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Christmas Blessings
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Poinsettias at Christmas
Christmas Traditions & Customs
The Tradition of Mistletoe at Christmas
Mistletoe is a plant that grows on willow and apple trees (and in garden centres!). The tradition of hanging it in the house goes back to the times of the ancient Druids. It is supposed to possess mystical powers which bring good luck to the household and wards off evil spirits. It was also used as a sign of love and friendship in Norse mythology and that's where the custom of kissing under Mistletoe comes from.
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Meet me under the Mistletoe
The Legend of the Mistletoe
This fearful legend is of unclear origins. Some say it is traced to the Greeks, who revered the plant as sacred. Others claim that the custom is of Scandinavian origin, where Mistletoe was a symbol of the goddess of love. Anyone passing under the Mistletoe branch would be kissed, and a berry removed from the branch. Once the branch lost all of its berries, its power was depleted. In modern-day Great Britain and France, a kiss under the Mistletoe was a promise to marry and a prediction of happiness and long life.Not so bad.
This fearful legend is of unclear origins. Some say it is traced to the Greeks, who revered the plant as sacred. Others claim that the custom is of Scandinavian origin, where Mistletoe was a symbol of the goddess of love. Anyone passing under the Mistletoe branch would be kissed, and a berry removed from the branch. Once the branch lost all of its berries, its power was depleted. In modern-day Great Britain and France, a kiss under the Mistletoe was a promise to marry and a prediction of happiness and long life.Not so bad.
What is Mistletoe?
Mistletoe is a hemiparasitic plant, or one that attaches to a tree or shrub and absorbs its host plant’s water and nutrients. They attach to a variety of host plants, but are especially drawn to apple and juniper trees. Although the Mistletoe might seem a like a pesty plant, Mistletoes are home to many species of birds that build their nests on the plant and provide ripe berries for many bird diets.
Aside from inspiring kissing, what else is Mistletoe used for?
Mistletoe grows abundantly in northern Europe, where it has been studied as a supplemental treatment in cancer therapy, and to treat circulatory and respiratory system problems. Clinical studies have shown that injections of Mistletoe boost the body’s immune systems.
Next time you accidentally step under a Mistletoe branch, remember that it loses its power once all the berries are removed! You’re welcome.
Christmas Carols
CHRISTMAS
Christmas or Christmas Day (Old English: Crīstesmæsse, meaning "Christ's Mass") is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed generally on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, it closes the Advent season and initiates the twelve days of Christmastide, which ends after the twelfth night. Christmas is a public holiday in many of the world's nations, is celebrated culturally by a large number of former or non-Christian people, and is an integral part of the Christmas and holiday season.
While the birth year of Jesus is estimated among modern historians to have been between 7 and 2 BC, the exact month and day of his birth are unknown. His birth is mentioned in two of the four canonical gospels. By the early-to-mid 4th century, the Western Christian Church had placed Christmas on December 25, a date later adopted in the East, although some churches celebrate on the December 25 of the older Julian calendar, which currently corresponds to January 7 in the modern-day Gregorian calendar. The date of Christmas may have initially been chosen to correspond with the day exactly nine months after early Christians believed Jesus to have been conceived, or with one or more ancient polytheistic festivals that occurred near southern solstice (i.e., the Roman winter solstice); a further solar connection has been suggested because of a biblical verse identifying Jesus as the "Sun of righteousness".
The celebratory customs associated in various countries with Christmas have a mix of pagan, pre-Christian, Christian, and secular themes and origins. Popular modern customs of the holiday include gift giving, Christmas music and caroling, an exchange of Christmas cards, church celebrations, a special meal, and the display of various Christmas decorations, including Christmas trees, Christmas lights, nativity scenes, garlands, wreaths, mistletoe, and holly. In addition, several closely related and often interchangeable figures, known as Santa Claus, Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, and Christkind, are associated with bringing gifts to children during the Christmas season and have their own body of traditions and lore. Because gift-giving and many other aspects of the Christmas festival involve heightened economic activity among both Christians and non-Christians, the holiday has become a significant event and a key sales period for retailers and businesses. The economic impact of Christmas is a factor that has grown steadily over the past few centuries in many regions of the world.
"Christmas" is a compound word originating in the term "Christ's Mass". It is derived from the Middle English Cristemasse, which is from Old English Crīstesmæsse, a phrase first recorded in 1038 followed by the word Cristes-messe in 1131. Crīst (genitive Crīstes) is from Greek Khrīstos (Χριστός), a translation of Hebrew Māšîaḥ (מָשִׁיחַ), "Messiah", meaning "anointed"; and mæsse is from Latin missa, the celebration of the Eucharist. The form "Christenmas" was also historically used, but is now considered archaic and dialectal; it derives from Middle English Cristenmasse, literally "Christian mass". "Xmas" is an abbreviation of Christmas found particularly in print, based on the initial letter chi (Χ) in Greek Khrīstos (Χριστός), "Christ", though numerous style guides discourage its use; it has precedent in Middle English Χρ̄es masse (where "Χρ̄" is an abbreviation for Χριστός).
Other names
In addition to "Christmas", the holiday has been known by various other names throughout its history. The Anglo-Saxons referred to the feast as "midwinter",or, more rarely, as Nātiuiteð (from Latin nātīvitās below). "Nativity", meaning "birth", is from Latin nātīvitās. In Old English, Gēola ("Yule") referred to the period corresponding to January and December, which was eventually equated with Christian Christmas. "Noel" (or "Nowell") entered English in the late 14th century and is from the Old French noël or naël, itself ultimately from the Latin nātālis (diēs), "(day) of birth"
History
The Chronography of 354 AD contains early evidence of the celebration on December 25 of a Christian liturgical feast of the birth of Jesus. This was in Rome, while in Eastern Christianity the birth of Jesus was already celebrated in connection with the Epiphany on January 6. The December 25 celebration was imported into the East later: in Antioch by John Chrysostomtowards the end of the 4th century,[ probably in 388, and in Alexandria only in the following century. Even in the West, the January 6 celebration of the nativity of Jesus seems to have continued until after 380. In 245, Origen of Alexandria, writing about , commented that Scripture mentions only sinners as celebrating their birthdays, namely Pharaoh, who then had his chief baker hanged , and Herod, who then had John the Baptist beheaded , and mentions saints as cursing the day of their birth, namely Jeremiah . In 303, Arnobius ridiculed the idea of celebrating the birthdays of gods, a passage cited as evidence that Arnobius was unaware of any nativity celebration. Since Christmas does not celebrate Christ's birth "as God" but "as man", this is not evidence against Christmas being a feast at this time.The fact the Donatists of North Africa celebrated Christmas may indicate that the feast was established by the time that church was created in 311.
Many popular customs associated with Christmas developed independently of the commemoration of Jesus' birth, with certain elements having origins in pre-Christian festivals that were celebrated around the winter solstice by pagan populations who were later converted to Christianity. These elements, including the Yule log from Yule and gift giving from Saturnalia,became syncretized into Christmas over the centuries. The prevailing atmosphere of Christmas has also continually evolved since the holiday's inception, ranging from a sometimes raucous, drunken, carnival-like state in the Middle Ages, to a tamer family-oriented and children-centered theme introduced in a 19th-century reformation.[ Additionally, the celebration of Christmas was banned on more than one occasion within certain Protestant groups, such as the Puritans, due to concerns that it was too pagan or unbiblical.
