Did you know.......

[Mags]

...........Abbreviating 'Christmas' to 'Xmas' doesn't seem quite right. However 'Xmas' is a genuine word that was used throughout Europe in the 16th Century and derives from the Greek word for 'Christ' which is Xristos.

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The wandering minstrels in England travelled around singing at Castles and the homes of the rich. They hoped to receive a hot meal or money in return for their performance which is where present day carol singers derive from.

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Decorations were originally produced in red and white only which were the symbols of knowledge and innocence. By the 17th century decorations such as paper flowers in all colours were available, twists of candy, candles, gingerbread shapes and figures moulded from wax were used and the first tinsel was made from real silver stretched into strips.
Christmas trees were introduced into England by the Hanoverians. However, these German rulers were so unpopular with the people that no-one followed their lead and it wasn't until Queen Victorian married Prince Albert that the Christmas tree became a traditional part of Christmas. The Victorians used hand made decorations, snowflakes and stars were crocheted and paper baskets containing sugared almonds were made. Hoops and decorative beads were used to protect candles until the introduction of electric lights in 1882.
The first artificial trees appeared in the 1930s and the controversial American silver pine trees appeared in the 1950s but did not reach great popularity until the 1960s.
Today's Christmas trees grown in the UK are treated so that less pine needles fall off and due to better forestry laws the trees are not in danger of extinction anymore.

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In 1830 and Englishman called John Calcott Horsley produced smalls cards featuring the festive season and a seasonal greeting. These became very popular and when the postage stamp was introduced people could pay for the cards to be delivered.

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Father Christmas or Santa Claus derives from Saint Nicholas who was a Christian leader in the 4th Century from Myra, now known as Turkey. He was a very kind man and his dearest wish was to help people but because he was incredibly shy he would find ways of giving them money without them knowing. One of the ways he came up with was to drop money down the chimney.
The image we have of Father Christmas comes from an advertising campaign run by Coca Cola between 1931 and 1964. The original paintings for this were by Haddon Sundblom.

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Hanging up a stocking is closely related to Saint Nicholas' habit of dropping money down chimney pots to help people. Legend has it that an elderly man had three daughters but no money to give them for a dowry. When St Nicholas dropped some money down the man's chimney it fell into the stockings of his daughters which were hanging to dry over the fireplace.

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Boxing Day.....
A custom that began in the Middle Ages when people 'boxed' up their leftovers on the day after Christmas and distributed them to the poor and needy. The less fortunate also benefited from the Alms boxes of Churches which were opened and the money shared out on this day.

[Fran]

That is really interesting Mags..........Love the one about the old man and his daughters' stockings

[Donna]

Makes you think a little bit Mags. All those old traditions coming from far and away. And how it has changed over the years...

[Moli]

True meanings of christmas!

[Jac]

Originally Posted by Moli

True meanings of christmas!

That was really interesting Mags. Where do you find these things?

[Mags]

Originally Posted by Jac

That was really interesting Mags. Where do you find these things?

I'm such a wealth of knowledge Jac!

[yola]

The Xmas thing is fascinating; I always thought it was just an increased laziness on the part of humanity but I stand corrected!!

[bobbie3917]

its sad to know that the way we think of st Nic is cos of coke