Along with the well-known and practiced tradition of a brightly decorated Christmas tree. Other traditions brought by these immigrants include Advent calendars, Christmas greeting cards, gingerbread houses and gingerbread cookies.

Christmas in the United States today can be seen as focused around family, travel, shopping and decorations. Family and travel go together during Christmas in the United States, because family members often have to travel fairly long distances to be with each other at one location.

The growth of cities that have primarily economic activity, suburbs for residences, as well as the fact of different industries being found in certain geographic locations, are among the reasons that family members often live great distances from each other in separate states.

Christmas and its festivities therefore present a wonderful opportunity for many members of the family to gather in celebration and see each other in an intimate setting. The traveling involved makes the Christmas season a busy time of the year for rail and air travel.

The occasion of seeing many family members at Christmas is also linked to the activity of shopping. You know, that is an important feature of Christmas in the United States. The Christmas season officially begins on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Known as Black Friday and which now ranks second in shopping for a single day to the Saturday before Christmas.

Much of the shopping that is done is to purchase gifts for friends and family. Gifts for family members are usually exchanged after dinner on Christmas day. When everyone gathers in the room with the Christmas tree of course. Gifts are usually left at the base of the Christmas tree in the weeks leading up to Christmas Day.

Gifts may also exchanged before Christmas at parties held by friends and parties held at workplaces.

christmas gift

Second to gifts, shopping is also done at Christmas for decorations. While the Christmas tree may be the centerpiece of attraction, garlands, wreaths, candles and decorative lighting placed
outside on lawns or along rooflines are also used to create a beautiful holiday appearance for homes.

Canadians enjoy Christmas activities that are similar to those celebrated in the United States. That is so because in the 1700s when some German immigrants in the United States migrated to Canada. Then, they continued to practice many of the activities associated with Christmas.

The geographical proximity of the two countries also means they share many things, so similarities in Christmas traditions wouldn’t be an exception.

midnight snow

One thing that accounts for the difference between the two countries however. This is the Eskimo population in Canada. Eskimos in Canada celebrate a festival during winter and have other traditions that are absent from American Christmas celebrations.

A practice also exists in Nova Scotia in which small groups of masked individuals march around about two weeks before Christmas. These masked groups attract attention by creating stir with much bell ringing and engaging in a noisy caper in an aim to get candy, sweets and goodies from onlookers.

caribbean christmas

This tradition bears some similarity to Jonkonoo celebrations in the neighboring islands of the Caribbean. Those celebrations also involve masked individuals, including some that appear on stilts that make them as tall as trees. The parade of Jonkonoo regale onlookers with various antics and present a minor scare to some children, who are then calmed with candies and other treats.

In Nova Scotia, onlookers can try to calm the noise and rowdiness just a little if they can correctly guess the identity of the masked person. A correct guess puts an end to the noise as the mask is removed, exposing the individual. For their part, maskers also play nice by friendly nudging answers from children about whether they have been naughty or nice and handing out candies and treats accordingly.

Christmas in the United States and Canada

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Among common items used in Christmas decorations are the holly and the mistletoe. Both are used primarily in wreaths and garlands. The Druids started the tradition of using the mistletoe as decorative items up to two hundred years before Christ. To celebrate the winter season, the Druids would gather the plants and use them to decorate their homes.

Druids

The Druids believed the mistletoe would bring good luck and ward off evil spirits. They also believed that the mistletoe had a healing quality and could be used for everything from healing wounds to increase fertility.

Scandinavia

In Scandinavia, the mistletoe was seen as a plant of peace and harmony and was associated with Frigga, the goddess of love. This association is probably what led to the custom of kissing under the mistletoe. In the Victorian period, the English also would hang mistletoe from ceilings and in doorways during holidays. The habit developed that if someone was standing under the mistletoe, someone else in the room would kiss that person. Such outright behavior was not generally seen in Victorian society.

The use of the mistletoe in Christmas celebrations was once banned by the church however because of its associations with pagan traditions, and the use of holly was suggested as a substitute.

Poinsettias flower

Poinsettias are another traditional decorative flower used at Christmas. It is native to Mexico and is named after Joel Poinsett, who was the first U.S ambassador to Mexico. And who brought the plants to America in 1828. Mexicans believe the plants were a symbol of the Star of Bethlehem and that’s one reason they are associated with Christmas. There’s also the story that a young boy was going to see the Nativity Play at a church but realized he didn’t have a gift for Baby Jesus. The boy gathered some green branches, which others scoffed at. But as he placed them near the manger, a bright red poinsettia flower started to bloom on each branch, which gave rise to their traditional use at Christmas.