Nativity of Christ - medieval illustration from the Hortus deliciarum of Herrad of Landsberg (12th century)
Relation to concurrent celebrations
Prior to and through the early Christian centuries, winter festivals—especially those centered on the winter solstice—were the most popular of the year in many European pagan cultures. Reasons included the fact that less agricultural work needs to be done during the winter, as well as an expectation of better weather as spring approached. Many modern Christmas customs have been directly influenced by such festivals, including gift-giving and merrymaking from the Roman Saturnalia, greenery, lights, and charity from the Roman New Year, and Yule logs and various foods from Germanicfeasts.
Pagan Scandinavia celebrated a winter festival called Yule, held in the late December to early January period. As northern Europe was the last part to Christianize, its pagan traditions had a major influence on Christmas there, an example being the Koleda, which was incorporated into the Christmas carol. Scandinavians still call Christmas Jul. In English, the word Yule is synonymous with Christmas, a usage first recorded in 900.
Mosaic of Jesus as Christo Sole (Christ the Sun) in Mausoleum M in the pre-fourth-century necropolis under St Peter's Basilica in Rome.
Ceiling Mosaic - Christus helios, the mosaic of Sol in Mausoleum M, which is interpreted as Christ-Sol (Christ as the Sun). Detail of vault mosaic in the Mausoleum of the Julii. From the necropolis under St. Peter's Mid-3rd century Grotte Vaticane, Rome. Mosaic of the Vatican grottoes under St. Peter's Basilica, on the ceiling of the tomb of the Julii. Representation of Christ as the sun-god Helios or Sol Invictus riding in his chariot. Dated to the 3rd century AD. "Early Christian and pagan beliefs are combined in this third century mosaic of Christ as a sun-god. The triumphant Christ/god, with rays shooting from his head, is pulled aloft by two rearing horses in his chariot. The Dionysian vines in the background become the vines of Christ." Title: Christ as Sol Invictus Late 3rd century "The First Apology" by St. Justin Martyr, an early Christian, quotes Psalm 19:5-6, a verse that was very popular with early Christians. It was associated with the ancient Christian custom of praying toward the East, the direction of Christ's Ascension and second coming, instead of toward Jerusalem as Jews did: "And hear how it was foretold concerning those who published His doctrine and proclaimed His appearance, the above-mentioned prophet and king [David] speaking thus by the Spirit of prophecy. "....In the sun has He set His tabernacle, and he as a bridegroom going out of his chamber shall rejoice as a giant to run his course." Christ was also associated with "the Sun of justice with its healing rays", a Messianic image from Malachi 3:20. From "THE BONES OF ST. PETER : The First Full Account of the Search for the Apostle's Body (Doubleday, 1982) by John Evangelist Walsh"; plate 7 shows a larger black-and-white image; p.26 says that three other mosaics in the tomb on the walls show (a) Jonah falling from a ship and being swallowed by the whale, (b) a fisherman standing on rocks fishing (c) the good shepherd with a sheep across his shoulders. The mosaic on the dome comes half-way down the walls. The rays of light "strongly suggest the form of a cross." The tomb was decorated about 250 with these motifs. The damage to the mosaic on the left is in fact a hole in the centre of the ceiling. The tomb was accessed from the street of pagan Roman tombs, and the access covered by a slab. When this was lifted, the hole in the middle of the dome was accessible. The tomb is described, not as a papal tomb, but as the "tomb of the golden mosaic." Originally it contained a pagan burial of a child and no adornment. Around 250 the family had converted to Christianity, and redecorated it. Three Christian burials were located under the floor. A story from 1574 relates how workmen had opened "a tomb with golden mosaics and two white horses", and found a body on a slab on the floor covered with quicklime; the body was not present when the tomb was located again during the 1941 excavations.
Dies Natalis Solis Invicti
Dies Natalis Solis Invicti means "the birthday of the Unconquered Sun", a festival inaugurated by the Roman emperor Aurelian to celebrate the sun god and celebrated at the winter solstice, 25 December. During the reign of the emperor Constantine, Christian writers assimilated this feast as the birthday of Jesus, associating him with the 'sun of righteousness' mentioned In his work Adversus Haereses, Irenaeus (c. 130–202) identified the conception of Jesus as March 25 and linked it to the crucifixion, with the birth of Jesus nine months after on December 25. Celebration of the conception of Jesus, known as the Annunciation, became associated with the spring equinox, thus led to Christmas coinciding with the winter solstice. An anonymous work known as De Pascha Computus (243) linked the idea that creation began at the spring equinox, on 25 March with the conception or birth (the word nascor can mean either) of Jesus on 28 March, the day of the creation of the sun in the Genesis account. One translation reads: "O the splendid and divine providence of the Lord, that on that day, the very day, on which the sun was made, the 28 March, a Wednesday, Christ should be born. For this reason Malachi the prophet, speaking about him to the people, fittingly said, 'Unto you shall the sun of righteousness arise, and healing is in his wings.'"
In the fourth century, John Chrysostom, who promoted the celebration on 25 December, commented on the connection: "But Our Lord, too, is born in the month of December ... the eight before the calends of January [25 December] ..., But they call it the 'Birthday of the Unconquered'. Who indeed is so unconquered as Our Lord ...? Or, if they say that it is the birthday of the Sun, He is the Sun of Justice." With regard to a December religious feast of the sun as a god (Sol), as distinct from a solstice feast of the (re)birth of the astronomical sun, one scholar has commented that, "while the winter solstice on or around December 25 was well established in the Roman imperial calendar, there is no evidence that a religious celebration of Sol on that day antedated the celebration of Christmas". "Thomas Talley has shown that, although the Emperor Aurelian's dedication of a temple to the sun god in the Campus Martius (C.E. 274) probably took place on the 'Birthday of the Invincible Sun' on December 25, the cult of the sun in pagan Rome ironically did not celebrate the winter solstice nor any of the other quarter-tense days, as one might expect." The Oxford Companion to Christian Thoughtremarks on the uncertainty about the order of precedence between the religious celebrations of the Birthday of the Unconquered Sun and of the birthday of Jesus, stating that the hypothesis that 25 December was chosen for celebrating the birth of Jesus on the basis of the belief that his conception occurred on 25 March "potentially establishes 25 December as a Christian festival before Aurelian's decree, which, when promulgated, might have provided for the Christian feast both opportunity and challenge".
Feast established
The Chronography of 354, an illuminated manuscript compiled in Rome, is an early reference to the date of the nativity as December 25. In the East, early Christians celebrated the birth of Christ as part of Epiphany (January 6), although this festival emphasized celebration of the baptism of Jesus.
Christmas was promoted in the Christian East as part of the revival of Catholicism following the death of the pro-Arian Emperor Valens at the Battle of Adrianople in 378. The feast was introduced to Constantinople in 379, and to Antioch in about 380. The feast disappeared after Gregory of Nazianzus resigned as bishop in 381, although it was reintroduced by John Chrysostom in about 400.
