BY BRYAN WEBER
December is an important month in America; it’s not only the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor and the assassination of John Lennon, but also is home to Christmas, Hanukkah, and in general winter break. These holidays are not complete without their share of Christmas trees, lights, candles and festivities, but does anyone stop to think how these traditions came to be? What are they all about, and why do we still celebrate in the same way or how has it changed? We will be going through six different traditions you may or may not have known the origins too.
Christmas Tree
The Christmas Tree is probably one of the most popular icons of Christmas, made usually out of an evergreen tree and decorated with ornaments and lights. That was not the case when Christmas trees first arrived on the scene in a pre-Christian era. The ornaments and lights were more likely to be nuts, apples, and other edibles and symbolized fortitude and immortality. This soon crossed over to Christian tradition which used them in December as a symbol to ward off the devil or evil spirits and also for a place for birds to land and perch. In the aftermath of the Protestant Reformation, the Christmas tree was popular among Protestants to combat the Catholic use of the nativity scene. It has adapted and changed into what we have today from these roots.
Gift Giving
Probably the most important part of Christmas in the 21st century, gift-giving takes its roots back to pagan times and not to Christian as usually assumed. It relates back to a Pagan tradition when children would be gifted wax dolls during the Roman celebration of Saturnalia. It only recently shifted towards a Christmas Tradition during the 1800s and in the Victorian era.
Candy Canes
The origins of candy canes are actually somewhat a mystery. Many of the sources of the origination are anecdotal and there isn’t much evidence but is originally thought to have been created by a choirmaster in the 1670’s to keep children quiet during long church services.
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Menorah
The Menorah is a very distinct part of Hanukkah and has gone through a variety of different changes throughout the ages. The Menorah symbolizes the Divine Light spreading across the world, as the lights represent and alludes to knowledge and wisdom. The Menorah was originally lamps made of clay or stone with a place for olive oil and a wick and would be placed outside around a doorway. In the Middle Ages, they were changed into a version close to what we have today with a metal backing and eight wicks instead of just one.
Stockings
Stockings can be traced back to Saint Nicholas in the 4th century. Saint Nicholas thought that the children of Lycia where he lived had to work too much and couldn’t enjoy their childhood so he gave them donations such as candies, homemade food, and valuables. He did this by putting it into their stockings so only they would find and enjoy them. It became a tradition to hang your stockings above the fireplace from then on, hoping to receive a present from Saint Nicholas.
Santa
The cornerstone of Christmas has to be the Santa. He makes an appearance in countless movies, advertisements and Christmas themed music. Santa is largely based off of Dutch Sinterklaas who has an almost identical costume and color scheme but also draws inspirations from Saint Nicholas, which is the basis of Santa giving presents. Many believe Santa to be created by Coca-Cola, but that is not true. Although, he was used in many Coca-Cola advertisements during the 1930’s.
As it turns out, most of the traditions of Christmas and Hanukkah date back to early Christian and Jewish roots. Some even date back further to pre-Christian and early Pagan eras and have since been adapted to relate to Christian traditions and values. This coming holiday be thankful and appreciate every aspect of the season because they have not always been around. The holidays are meant to be filled with joy and happiness, so take the time out of your day to enjoy this event.