Candy

Candy canes became a Christmas tradition not because their red and white stripes matched the colors of the season, but for the most unusual reason of discipline. That’s because they were first used as treats that were give to German children to keep them well-behaved for the duration of church sermons.

Over time, the legend of candy canes at Christmas came to be associated with some of the strongest symbols and beliefs of Christianity. The Father, Son and Holy Ghost known as the Trinity, the Blood of the Son of God, Jesus as the embodiment of holiness, purity and without sin and the Son of God as the shepherd of man. The candy cane represents these symbols respectively with its three stripes, its red and white color and its shape.

Greeting Cards

Sending greeting cards during Christmas. And the holidays is as prevalent today as the custom of giving gifts. The tradition of sending Christmas cards started in 1840 in Britain with the start of public postal delivery service of the ‘Penny Post. Then from about 1860, large numbers of Christmas greeting cards started to be produced. The popularity of the cards increased in Britain. When they could be sent by the postal service for one half-penny, which was half the price to post a standard letter at the time, if they were in an unsealed envelope.

Religious pictures of Mary, Joseph , Baby Jesus, the angels, shepherds and Wise Men were traditionally placed on Christmas cards. Some cards today include scenes from the Nativity. But pictures of Santa Claus, winter scenery, Christmas trees, gift packages and others are also depicted on contemporary Christmas greeting cards.

History of Some Christmas Traditions

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It certainly doesn’t seem as easy to come up with a similar catchy description for the others – Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen – as named in the song.

The story of Rudolph whose glowing red nose made him a standout, first appeared in 1939 when Montgomery Ward department stores distributed about 2.4 million
booklets with the poem in the form of a story about “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

It was written by Robert L. May, who worked in the store’s advertisement or marketing department, to be used to attract more people into the store. When the booklet was reissued in 1939, sales soared to more than 3.5 million copies.

But it wasn’t until a decade later, in 1949, that the story really gained immense popularity when Gene Autry sang a musical version of the fable. As a Christmas song, it is second only in popularity to ‘White Christmas.’

Rudolph, the ninth reindeer whose lighted nose guides Santa’s sleigh through the night, is now known worldwide as the song has been translated into more than 20 different languages and an animated television movie has also been based on the story.

Rudolph and his noticeable nose have also become the subject of jokes and sparked more interest in reindeers which has led to much research into Santa and the flying reindeers who pull his sleigh through the sky.

Along with the catchy rhythm of the lyrics, Rudolph’s story is also appealing because of the moral lessons it contains.

The Story

As the story goes, Rudolph was ostracized by the other reindeers, which laughed and teased him about his shiny red nose.

But on a foggy night, when Santa must have been concerned that he may not be able to deliver his Christmas gifts around the world, Santa spotted him and kindly asked if he would step to the front as the leader to ‘guide my sleigh tonight’.

His shiny red nose would after all be very useful in lighting the way, Santa thought. From then on ‘all of the other reindeers loved him,” and rightly predicted that he ‘would go down in history.’

Among the moral lessons the story can impart is that an attribute that is perceived as negative or as a liability can be used for a positive purpose, or, become an asset.

It also makes the point that an individual should not let the negative behavior of others define him or her and limit expectations of what can be achieved. And it also illustrates how quickly opinions and attitudes about a person can change.

The question still lingers however of where Rudolph came from. He is commonly regarded as the son of Donner (or Donder), one of the original eight reindeers.

Sources

But the Snopes.com site rejects this however, saying that he dwelled in a reindeer village elsewhere and it was there that he was seen by Santa who had already started on his Christmas Eve journey to deliver gifts.

And in a more modern evolution of the story according to Wikipedia.com. An animation by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) introduced a son, named Robbie, of Rudolph. That son has now become the tenth reindeer.

It’s also interesting to note that the idea of Santa’s sleigh being pulled by reindeers was originated in the poem, ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas’.

That poem tells the story of St. Nicholas, who is Santa, calling his eight tiny reindeers by their names, as previously mentioned, just before he came down the chimney of a house to start filling the stockings from a sack full of toys he carried on his back.

All Things About Rudolph and Santa’s Other Reindeers

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History

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2. Workers in the construction industry are responsible for the tradition of having a Christmas tree on display at Rockefeller Center in New York City. They are credited with placing an undecorated tree at the site in the early 1930s.

3. Since the mid-1960s, The National Christmas Tree Association has maintained a presence in the White House at Christmas by donating a Christmas tree to the First Family.

The long past

4. The former Woolworth department store first sold manufactured Christmas tree ornaments in 1880.

5. Plastic became the primary material used to make tinsel after their use for decorative purposes was at one time prohibited because lead was used in the manufacturing process.