Middle Ages
In the Early Middle Ages, Christmas Day was overshadowed by Epiphany, which in western Christianity focused on the visit of the magi. But the medieval calendar was dominated by Christmas-related holidays. The forty days before Christmas became the "forty days of St. Martin" (which began on November 11, the feast of St. Martin of Tours), now known as Advent. In Italy, former Saturnaliantraditions were attached to Advent. Around the 12th century, these traditions transferred again to the Twelve Days of Christmas (December 25 – January 5); a time that appears in the liturgical calendars as Christmastide or Twelve Holy Days.
The prominence of Christmas Day increased gradually after Charlemagne was crowned Emperor on Christmas Day in 800. King Edmund the Martyr was anointed on Christmas in 855 and King William I of England was crowned on Christmas Day 1066.
By the High Middle Ages, the holiday had become so prominent that chroniclers routinely noted where various magnates celebrated Christmas. King Richard II of England hosted a Christmas feast in 1377 at which twenty-eight oxen and three hundred sheep were eaten. The Yule boar was a common feature of medieval Christmas feasts. Caroling also became popular, and was originally a group of dancers who sang. The group was composed of a lead singer and a ring of dancers that provided the chorus. Various writers of the time condemned caroling as lewd, indicating that the unruly traditions of Saturnalia and Yule may have continued in this form. "Misrule"—drunkenness, promiscuity, gambling—was also an important aspect of the festival. In England, gifts were exchanged on New Year's Day, and there was special Christmas ale.
Christmas during the Middle Ages was a public festival that incorporated ivy, holly, and other evergreens. Christmas gift-giving during the Middle Ages was usually between people with legal relationships, such as tenant and landlord. The annual indulgence in eating, dancing, singing, sporting, and card playing escalated in England, and by the 17th century the Christmas season featured lavish dinners, elaborate masques, and pageants. In 1607, King James I insisted that a play be acted on Christmas night and that the court indulge in games. It was during the Reformation in 16th–17th-century Europe that many Protestants changed the gift bringer to the Christ Child or Christkindl, and the date of giving gifts changed from December 6 to Christmas Eve.
Reformation to the 18th century
Following the Protestant Reformation, many of the new denominations, including the Anglican Church and Lutheran Church, continued to celebrate Christmas. In 1629, the Anglican poet John Miltonpenned On the Morning of Christ's Nativity, a poem that has since been read by many during Christmastide. Donald Heinz, a professor at California State University, states that Martin Luther"inaugurated a period in which Germany would produce a unique culture of Christmas, much copied in North America." Among the congregations of the Dutch Reformed Church, Christmas was celebrated as one of the principal evangelical feasts.
However, in 17th century England, some groups such as the Puritans, strongly condemned the celebration of Christmas, considering it a Catholic invention and the "trappings of popery" or the "rags of the Beast". In contrast, the established Anglican Church "pressed for a more elaborate observance of feasts, penitential seasons, and saints' days. The calendar reform became a major point of tension between the Anglican party and the Puritan party." The Catholic Church also responded, promoting the festival in a more religiously oriented form. King Charles I of England directed his noblemen and gentry to return to their landed estates in midwinter to keep up their old-style Christmas generosity. Following the Parliamentarian victory over Charles I during the English Civil War, England's Puritanrulers banned Christmas in 1647.
Protests followed as pro-Christmas rioting broke out in several cities and for weeks Canterbury was controlled by the rioters, who decorated doorways with holly and shouted royalist slogans. The book, The Vindication of Christmas (London, 1652), argued against the Puritans, and makes note of Old English Christmas traditions, dinner, roast apples on the fire, card playing, dances with "plow-boys" and "maidservants", and carol singing.
The Restoration of King Charles II in 1660 ended the ban, but many Calvinist clergymen still disapproved of Christmas celebration. As such, in Scotland, the Presbyterian Church of Scotland discouraged the observance of Christmas, and though James VI commanded its celebration in 1618, attendance at church was scant.The Parliament of Scotland officially abolished the observance of Christmas in 1640, claiming that the church had been "purged of all superstitious observation of days". It was not until 1958 that Christmas again became a Scottish public holiday.
Despite the disapproval of many people in Britain, others continued to celebrate the Christmas season. Following the Restoration, Poor Robins Almanack contained the lines:
- Now thanks to God for Charles return
- Whose absence made old Christmas mourn
- For then we scarcely did it know
- Whether it Christmas were or no
The diary of James Woodforde, from the latter half of the 18th century, details the observance of Christmas and celebrations associated with the season over a number of years.
In Colonial America, the Puritans of New England shared radical Protestant disapproval of Christmas. Celebration was outlawed in Boston from 1659 to 1681. The ban by the Pilgrims was revoked in 1681 by English governor Sir Edmund Andros, however it was not until the mid-19th century that celebrating Christmas became fashionable in the Boston region.
At the same time, Christian residents of Virginia and New York observed the holiday freely. Pennsylvania German Settlers, pre-eminently the Moravian settlers of Bethlehem, Nazareth and Lititz in Pennsylvania and the Wachovia Settlements in North Carolina, were enthusiastic celebrators of Christmas. The Moravians in Bethlehem had the first Christmas trees in America as well as the first Nativity Scenes. Christmas fell out of favor in the United States after the American Revolution, when it was considered an English custom. George Washington attacked Hessian (German) mercenaries on the day after Christmas during the Battle of Trenton on December 26, 1776, Christmas being much more popular in Germany than in America at this time.
19th century
In the early 19th century, writers imagined Tudor Christmas as a time of heartfelt celebration. In 1843, Charles Dickens wrote the novel A Christmas Carol that helped revive the "spirit" of Christmas and seasonal merriment. Its instant popularity played a major role in portraying Christmas as a holiday emphasizing family, goodwill, and compassion.
Dickens sought to construct Christmas as a family-centered festival of generosity, in contrast to the community-based and church-centered observations, the observance of which had dwindled during the late 18th century and early 19th century. Superimposing his humanitarian vision of the holiday, in what has been termed "Carol Philosophy", Dickens influenced many aspects of Christmas that are celebrated today in Western culture, such as family gatherings, seasonal food and drink, dancing, games, and a festive generosity of spirit. A prominent phrase from the tale, "Merry Christmas", was popularized following the appearance of the story. This coincided with the appearance of the Oxford Movement and the growth of Anglo-Catholicism, which led a revival in traditional rituals and religious observances.
The term Scrooge became a synonym for miser, with "Bah! Humbug!" dismissive of the festive spirit. In 1843, the first commercial Christmas card was produced by Sir Henry Cole. The revival of theChristmas Carol began with William Sandys "Christmas Carols Ancient and Modern" (1833), with the first appearance in print of ""The First Noel", "I Saw Three Ships", "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" and "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen", popularized in Dickens' "A Christmas Carol".
In Britain, the Christmas tree was introduced in the early 19th century following the personal union with the Kingdom of Hanover by Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, wife of King George III. In 1832, the futureQueen Victoria wrote about her delight at having a Christmas tree, hung with lights, ornaments, and presents placed round it. After her marriage to her German cousin Prince Albert, by 1841 the custom became more widespread throughout Britain.
