of Assisi assembled a Nativity scene outside of his church in Italy and children sang Christmas carols celebrating the birth of Jesus. Each year, this grew larger, and people travelled from afar to see Francis' depiction of the Nativity of Jesus that came to feature drama and music. Nativity plays eventually spread throughout all of Europe, where they remain popular. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day church services often came to feature Nativity plays, as did schools and theatres. In France, Germany, Mexico, and Spain, Nativity plays are often reenacted outdoors in the streets.

[edit] Midnight Mass at St. Sebastian Roman Catholic Church, New York City In many Western Christian traditions, Midnight Mass is the first liturgy of Christmastide that is celebrated on the night of Christmas Eve, traditionally beginning at midnight when Christmas Eve gives way to Christmas Day. This popular Christmas custom is a jubilant celebration of the mass or service of worship in honour of the Nativity of Jesus; even many of those Christian denominations that do not regularly employ the word mass uniquely use the term "Midnight Mass" for their Christmas Eve liturgy as it includes the celebration of Holy Communion. The tradition of a midnight Vigil on the eve of Christmas began in the East, and was observed in the late fourth century in Jerusalem by a Christian woman named Egeria on the night of January 5. The tradition reached the Western world in the year 430 under Pope Sixtus III in the Basilica of St Mary Major. By the twelfth century, the practice of midnight Mass had become more widespread as all priests had been granted the faculty of celebrating three Masses on Christmas Day (previously reserved to the Pope), provided the three different propers were celebrated at their appropriate times of midnight, dawn and day.

[edit] Main article: Christmas music Christmas carolers in Jersey The earliest extant Christmas hymns appeared in fourth-century Rome. Latin hymns such as "Veni redemptor gentium", written by Ambrose, Archbishop of Milan, were austere statements of the theological doctrine of the Incarnation in opposition to Arianism. "Corde natus ex Parentis" ("Of the Father's love begotten") by the Spanish poet Prudentius (d. 413) is still sung in some churches today. In the 9th and 10th centuries, the Christmas "Sequence" or "Prose" was introduced in North European monasteries, developing under Bernard of Clairvaux into a sequence of rhymed stanzas. In the 12th century, the Parisian monk Adam of St. Victor began to derive music from popular songs, introducing something closer to the traditional Christmas carol. By the 13th century, in France, Germany, and Italy, under the influence of Francis of Assisi, a strong tradition of popular Christmas songs in the native language developed. Christmas carols in English first appear in a 1426 work of John Awdlay, a Shropshire chaplain, who lists twenty-five "caroles of Cristemas", probably sung by groups of wassailers, who went from house to house.

Child singers in Bucharest, 1841 The songs, now known specifically as carols, were originally communal folk songs sung during celebrations such as "harvest tide" and Christmas. It was only later that carols began to be sung in church. Traditionally, carols have often been based on medieval chord patterns, which gives them their uniquely characteristic musical sound. Some carols like "Personent hodie", "Good King Wenceslas", and "The Holly and the Ivy" can be traced directly back to the Middle Ages. They are among the oldest musical compositions still regularly sung. "Adeste Fideles" (O Come all ye faithful) appears in its current form in the mid-18th century, although the words may have originated in the 13th century. Singing of carols initially suffered a decline in popularity after the Protestant Reformation in northern Europe, although some Reformers, like Martin Luther, wrote carols and encouraged their use in worship. Carols largely survived in rural communities until the revival of interest in popular songs in the 19th century. The 18th-century English reformer Charles Wesley understood the importance of music to worship. In addition to setting many psalms to melodies, which were influential in the Great Awakening in the United States, he wrote texts for at least three Christmas carols. The best known was originally entitled "Hark! How All the Welkin Rings", later renamed "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing".

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing

Performed by the U.S. Army Band Chorus

[edit] Christmas pudding cooked on Stir-up Sunday, the Sunday before the beginning of the Advent season A special Christmas family meal is traditionally an important part of the holiday's celebration, and the food served varies greatly from country to country. Some regions have special meals for Christmas Eve, such as Sicily, where 12 kinds of fish are served. In the United Kingdom and countries influenced by its traditions, a standard Christmas meal includes a turkey, goose or other large bird, gravy, potatoes, vegetables, sometimes bread, and cider. Special desserts are also prepared, such as Christmas pudding, mince pies, fruit cake and Yule log cake.

