Christmas is a christian religious holiday celebrated all over the world. It is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Except his actually birthday is unknown. So we aren't sure when exactly he was born. Christmas is a public holiday in many countries. Some countries there aren't even that many Christians! Periods of former colonial rule introduced the celebration in some Non-christian countries. Santa Claus, a very popular Christmas character, is based on Saint Nicholas who was known to give out gifts.
There is a long history for decorating on Christmas. In the 15th Century, in London, at was a custom that at Christmas every house and all the parish churches were to be "decked with holm, ivy, bay, and whatsoever the season of the year afforded to be green." The heart shaped leaves on the ivy represented the coming of Jesus Christ, the holly was for protection from pagans and witches and the thorns and red berries represented the Crown of Thorns worn by Jesus on his crucifixion and the blood that he shed. The colors of Christmas, red and green, are popular too. The red symbolizes the blood that Jesus shed, and the green represents eternal life, like the evergreen tree, the trees that are used on Christmas. All around the world people celebrate Christmas differently. Here, we celebrate by visiting family and friends and giving gifts. Even here many families have special traditions like how I go to a family-friends house and we call out peoples names for gifts every year!
Christmas Songs
Here in the US, many artists have Christmas albums. Some songs are original and others are covers of traditional songs. For example Justin Bieber has a Christmas album called Under The Mistletoe Most of his songs like Christmas Love and Mistletoe are originals. Songs like The Christmas Song (Chestnuts roasting on an open fire) is a cover of a traditional. Other artists like Michael Buble and Mariah Carey have Christmas songs too. More artists that have Christmas albums include: Colbie Calliat, Blake Shelton, and Christina Perri. One popular song is Mariah Carey's version of All I Want For Christmas Is You.
During this time of year, many radio stations start playing christmas carols like Jingle Bells and Winter Wonderland. There are many traditional Christmas carols that people sing during Christmas. Here are some of the most popular:
I hope you enjoyed this weeks blog post!
What are some of YOUR family traditions during Christmas?
Do you have any favorite Christmas songs?
-Johanne(:
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