An image of the British royal family with their Christmas tree at Windsor Castle created a sensation when it was published in the Illustrated London News in 1848. A modified version of this image was published in the United States in 1850. By the 1870s, putting up a Christmas tree had become common in America.[
In America, interest in Christmas had been revived in the 1820s by several short stories by Washington Irving which appear in his The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. and "Old Christmas". Irving's stories depicted harmonious warm-hearted English Christmas festivities he experienced while staying in Aston Hall, Birmingham, England, that had largely been abandoned, and he used the tract Vindication of Christmas (1652) of Old English Christmas traditions, that he had transcribed into his journal as a format for his stories.[69]
In 1822, Clement Clarke Moore wrote the poem A Visit From St. Nicholas (popularly known by its first line: Twas the Night Before Christmas). The poem helped popularize the tradition of exchanging gifts, and seasonal Christmas shopping began to assume economic importance. This also started the cultural conflict between the holiday's spiritual significance and its associated commercialism that some see as corrupting the holiday. In her 1850 book The First Christmas in New England, Harriet Beecher Stowe includes a character who complains that the true meaning of Christmas was lost in a shopping spree.
While the celebration of Christmas was not yet customary in some regions in the U.S., Henry Wadsworth Longfellow detected "a transition state about Christmas here in New England" in 1856. "The old puritan feeling prevents it from being a cheerful, hearty holiday; though every year makes it more so." In Reading, Pennsylvania, a newspaper remarked in 1861, "Even our presbyterian friends who have hitherto steadfastly ignored Christmas—threw open their church doors and assembled in force to celebrate the anniversary of the Savior's birth."
The First Congregational Church of Rockford, Illinois, "although of genuine Puritan stock", was 'preparing for a grand Christmas jubilee', a news correspondent reported in 1864. By 1860, fourteen states including several from New England had adopted Christmas as a legal holiday. In 1875, Louis Prang introduced the Christmas card to Americans. He has been called the "father of the American Christmas card". In 1885, Christmas was formally declared a United States federal holiday.
20th century
Up to the 1950s, in the UK, many Christmas customs were restricted to the upper classes and better-off families. The mass of the population had not adopted many of the Christmas rituals that later became general. The Christmas tree was rare. Christmas dinner might be beef — certainly not turkey. In their stockings children might get an apple, orange and sweets. Full celebration of a family Christmas with all the trimmings only became widespread with increased prosperity from the 1950s. National papers were published on Christmas Day until 1912. Post was still delivered on Christmas Day until 1961. League football matches continued in Scotland until the 1970s while in England they ceased at the end of the 1950s.
Under the state atheism of the Soviet Union, after its foundation in 1917, Christmas celebrations—along with other Christian holidays—were prohibited. The League of Militant Atheists encouraged school pupils to campaign against Christmas traditions, such as the Christmas tree, as well as other Christian holidays, including Easter; the League established an antireligious holiday to be the 31st of each month as a replacement. Furthermore, on Christmas Day, children in Moscow were encouraged to spit on crucifixes as protest against this holiday. It was not until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 that the persecution ended and Christmas was celebrated for the first time in Russia after seven decades.
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Adoration of the Shepherds by Gerard van Honthorst depicts the nativity of Jesus
A typical Neapolitan presepe/presepio, or Nativity scene. Local crèches are renowned for their ornate decorations and symbolic figurines, often mirroring daily life.
Gift-bearing figures
A number of figures are associated with Christmas and the seasonal giving of gifts. Among these are Father Christmas, also known as Santa Claus (derived from the Dutch for Saint Nicholas), Père Noël, and the Weihnachtsmann;Saint Nicholas or Sinterklaas; the Christkind; Kris Kringle; Joulupukki; Babbo Natale; Saint Basil; and Father Frost.
The best known of these figures today is red-dressed Santa Claus, of diverse origins. The name Santa Claus can be traced back to the Dutch Sinterklaas, which means simply Saint Nicholas. Nicholas was Bishop of Myra, in modern-day Turkey, during the 4th century. Among other saintly attributes, he was noted for the care of children, generosity, and the giving of gifts. His feast on December 6 came to be celebrated in many countries with the giving of gifts.
Saint Nicholas traditionally appeared in bishop's attire, accompanied by helpers, inquiring about the behaviour of children during the past year before deciding whether they deserved a gift or not. By the 13th century, Saint Nicholas was well known in the Netherlands, and the practice of gift-giving in his name spread to other parts of central and southern Europe. At the Reformation in 16th–17th-century Europe, many Protestants changed the gift bringer to the Christ Child or Christkindl, corrupted in English to Kris Kringle, and the date of giving gifts changed from December 6 to Christmas Eve
Sinterklaas or Saint Nicholas, considered by many to be the original Santa Claus.
-VIDEO :Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade Celebration uploads
-VIDEO :Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade: 2013 + 2011
CHRISTMAS
A Christian holiday honoring the birth of Jesus Christ, Christmas evolved over two millennia into a worldwide religious and secular celebration, incorporating many pre-Christian, pagan traditions into the festivities along the way. Today, Christmas is a time for family and friends to get together and exchange gifts.
Rick Steves' European Christmas :
Les origines et traditions de Noël
D'origine païenne, puis chrétienne, avec la célébration, chaque année, le 25 décembre, de la naissance de Jésus-Christ, la fête de Noël est aujourd'hui un moment unique de partage et de convivialité en famille, toutes générations confondues.
Les origines de Noël
Fête chrétienne depuis le IVe siècle, le 25 décembre était la date de la fête païenne du solstice d'hiver, appelée "Naissance (en latin Natale) du soleil". À Rome, l'Église adopte alors cette coutume populaire en lui donnant un sens nouveau : celui duNatale (origine du mot Noël) du Sauveur. La fête de Noël n'est donc pas à proprement parler celle de la naissance de Jésus, dont on ignore la date, mais celle de la venue du fils de Dieu dans le monde.
La messe de minuit
Fidèle aux récits évangéliques de la naissance de Jésus à Bethléem, où les pèlerins se rendent, dans la nuit, à la grotte de la Nativité, la coutume s'est répandue en Occident de célébrer une messe, traditionnellement à minuit, mais de plus en plus souvent en début de soirée. Par ailleurs, les chrétiens de nombreuses régions de France revivent le soir de Noël l'histoire de la Nativité en mimant les Évangiles et en mettant en scène des crèches vivantes.
La veillée de Noël
Elle se tient en famille, la soirée du 24 décembre. Le symbole fort de la veillée de Noël est son repas festif, accompagné des traditionnelles dinde et bûche de Noël.
Reveillon de noël
Le réveillon de Noël est la soirée du 24 décembre qui précède Noël et qui fait souvent l'objet d'un long repas, généralement familial, parfois accompagné d'autres célébrations telle que la messe de minuit.
Cette coutume est observée dans de nombreuses régions francophones ou d'héritage francophone, comme en Belgique, en France, au Québec, à La Nouvelle-Orléans et également en de nombreuses villes d'Ontario.
Le réveillon de Noël est la soirée du 24 décembre qui précède Noël et qui fait souvent l'objet d'un long repas, généralement familial, parfois accompagné d'autres célébrations telle que la messe de minuit.
Cette coutume est observée dans de nombreuses régions francophones ou d'héritage francophone, comme en Belgique, en France, au Québec, à La Nouvelle-Orléans et également en de nombreuses villes d'Ontario.
