Christmas. For many of us, no another word evokes more memories of childhood.
Christmas Gifts
Most of our important Christmas traditions aren't as old as we often think. Take gift giving for instance. It's hard to imagine Christmas without presents under the tree, but the practice of buying large fancy gifts for Christmas Day didn't really get rolling until the 1860s!
In 1867, Macy's, the major department store in New York City, stayed open until midnight Christmas Eve. Seven years later, in 1874, they were the first to design their window displays around a Christmas theme. That was the start of the gift-giving craze (so if you, like many people, feel that Christmas has become too commercial, now you know who to blame!).
Before Macy's, and their brilliant marketing move, gifts were given, but they weren't as important a part of Christmas as they are now. The tradition goes back all the way to the Three Wise Men, who brought gifts of gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh to the infant Jesus.
Boxing Day
Christmas traditions also include giving to the poor; the British tradition of Boxing Day—the day after Christmas—dates back to the Middle Ages, when the Churches would open the alms box the day after Christmas and distribute the money to the poor. Boxing Day hasn't escaped the commercial blitz either—now it's best known for department store Boxing Day Sales! Boxing Day is also known as St. Stephen's Day.
Christmas Decorations
In our modern holiday celebrations, tradition also influences our Christmas decorations. From poinsettias to Christmas trees, the quintessential symbols of yuletide festivities stem from cultures all over the world. While most know that Christmas stockings arose from the Dutch children's custom of leaving out their shoes to receive gifts, the origins of other Christmas decorations, like wreaths, is not so well known. In fact, Christmas wreaths came about from ancient people's worship of the evergreen holly. These people saw the evergreen as a symbol of eternal life because it stays green throughout the winter.
Christmas Traditions
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Oleh
Dream Come True