6. The idea of Christmas greeting cards started in Britain in the late 1830s when John Calcott Horsley started to produce small cards that had festive scenes and a holiday greetingwritten inside. Similar cards were also being made in the United States at about the same time by R.H. Pease, in Albany, New York, and Louis Prang, who was a German immigrant. The idea of sending the greeting cards during Christmas gained popularity in both countries about 10 years later when new postal delivery services started.

7. The shortened form Xmas for Christmas has been popular in Europe since the 1500s. It is believed to be derived from the Greek word ‘Xristos’ which means Christ.

Candy Canes

8. According to the National Confectioners Association, for 200 years candy canes were only made in the color of white and it wasn’t until in the 1950s that a machine was invented that could automate the production of candy canes.

9. The day after Christmas is called Boxing Day in England. And it is a national holiday. Several stories exist for the origination of the name. It is believed to have originated from the practice of boys who would be about collecting money in clay boxes. Another thought is that the term is derived from a custom in the Middle Ages, about 800 years ago. When churches would open their ‘alms boxes’ and distribute the contents to poor people on the day after Christmas. Alms boxes are boxes in which donations of gifts and money would be placed. Yet another belief is that it comes from a custom of masters giving their servants Christmas presents in boxes on the day after Christmas.

Trees

10. Evergreen trees had special meaning in winter to people. Particularly in Europe, before Christianity started. Ancient peoples would hang evergreen branches over their doors and windows because evergreens were believed to ward off witches, ghosts, evil spirits and illness. For worshipers of the sun god, evergreen plants were a reminder of all the green plants that would grow with the return of summer and the sun god being strong again.

11. In ancient times, many people worshiped the sun as a god in December because they thought winter occurred yearly because the sun god had fallen into ill health. They therefore celebrated the winter solstice. Because it was a sign that the son god would begin to regain strength and return to good health.

12. Legislators in Congress did business on Christmas Day in 1789. Which was the first one to be observed under the country’s new constitution. The reason for the Congressional session was because it had become unpopular then to observe and take part in English customs following the American Revolution. And when Christmas celebrations were barred in Boston earlier in 1659 to 1681, it became a costly thing to be seen participating in any event or activity related to Christmas. Anyone caught doing so had to pay five shillings.

Twelve Things You Never Knew About Christmas

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Dec. 2 – First Saturday in December – weekends are important because it means free time to shop. The early holiday and Christmas shopper should be more than halfway through shopping list. Average shoppers are just starting to browse.

Dec. 3 – First Sunday – weekend Christmas shopping can be done but stores close the usual earlier time on Sundays.

Dec. 7 – Pearl Harbor Day – it isn’t recognized by most but is very important to war veterans. The President usually gives a speech to a Veterans group and lays a wreath in honor of those who died on Pearl Harbor Day and in World War II.

Dec. 9 – Second Saturday – only two full weeks to go before Christmas. Where did the time go and where did the year go? To your disguised annoyance, you are starting to hear the ubiquitous phrase, ‘Finished all your Christmas shopping yet?’ Christmas shopping has to pick up speed or panic will set in. You are running out of time to enjoy some quality Christmas entertainment with your family.

Dec. 10 – Second Sunday – go to church if you haven’t been attending so that you won’t look like a ‘Christmas only attendee.’ Need to squeeze in some shopping and must start sending out Christmas greeting cards this week.

Dec. 16 – Third Saturday, First Day of Hanukkah – it’s unbelievable that there’s only one full week to go before Christmas. Make supermarket shopping list for Christmas Eve and Christmas dinner preparations.

Dec. 17 – Third Sunday – exactly one week before Christmas. Make sure Christmas toys and presents in hiding are still undiscovered. Make final plans for family dinner on Christmas Day.

Dec. 21 – oh dear me!!! Only three days to go before Christmas. Do last minute planning, get as many chores as possible out of the way, finish all Christmas and supermarket shopping. Assign final preparatory tasks to family members as necessary. Go over plans for Christmas Dinner.

Dec. 22 – First Day of Winter – My goodness!! you still have shopping to do!!? You dread going to the mall this weekend. Pray for a miracle to find one of those needle in a haystack salesperson who will hold hand and get you 95% through your Christmas shopping list.

Dec. 23 – Last Saturday before Christmas – Now The Single Biggest Shopping Day of the Year!!!! The mall is absolutely crazy and there are no sales people anywhere. It’s a zoo everywhere – on the roads, in the supermarket, even at the gas station people are honking, hollering at the gas attendant to pump faster! But you know what … stopped at my favorite pastry store and was in and out in a nanosecond… there was no line!!

Dec. 24 – Christmas Eve – downtown is glorious, everything is so splendid and magical…. will go to Midnight Mass…. Christmas is the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!!!!

Twelve Contemporary (Shopping) Days of Christmas

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