Le sapin de Noël et les cadeaux
Pour la première fois en Europe, la tradition du sapin de Noël apparaît en Alsace au XIIe siècle. Apparat hérité de la fête païenne du solstice d'hiver, il représente pour les chrétiens la marque de la vie et du Paradis, symbolisé par sa verdure qui perdure tout au long de l'année. c'est habituellement au pied de l'arbre de Noël décoré que sont déposé les cadeaux.
Le Père Noël
Chargé d'apporter les cadeaux aux enfants du monde entier dans la nuit du 24 au 25 décembre, il est inspiré du Santa Claus anglo-saxon, lui-même émanation de saint Nicolas, le saint patron des enfants fêté le 6 décembre.
Mon beau sapin est un chant de Noël d 'origine allemande
Mais la première version connue des paroles date de 1550
Une autre version à été composée en 1615 par Melchior Franck
Mais la version la plus célèbre est basée sur une musique traditionnelle
et un texte fut compose en 1824 par Ernst Anschütz
Qui aurait dit ça on apprend à tous les jours...
Bonne journée
Mon beau sapin :
Mon beau sapin :
« Mon beau sapin » est un chant de Noël d'origine allemande. Son titre original est : « O Tannenbaum ». La version la plus célèbre est basée sur une musique traditionnelle et un texte de 1824 composé en allemand par Ernst Anschütz, organiste et professeur à Leipzig. La première version connue des paroles date de 1550, une autre version a été composée en 1615 par Melchior Franck. Cette chanson a été traduite dans de nombreuses langues. La musique est utilisée par le mouvement international de travailleurs « The Red Flag » (« Le drapeau Rouge ») ; depuis 1939, elle est aussi l'hymne officiel de l'Etat du Maryland aux États-Unis. Au cours du Troisième Reich, « O Tannenbaum » a été promu par les nazis dans le cadre de leur programme pour supprimer les parties les plus chrétiennes de la période des Fêtes.
🎄 Joyeux Noël à tous et toutes !!! 😘
Saturnalia (1783) by Antoine Callet, showing his interpretation of what the Saturnalia might have looked like
Roman Saturnalia
Saturnalia was an ancient Roman festival in honor of the deity Saturn, held on December 17 of the Julian calendar and later expanded with festivities through December 23. The holiday was celebrated with a sacrifice at the Temple of Saturn, in the Roman Forum, and a public banquet, followed by private gift-giving, continual partying, and a carnival atmosphere that overturned Roman social norms:gambling was permitted, and masters provided table service for their slaves. The poet Catullus called it "the best of days.
"The Christmas season, or festive season,(also called the holiday season or simply the holidays, mainly in the U.S. and Canada), is an annually recurring period recognized in many Western and Western-influenced countries that is generally considered to run from late November to early January, defined as incorporating at least Christmas and usually New Year, and sometimes various other holidays and festivals. It incorporates a period of shopping which comprises a peak season for the retail sector (the "Christmas (or holiday) shopping season"), and a period of sales at the end of the season (the "January sales"). Christmas window displays and Christmas tree lighting ceremonies when trees decorated with ornaments and light bulbs are illuminated, are traditions in many areas.
Originally, the term "Christmas season" was considered synonymous with Christmastide, a term associated with Yuletide, which runs from December 25 (Christmas Day) to January 6 (Epiphany), popularly known as the 12 Days of Christmas. However, as the economic impact involving the anticipatory lead-up to Christmas Day grew in America and Europe into the 19th and 20th centuries, the term "Christmas season" began to become synonymous instead with the traditional Christian Advent season, the period observed in Western Christianity from the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day until Christmas Day itself. The term "Advent calendar" survives in secular Western parlance as a term referring to a countdown to Christmas Day from the beginning of December.
Beginning in the mid-20th century, as the Christian-associated Christmas holiday became increasingly secularized and central to American economics and culture while religio-multicultural sensitivity rose, generic references to the season that omitted the word "Christmas" became more common in the corporate and public sphere of the United States, which has caused a semantics controversy that continues to the present. By the late 20th century, the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah and the African American cultural holiday of Kwanzaa began to be considered in the U.S. as being part of the "holiday season", a term that as of 2013 has become equally or more prevalent than "Christmas season" in U.S. sources to refer to the end-of-the-year festive period."Holiday season" has also spread in varying degrees to Canada; however, in the United Kingdom and Ireland, the phrase "holiday season" is not widely understood to be synonymous with the Christmas–New Year period, and is often instead associated with summer holidays
Christian adoption
In the Christian tradition the Christmas season is a period beginning on Christmas Day (December 25). In some churches (e.g. the Anglican Communion) the season continues until the day before the Epiphany, which is celebrated either on January 6 or on the Sunday between January 2 and 8. In other churches (e.g. the Roman Catholic Church) it continues until the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, which falls on the Sunday following the Epiphany, or on the Monday following the Epiphany if the Epiphany is moved to January 7 or 8. If the Epiphany is kept on January 6, the Church of England's use of the term Christmas season corresponds to the Twelve Days of Christmas, and ends on Twelfth Night.The tradition of celebrating the birth of Christ on December 25 appears to date from the 4th century when Christianity was adopted as the official religion of the Roman Empire.
This short Christmas season is preceded by Advent, which begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day: the majority of the secularized Christmas and holiday season falls during Advent. The Anglican Communion and some Protestant churches follow the Christmas season with an Epiphany season which lasts until Shrove Tuesday which is also known as Mardi Gras or 'Fat Tuesday'. Other European cultures have their own carnival festivities between new year and Lent.
Further information: carnival in the Netherlands
Secularisation and commercialisation
According to Yanovski et al., in the United States the holiday season "is generally considered to begin with the day after Thanksgiving and end after New Year's Day". According to Axelrad, the season in the United States encompasses at least Christmas and New Year's Day, and also includes Saint Nicholas Day. The U.S. Fire Administration defines the "Winter Holiday Season" as the period from December 1 to January 7. According to Chen et al.,in China the Christmas and holiday season "is generally considered to begin with the winter solstice and end after the Lantern Festival". Some stores and shopping malls advertise their Christmas merchandise beginning after Halloween or even in late October, alongside Halloween items. In the UK and Ireland, Christmas food generally appears on supermarket shelves as early as September or even August, while the Christmas shopping season itself starts from mid November when the high street Christmas lights are switched on.
The precise definition of feasts and festival days that are encompassed by the Christmas and holiday season has become controversial in the U.S. over recent decades. While in other countries the only holidays included in the "season" are Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, St. Stephen's Day/Boxing Day, New Year's Eve, New Year's Day and Epiphany, in recent times, this definition in the U.S. has begun to expand to include Yule, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Thanksgiving and Black Friday. Due to the phenomenon of Christmas creep and the informal inclusion of Thanksgiving, the Christmas and holiday season has begun to extend earlier into the year, overlapping Halloween and Guy Fawkes Night in commonwealth countries. Radio stations in North America typically begin playing Christmas music in the middle of November, before Thanksgiving, with a select few stations choosing to do so in October, before American Halloween. Similarly, Valentine's Day and Easter products are available in many shops even before Christmas
-VIDEO : 🇫🇷 2020 PARIS CHRISTMAS LIGHTS & TREES DECORATION _4K
-VIDEO :Paris in December
Galeries Lafayette Noël 2018 - Christmas windows :
-The 2017 Christmas Tree at Galeries Lafayette, Paris, FRANCE:
Christmas in Paris December 2016 "City of Lights" :
Noël Paris 2014. Toutes les vitrines des Magasins Printemps et Galeries Lafayette.!