Panettone In Poland, other parts of Eastern Europe, and Scandinavia, fish is often used for the traditional main course, but richer meat such as lamb is increasingly served. In Sweden, it is common with a special variety of smörgåsbord, where ham, meatballs, and herring play a prominent role. In Germany, France, and Austria, goose and pork are favored. Beef, ham, and chicken in various recipes are popular worldwide. In Japan, the holiday can be celebrated with the consumption of fried chicken. The Maltese traditionally serve Imbuljuta tal-Qastan, a chocolate and chestnuts beverage, after Midnight Mass and throughout the Christmas season. Slovenes prepare the traditional Christmas bread potica, bûche de Noël in France, panettone in Italy, and elaborate tarts and cakes. Panettone, an Italian type of sweet bread and fruitcake, originally from Milan, Italy, is usually prepared and enjoyed for Christmas and New Year in Western, Southern, and Southeastern Europe, as well as in South America, Eritrea, Australia, the United States, New Zealand, and Canada. The eating of sweets and chocolates has become popular worldwide, and sweeter Christmas delicacies include the German stollen, marzipan cake or candy, and Jamaican rum fruit cake. As one of the few fruits traditionally available to northern countries in winter, oranges have been long associated with special Christmas foods. Eggnog is a sweetened dairy-based beverage traditionally made with milk, cream, sugar, and whipped eggs (which gives it a frothy texture). Spirits such as brandy, rum, or bourbon are often added. The finished serving is often garnished with a sprinkling of ground cinnamon or nutmeg.

[edit] A 1907 Christmas card with Santa and some of his reindeer Main article: Christmas card Christmas cards are illustrated messages of greeting exchanged between friends and family members during the weeks preceding Christmas Day. The traditional greeting reads "wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year", much like that of the first commercial Christmas card, produced by Sir Henry Cole in London in 1843. Christmas cards are purchased in considerable quantities and feature commercially designed artwork relevant to the season. The content of the design might relate directly to the Christmas narrative, with depictions of the Nativity of Jesus, or Christian symbols such as the Star of Bethlehem, or a white dove, which can represent both the Holy Spirit and Peace on Earth. Other Christmas cards are more secular and can depict Christmas traditions, mythical figures such as Santa Claus, objects directly associated with Christmas such as candles, holly and baubles, or a variety of images related to the season, such as Christmastide activities, snow scenes and the wildlife of the northern winter. Some humorous cards and genres depict nostalgic past scenes such as crinolined shoppers in idealized 19th-century streetscapes. Some prefer cards with a poem, prayer, or Biblical verse, while others distance themselves from religion with an all-inclusive "Season's greetings".

Christmas stamp released in the United States in 1982, featuring a painting by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo

[edit] Main article: Christmas stamp Several nations have issued commemorative stamps at Christmastide. Postal customers will often use these stamps to mail Christmas cards, and they are popular with philatelists. These stamps are regular postage stamps, unlike Christmas seals, and are valid for postage year-round. They usually go on sale between early October and early December and are printed in considerable quantities.

[edit] Christmas gifts under a Christmas tree Main article: Christmas gift The exchanging of gifts is one of the core aspects of the modern Christmas celebration, making it the most profitable time of year for retailers and businesses throughout the world. On Christmas, people exchange gifts based on the Christian tradition associated with Saint Nicholas, and the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh which were given to the baby Jesus by the Magi. The tradition of gift giving in the Roman celebration of Saturnalia may have influenced Christian Christmas customs. Still, on the other hand, the Christian "core dogma of the Incarnation, however, solidly established the giving and receiving of gifts as the structural principle of that recurrent yet unique event" because it was the Biblical Magi, "together with all their fellow men, who received the gift of God through man's renewed participation in the divine life."

