'Twas the Sunday before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. So I took this quiet opportunity to get a little more into the Christmas Spirit! Here are some things I learned this morning:
The first Christmas was celebrated in Rome. In A.D. 350, Pope Julius I, bishop of Rome, proclaimed December 25 the official celebration date for the birthday of Christ.
Alabama was the first state to recognize Christmas as an official holiday, and the tradition began in 1836 but Christmas wasn’t declared an official holiday in the United States until June 26, 1870..
The poinsettia, a traditional Christmas flower, originally grew in Mexico, where it is also known as the ‘Flower of the Holy Night’. Joel Poinsett first brought it to America in 1829.
The popular Christmas song “Jingle Bells” was actually written for Thanksgiving. The song was composed in 1857 by James Pierpont, and was originally called “One Horse Open Sleigh”.
George Frederick Handel’s great Christmas oratorio, “The Messiah”, was first performed in 1742, in Dublin.
Christmas trees have been sold in the U.S. since 1850 and usually grow for about 15 years before they are sold.
America’s official national Christmas tree is located in King’s Canyon National Park in California. The tree, a giant sequoia called the “General Grant Tree”, is over 90 meters (300 feet) high, and was made the official Christmas tree in 1925.
Artificial Christmas trees have outsold real ones since 1991.
The Germans made the first artificial Christmas trees out of dyed goose feathers.
Franklin Pierce was the first president to decorate an official White House Christmas tree.
St. Nicholas was bishop of the Turkish town of Myra in the early 4th century. The Dutch first made him into a Christmas gift-giver, and Dutch settlers brought him to America where his name eventually became the familiar Santa Claus.
Most of Santa’s reindeer have male-sounding names, such as Blitzer, Comet, and Cupid. However, male reindeers shed their antlers around Christmas, so the reindeer pulling Santa’s sleigh are likely not male, but female or castrati.
Electric Christmas lights were first used in 1854.
The “true love” mentioned in the song “Twelve Days of Christmas” does not refer to a romantic couple, but the Catholic Church’s code for God. The person who receives the gifts represents someone who has accepted that code. For example, the “partridge in a pear tree” represents Christ. The “two turtledoves” represent the Old and New Testaments.
The traditional three colors of Christmas are green, red, and gold. Green has long been a symbol of life and rebirth; red symbolizes the blood of Christ, and gold represents light as well as wealth and royalty.
According to data analyzed from Facebook posts, two weeks before Christmas is one of the two most popular times for couples to break up. However, Christmas Day is the least favorite day for breakups.
I always wondered about the meaning of Twelve Days of Christmas. Cool! I did know that Jingle Bells was a song written for Thanksgiving, so I don't feel guilty singing that one before Thanksgiving. Because, ya know, it bugs some people to hear Christmas songs before December, or even at the beginning of Nov. (But I was a Christmas caroler and sometimes we had rehearsals back in Sept! Because my caroling boss owned a costume shop, October was too busy for her for rehearsals. So I like singing Christmas songs for about three months, although I try to sing them discreetly to myself.)
ReplyDeletePersonally, I wish we could sing Christmas songs year-round!! :)
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