-2014_Christmas Tree_Galeries Lafayette will be the first in the world to hang a Xmas tree upside down
Xmas 2014_A Walk Around Galeries Lafayette At Christmas Time, Paris
It's Not Christmas Without You_ Victoria Justice, Liz Gillies, and Ariana Grande:
-VIDEO : -Dan Schneider | “Victorious” | "A Christmas Tori" | It's Not Christmas Without You :
Shopping
Although once dedicated mostly to white sales and clearance sales, the January sales now comprise both winter close-out sales and sales comprising the redemption of gift cards given as presents. Young-Bean Song, director of analytics at the Atlas Institute in Seattle, states that it is a "myth that the holiday shopping season starts with Thanksgiving and ends with Christmas. January is a key part of the holiday season." stating that for the U.S. e-commerce sector January sales volumes matched December sales volumes in the 2004/2005 Christmas and holiday season.The exchange of gifts is central to the Christmas and holiday season, and the season thus also incorporates a "holiday shopping season". This comprises a peak time for the retail sector at the start of the holiday season (the "Christmas shopping season") and a period of sales at the end of the season, the "January sales".
Many people find this time particularly stressful. As a remedy, and as a return to what they perceive as the root of Christmas, some practice alternative giving.
North America
In the United States, the holiday season is a particularly important time for retail shopping, with shoppers spending more than $600 billion during the 2013 holiday season, averaging about $767 per person. During the 2014 holiday shopping season, retail sales in the United States are forecast to increase to a total of over $616 billion, up from 2013's $602 billion. The average US holiday shopper is expected to spend over $800, of which close to 73 percent will be in gifts.
It is traditionally considered to commence on the day after American Thanksgiving, a Friday colloquially known as either Black Friday or Green Friday. This is widely reputed to be the busiest shopping day of the entire calendar year. However, in 2004 the VISA credit card organization reported that over the previous several years VISA credit card spending had in fact been 8 to 19 percent higher on the last Saturday before Christmas Day (i.e., Super Saturday) than on Black Friday. A survey conducted in 2005 by GfK NOP discovered that "Americans aren't as drawn to Black Friday as many retailers may think.", with only 17% of those polled saying that they will begin holiday shopping immediately after Thanksgiving, 13% saying that they plan to finish their shopping before November 24 and 10% waiting until the very last day before performing their holiday gift shopping.
According to a survey by the Canadian Toy Association, peak sales in the toy industry occur in the Christmas and holiday season, but this peak has been occurring later and later in the season every year.
In 2005, the kick-off to the Christmas and holiday season for online shopping, the first Monday after US Thanksgiving, was named Cyber Monday. Although it was a peak, that was not the busiest on-line shopping day of that year. The busiest on-line shopping days were December 12 and 13, almost two weeks later; the second Monday in December has since become known as Green Monday. Another notable day is Free Shipping Day, a promotional day that serves as the last day in which a person can order a good online and have it arrive via standard shipping (the price of which the sender pays) prior to Christmas Eve; this day is usually on or near December 16. Four of the largest 11 on-line shopping days in 2005 were December 11 to 16, with an increase of 12% over 2004 figures.In 2011, Cyber Monday was slightly busier than Green Monday and Free Shipping Day, although all three days registered sales of over US$1 billion, and all three days registered gains ranging from 14% to 22% over the previous year. Analysts had predicted the peak on December 12, noting that Mondays are the most popular days for on-line shopping during the holiday shopping season, in contrast to the middle of the week during the rest of the year. They attribute this to people "shopping in stores and malls on the weekends, and [...] extending that shopping experience when they get into work on Monday" by "looking for deals, [...] comparison shopping and [...] finding items that were out of stock in the stores".
In 2006, the average US household was expected to spend about $1,700 on Christmas and holiday spendings.[34] Retail strategists such as ICSC Research observed in 2005 that 15% of holiday expenditures were in the form of gift certificates and that that share of expenditures was rising. On the basis of that they recommended to retailers a strategy of managing their inventories for the entire holiday shopping season with a leaner inventory at the beginning of the season and the addition of fresh winter merchandise for the January sales.
Michael P. Niemira, chief economist and director of research for the Shopping Center Council, states that he expects gift certificate usage to be between US$30billion and US$40billion in the 2006/2007 holiday shopping season. On the basis of the growing popularity of gift certificates, he states that "To get a true picture of holiday sales, one may consider measuring October, November, December and January sales combined as opposed to just November and December sales.", because with "a hefty amount of that spending not hitting the books until January, extending the length of the season makes sense".[36]
According to the Deloitte 2007 Holiday Survey,for the fourth straight year, gift cards are expected to be the top gift purchase in 2007, with more than two-thirds (69 percent) of consumers surveyed planning to buy them, compared with 66 percent in 2006. In addition, holiday shoppers are planning to buy even more cards this year: an average of 5.5 cards, compared with the 4.6 cards they planned to buy last year. One in six consumers (16 percent) plan to buy 10 or more cards, compared with 11 percent last year. Consumers are also spending more in total on gift cards and more per card: $36.25 per card on average compared with $30.22 last year. Gift cards continue to grow in acceptance: Almost four in 10 consumers surveyed (39 percent) would rather get a gift card than merchandise, an increase from last year’s 35 percent. Also, resistance to giving gift cards continues to decline: 19 percent say they don’t like to give gift cards because they’re too impersonal (down from 22 percent last year). Consumers said that the cards are popular gifts for adults, teens and children alike, and almost half (46 percent) intend to buy them for immediate family; however, they are hesitant to buy them for spouses or significant others, with only 14 percent saying they plan to buy them for those recipients.
Some stores in Canada hold Boxing Week sales (before the end of the year) for income tax purposes.
Christmas creep
What has become known as "Christmas creep" refers to a merchandising phenomenon in which merchants and retailers exploit the commercialized status of Christmas by moving up the start of the holiday shopping season. The term was first used in the mid-1980s, and is associated with a desire of merchants to take advantage of particularly heavy Christmas-related shopping well before Black Friday in the United States and before Halloween in Canada.
The term is not used in the UK and Ireland, where retailers call Christmas the "golden quarter", that is, the three months of October through December is the quarter of the year in which the retail industry hopes to make the most profit.It can apply for other holidays as well, notably Valentine's Day, Easter and Mother's Day.
Europe
In the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom, the Christmas shopping season starts from mid-November, around the time when high street Christmas lights are turned on. In the UK in 2010, up to £8 billion was expected to be spent online at Christmas, approximately a quarter of total retail festive sales. Retailers in the UK call Christmas the "golden quarter", that is, the three months of October to December is the quarter of the year in which the retail industry hopes to make most money.In Ireland, around early December or late November each year, The Late Late Toy Show is broadcast on Irish television, which features all the popular toys throughout the year being demonstrated and showcased before the holiday season and shopping sprees commence.