Gift-bearing figures[edit] Main articles: Santa Claus, Father Christmas, and Christkind Christmas gift-bringers in Europe Saint Nicholas, known as Sinterklaas in the Netherlands, is considered by many to be the original Santa Claus. Many figures are associated with Christmas and seasonal gift-giving. Among these are Father Christmas, also known as Santa Claus (derived from the Dutch for Saint Nicholas), Père Noël, and the Weihnachtsmann; Saint Nicholas or Sinterklaas; the Christkind; Kris Kringle; Joulupukki; tomte/nisse; Babbo Natale; Saint Basil; Svatý Mikuláš; and Ded Moroz. The Scandinavian tomte (also called nisse) is sometimes depicted as a gnome instead of Santa Claus. The best-known of these figures today is red-dressed Santa Claus, of diverse origins. The name Santa Claus can be traced back to the Dutch Sinterklaas, which means Saint Nicholas. Nicholas was a 4th-century Greek bishop of Myra, a city in the Roman province of Lycia, whose ruins are 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from modern Demre in southwest Turkey. Among other saintly attributes, he was noted for the care of children, generosity, and giving gifts. His feast day, December 6, came to be celebrated in many countries with the giving of gifts. Saint Nicholas traditionally appeared in bishop's attire, accompanied by helpers, inquiring about children's behavior during the past year before deciding whether they deserved a gift. By the 13th century, Saint Nicholas was well known in the Netherlands, and the practice of gift-giving in his name spread to other parts of central and southern Europe. During the Reformation in 16th–17th-century Europe, many Protestants changed the gift bringer to the Christ Child or Christkindl, corrupted in English to Kris Kringle, and the date of giving gifts changed from December 6 to Christmas Eve. However, the modern popular image of Santa Claus was created in the United States, particularly in New York. The transformation was accomplished with the aid of notable contributors, including Washington Irving and the German-American cartoonist Thomas Nast (1840–1902). Following the American Revolutionary War, some of the inhabitants of New York City sought out symbols of the city's non-English past. New York had originally been established as the Dutch colonial town of New Amsterdam, and the Dutch Sinterklaas tradition was reinvented as Saint Nicholas. In 1809, the New-York Historical Society convened and retroactively named Sancte Claus the patron saint of Nieuw Amsterdam, the Dutch name for New York City. At his first American appearance in 1810, Santa Claus was drawn in bishops' robes. However, as new artists took over, Santa Claus developed more secular attire. Nast drew a new image of "Santa Claus" annually, beginning in 1863. By the 1880s, Nast's Santa had evolved into the modern vision of the figure, perhaps based on the English figure of Father Christmas. The image was standardized by advertisers in the 1920s and continues through the present day. Some oppose the narrative of the American evolution of Saint Nicholas into the modern Santa. People claim that the Saint Nicholas Society was not founded until 1835, almost half a century after the end of the American War of Independence. Moreover, a study of the "children's books, periodicals and journals" of New Amsterdam by Charles Jones revealed no references to Saint Nicholas or Sinterklaas. However, not all scholars agree with Jones's findings, which he reiterated in a book-length study in 1978; Howard G. Hageman, of New Brunswick Theological Seminary, maintains that the tradition of celebrating Sinterklaas in New York was alive and well from the early settlement of the Hudson Valley on. Father Christmas, a jolly, stout, bearded man who typified the spirit of good cheer at Christmas, predates the Santa Claus character. He was first recorded in early 17th century England but was associated with holiday merrymaking and drunkenness rather than bringing gifts. In Victorian Britain, his image was remade to match that of Santa. The French Père Noël evolved along similar lines, eventually adopting the Santa image. In Italy, Babbo Natale acts as Santa Claus, while La Befana is the bringer of gifts and arrives on the eve of the Epiphany. It is said that La Befana set out to bring the baby Jesus gifts but got lost along the way. Now, she brings gifts to all children. In some cultures, Santa Claus is accompanied by Knecht Ruprecht or Black Peter. In other versions, elves make the toys. His wife is referred to as Mrs. Claus.

What makes a tradition endure is its ability to blend ritual with everyday life. In Britain, the scent of pine, the crackle of a log fire and the ritual of pulling crackers all tap into senses that signal comfort and continuity. Even when the religious meaning of the holiday recedes for some, these sensory cues create a shared calendar moment that families can rehearse year after year. The blend of Christian narratives, Victorian retail innovations and older folk customs gives each practice a layered relevance, so a single decoration can invoke history, nostalgia and personal memory all at once. That multi‑layered resonance is why you’ll still find the same mince pies on a table that your grandparents served.

When curating your own festive programme, start by listing what feels genuinely joyful versus what feels obligatory. A practical buying guide: pick one new element each year—a set of sustainably sourced ornaments, a classic Advent calendar, or a regional recipe—to keep the season fresh without overwhelming the household. Consider the logistics: a tradition that requires a lot of prep, like making a Christmas pudding, needs schedule space, whilst a simple toast with mulled wine can be slipped into any evening. Test the water with friends or neighbours; sharing a custom often adds the social boost that turns a one‑off activity into a lasting family staple.

Many assume that anything commercial, like Santa’s re‑drawn image or the Christmas lights competition, is purely secular and therefore unrelated to the original holiday spirit. In reality, these practices often arose as adaptations of earlier religious celebrations, repurposed to fit modern consumer culture. The myth that Christmas started as a purely Christian feast overlooks how pagan winter solstice rites, medieval feast‑days and Victorian marketing campaigns layered together. Recognising this helps us see that even a shop‑window display carries echoes of older rituals, and it invites a more inclusive perspective that respects both religious and cultural contributions to the season.