The Netherlands and Belgium have a double holiday. The first one, the arrival of the Bishop Saint Nicholas and Black Peter, starts about mid November, with presents being given on December 5 or 6. This is a separate holiday from Christmas, Bishop Saint Nick (Sinterklaas) and Santa Claus (Kerstman) being different people. Netherlands and Belgium often do not start the Christmas season until December 6 or 7, i.e. after Sinterklaas has finished.
In France, the January sales are restricted by legislation to no more than four weeks in Paris, and no more than six weeks for the rest of the country, usually beginning on the first Wednesday in January, and are one of only two periods of the year when retailers are permitted to hold sales.
In Italy, the January sales begin on the first weekend in January, and last for at least six weeks.
In Germany, the Winterschlussverkauf (winter sale before the season ends) was one of two official sales periods (the other being the Sommerschlussverkauf, the summer sales). It begins on the last Monday in January and lasts for 12 days, selling left-over goods from the holiday shopping season, as well as the winter collections. However, unofficially, goods are sold at reduced prices by many stores throughout the whole of January. By the time the sales officially begin the only goods left on sale are low-quality ones, often specially manufactured for the sales. Since a legislative reform to the corresponding law in 2004, season sales are now allowed over the whole year and are no longer restricted to season-related goods. However, voluntary sales still called "Winterschlussverkauf" take place further on in most stores at the same time every year.
In Sweden, where the first Sunday of Advent marks the start of the Christmas and holiday season, continuing with Saint Lucy's Day on December 13, followed up by Christmas before the Mellandagsrea(between days sell off) traditionally begins on December 27 (nowadays often December 26 or even December 25) and lasts during the rest of the Christmas holiday. It is similar to Black Friday, but lasts longer. They last 34–35 days. The Swedish Christmas and holiday season continues over Epiphany, and finally ends on St. Knut's Day when the children have a Christmas tree plundering.
In Bosnia, Serbia and Croatia, holiday sales starts in the middle of December and last for at least one month.
Asia
Hong Kong, China has a lot of seasonal activities and traditions to offer around Christmas time. December 25 and 26 are Public Holidays that makes most shops open for shopping. Locals and tourists love to watch the 30 meter Swarovski Christmas tree in the Central as well as the Christmas light displays on buildings on Victoria Harbour. A huge party in Hong Kong called Winterfest is celebrated every year which involves malls, shops, theme parks and other attractions.
The Philippines has the longest Christmas season, reportedly. As early as September, up until January 9, which is the feast of the Black Nazarene, Carolers can be typically heard going door to door serenading fellow Filipinos in exchange of money. All over the entire country, parols (star shaped lanterns) are hung everywhere. SimbangGabi or dawn masses start December 16 and run for nine days up until Christmas Eve.
South Korea's population are 30% Christian and Christmas is a Public Holiday. According to the Washington Post, "Koreans prefer cash Christmas gifts over more creative presents." Santa Claus sometimes wears blue instead of the traditional red.
Singapore widely celebrates Christmas which is a Public Holiday in this country. For six weeks, mid-November to early January, the 2.2-kilometre (1.4 mi) stretch of Orchard Road glitters with lights from decorated trees and building facades of malls and hotels.
Greetings
"Happy New Year" redirects here. For other uses, see Happy New Year (disambiguation).
A selection of goodwill greetings are often used around the world to address strangers, family, colleagues or friends during the season. Some greetings are more prevalent than others, depending on culture and location. Traditionally, the predominant greetings of the season have been "Merry Christmas", "Happy Christmas", and "Happy New Year". In the mid-to-late 20th century in the United States, more generic greetings such as "Happy Holidays" and "Season's Greetings" began to rise in cultural prominence, and this would later spread to other Western countries including Canada, Australia and to a lesser extent some European countries. A 2012 poll by Rasmussen Reports indicated that 68% of Americans prefer the use of "Merry Christmas", while 23% preferred "Happy Holidays".A similarly-timed Canadian poll conducted by Ipsos-Reid indicated that 72% of Canadians preferred "Merry Christmas".
Merry Christmas and Happy Christmas
"Merry Christmas" and "Happy Christmas" redirect here. For other uses, see Merry Christmas (disambiguation) and Happy Christmas (disambiguation).
The greetings and farewells "Merry Christmas" and "Happy Christmas" are traditionally used in English-speaking countries, starting a few weeks before Christmas (December 25) each year.
Variations are:
- "Merry Christmas", the traditional English greeting, composed of merry (jolly, happy) and Christmas (Old English: Cristes mæsse, for Christ's Mass).
- "Happy Christmas", an equivalent greeting that is more common in Great Britain and Ireland.
- "Merry Xmas", with the "X" replacing "Christ" (see Xmas) is sometimes used in writing, but very rarely in speech. This is in line with the traditional use of the Greek letter chi (uppercase Χ, lowercaseχ), the initial letter of the word Χριστός (Christ), to refer to Christ.
These greetings and their equivalents in other languages are popular not only in countries with large Christian populations but also in the largely non-Christian nations of China and Japan, where Christmas is celebrated primarily due to cultural influences of predominantly Christian countries. They have somewhat decreased in popularity in the United States and Canada in recent decades, but polls in 2005 indicated that they remained more popular than "Happy Holidays" or other alternatives.
History of the phrase
"Merry", derived from the Old English myrige, originally meant merely "pleasant, agreeable" rather than joyous or jolly (as in the phrase "merry month of May").Christmas has been celebrated since the 4th century AD, the first known usage of any Christmas greeting dates was in 1565, when it appeared in The Hereford Municipal Manuscript: "And thus I comytt you to God, who send you a mery Christmas." "Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year" (thus incorporating two greetings) was in an informal letter written by an English admiral in 1699. The same phrase is contained in the 16th century secular English carol "We Wish You a Merry Christmas," and the first commercial Christmas card, produced in England in 1843.
Also in 1843, Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol was published, during the mid Victorian revival of the holiday. The word Merry was then beginning to take on its current meaning of "jovial, cheerful, jolly and outgoing"."Merry Christmas" in this new context figured prominently in A Christmas Carol. The cynical Ebenezer Scrooge rudely deflects the friendly greeting: "If I could work my will … every idiot who goes about with 'Merry Christmas' on his lips should be boiled with his own pudding." After the visit from the Ghosts of Christmas effects his transformation, Scrooge exclaims; "I am as merry as a school-boy. A merry Christmas to everybody!" and heartily exchanges the wish to all he meets. The instant popularity of A Christmas Carol, the Victorian era Christmas traditions it typifies, and the term's new meaning appearing in the book popularized the phrase "Merry Christmas".
The alternative "Happy Christmas" gained usage in the late 19th century, and in Great Britain and Ireland is the common wish, rather than "Merry Christmas". One reason may be the Victorian middle class influence in attempting to separate wholesome celebration of the Christmas season from public insobriety and associated asocial behaviour, at a time when merry also meant "intoxicated" – Queen Elizabeth II is said to prefer "Happy Christmas" for this reason. In her annual Christmas messages to the Commonwealth, Queen Elizabeth has used "happy Christmas" far more often than "merry Christmas".
In the American poet Clement Moore's "A Visit from St. Nicholas" (1823), the final line, originally written as "Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night", has been changed in many later editions to "Merry Christmas to all", perhaps indicating the relative popularity of the phrases in the USA.
Happy Holidays
"Happy Holidays" redirects here. For other meanings of "Happy Holidays", see Happy Holidays (disambiguation).
In the United States, "Happy Holidays" (along with the similarly generalized "Season's Greetings") has become a common holiday greeting in the public sphere of department stores, public schools and greeting cards. Its use is generally confined to the period between United States Thanksgiving and New Year's Day. American use of the term "Happy Holidays" to replace "Merry Christmas" dates back at least to the 1970s and was a common phrase relating to the Christmas season at least going back to the 1890s. The term may have gained further popularity with the Irving Berlin song "Happy Holiday" (introduced in the 1942 film Holiday Inn).
In the United States, it can have several variations and meanings:[citation needed]
- As "Happy Holiday", an English translation of the Hebrew Hag Sameach greeting on Passover, Sukkot, and Shavuot.
- As "Happy Holiday", a substitution for "Merry Christmas".
- As "Happy Holidays", a collective and inclusive wish for the period encompassing Thanksgiving, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Winter solstice, Christmas Day (The Nativity of the Lord), Boxing Day (St. Stephen's Day), the New Year and Epiphany.
- As "Happy Holidays", a shortened form of the greeting "Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year".
The increasing usage of "Happy Holidays" has been the subject of some controversy in the United States. Advocates claim that "Happy Holidays" is an inclusive greeting that is not intended as an attack on Christianity or other religions, but is rather a response to what they say is the reality of a growing non-Christian population.
Critics of "Happy Holidays" generally claim it is a secular neologism. The greeting may be deemed materialistic, consumerist, atheistic, in differentist, agnostic, politically correct and/or anti-Christian. Critics of the phrase have associated it with a larger cultural clash termed the "War on Christmas."
Season's Greetings
"Season's Greetings" redirects here. For other meanings of "Season's Greetings", see Season's Greetings (disambiguation).
"Season's Greetings" is a greeting more commonly used as a motto on winter season greeting cards, and in commercial advertisements, than as a spoken phrase. In addition to "Merry Christmas", Victorian Christmas cards bore a variety of salutations, including "Compliments of the Season" and "Christmas Greetings." By the late 19th century, "With the Season's Greetings" or simply "The Season's Greetings" began appearing. By the 1920s it had been shortened to "Season's Greetings", and has been a greeting card fixture ever since. Several White House Christmas cards, including U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower's 1955 card, have featured the phrase.
The Little Drummer Boy (Perfect Version) :
"The Little Drummer Boy" is a popular Christmas song, with words and music by Katherine K. Davis. Henry Onorati and Harry Simeone have been credited with writing the song, even though they were only the arrangers for their recordings of it.
The lyrics tell the apocryphal story of a poor young boy who, unable to afford a gift for the infant Jesus, plays his drum for the newborn with the Virgin Mary's approval. Miraculously, the baby, although a newborn, seems to understand and smiles at the boy in gratitude. The story is somewhat similar to an old twelfth-century legend retold by Anatole France as Le jongleur de Notre-Dame (The Juggler of Notre Dame), which was adapted into an opera in 1902 by Jules Massenet. In the French legend, however, a juggler juggles before the statue of the Virgin Mary, and the statue, according to which version of the legend one reads, either smiles at him or throws him a rose (or both, as in the 1984 made-for-television film).
Performers: The Harry Simeone Chorale
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1941; USA
Marys boy child / Oh my Lord, with Lyrics by Boney M
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JOYEUX NOEL
MERRY CHRISTMAS
MUNG CHUA GIANG SINH
FELIZ NAVIDAD
-Feliz Navidad - Cong Thanh-Lynn :
MERRY CHRISTMAS
MUNG CHUA GIANG SINH
FELIZ NAVIDAD
-Feliz Navidad - Cong Thanh-Lynn :
ASIA 6: Giáng Sinh Đặc Biệt (1994)
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PBN#18_Merry Christmas (1992):_Part#1:
PBN#18_Merry Christmas (1992):_Part#2:
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A Tradition of Christmas - Mormon Tabernacle Choir :
"Auld Lang Syne" is a Scots poem written by Robert Burns in 1788 and set to the tune of a traditional folk song. It is well known in many countries, especially (but far from exclusively) in the English-speaking world; its traditional use being to celebrate the start of the New Year at the stroke of midnight
Le chant des adieux_ce n'est qu un au revoir( Les plus beaux chants
scouts):
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"Le chant des adieux ce n est qu un au revoir" by Jean Weber.Le Chant des adieux, ou Le Joyeux au revoir scout, ou encore Ce n'est qu'un au revoir, est un chant classiquement chanté à la fin des grandes rencontres, et notamment des jamboree. Si l'air de ce chant est mondialement connu, ses paroles le sont généralement beaucoup moins.
L'air, transcrit par le poète écossais Robert Burns en 1788 sous le titre d'Auld Lang Syne (« depuis longtemps » en scot), est à la base un air traditionnel écossais, probablement destiné à accompagner une danse.
Ce chant connaît de nombreuses utilisations, comme la cérémonie de clôture des jamborees, la « chaîne d'union » terminant les réunions de Francs-Maçons, le signal de l'heure de fermeture dans les magasins japonais, ou en général de nombreuses circonstances nécessitant un chant de séparation.
ABBA - Happy New Year :
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- Bonne Année ! :
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Tuyen Dinh
vous a envoyé cette animation :
Aujourd'hui est un jour spécial puisque c'est le tien ! Nos souhaits de bonheur t'accompagnent en cette belle journée. Bonne fête de la part de toute la famille !
Regardez son message en cliquant sur la vidéo ci-dessus !
-VIEW :Ma carte Meilleurs voeux 2020Regardez son message en cliquant sur la vidéo ci-dessus !
Sydney
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Martin Place CHRISTMAS TREE LIGHTING + Pitt Street Mall Christmas Lights - SYDNEY CHRISTMAS 2019
-VIDEO :
London Fireworks 2018 LIVE - New Year's Eve Fireworks: 2017 / 2018 - BBC One
-London New Year's Day Parade 2016:
Rome
Moscow
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Moscow. New Year and Christmas 2019 [4K]
The Rose Parade, also known as the Rose Parade presented by Honda, is part of "America’s New Year Celebration" held in Pasadena, California each year, a festival of flower-covered floats, marching bands, equestrians and the Rose Bowl college football game on New Year’s Day (but moved to Monday, January 2 if New Year’s Day falls on a Sunday), produced by the non-profit Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association.
Originally started on January 1, 1890, the Rose Parade is watched in person by hundreds of thousands of spectators on the parade route, and is broadcast on multiple television networks in the United States. It is seen by millions more on television worldwide in more than 100 international territories and countries.The Rose Bowl is a college football game that was added in 1902 to help fund the cost of staging the parade. Since 2011, the parade has been sponsored by Honda. Accordingly, the car company has the parade's first float, which like all floats, follows the parade's theme.
129th Rose Parade in California - 2018 Happy New year :
- 2015 Little SAIGON TET PARADE,Westminster , Orange County, California.
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-VIDEO : Bob Hope Christmas Special (1967)_Department of Defense. Department of the Air Force. Presents Bob Hope's annual USO tour of Southeast Asian military bases. Features Raquel Welch, Elaine Dunn, Phil Crosby, Barbara McNair, and Miss World, Madeleine Hartog Bell.
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