Merry Christmas!
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The wait is over as Christmas is finally here. We wish very Merry Christmas to all of our Chanzblog readers! We think that there is no wrong way of celebrating Christmas; so enjoy the holidays your way!
History of Christmas
Christmas is both a sacred religious holiday and a worldwide phenomena. Long time ago the early Europeans celebrated light during these times as the winter solstice was a reason to rejoice. That meant that the longest and darkest winter days were behind and days started to become longer again. Usually cattle was slaughtered around this time of the year as well so they would not have to be fed during the winter. For many families this was rare – and perhaps the only – time of the year they would have a good supply of fresh meat. In Norway for example, the “Yule” celebrations started December 21st and lasted all the way to January. Men of the family would bring logs home at the start of the celebrations. These logs would be then set on fire and the people feasted until the logs burned out, which could take even up to two weeks.
Christmas became one of the most important celebrations of Christianity only much later around the fourth century. That was when Pope Julius I chose December 25th to be celebrated as the day when Jesus was born. It is believed that this was no coincidence; by choosing a day which overlapped the traditional winter solstice celebrations, the church leaders believed in the increased chances that Christmas would be popularly embraced.
Santa Claus
What about the guy in red, whose visit kids worldwide have learned to expect during Christmas? It might be surprising to some, but the legend of Santa Claus can actually be traced back to Turkey. There was a monk named St. Nicholas who was born around the year 280 – and this monk traveled the countryside helping the poor and more unfortunate by giving away all of his inherited wealth. He became known as the protector of children and sailors.
The iconic version of the Santa Claus, the white-bearded guy in red which we know today became immortalized in the popular culture in 1881, when a cartoonist named Thomas Nast drew illustration for Clarke Moore’s poem “An Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas“. The poem portrayed St. Nicholas as a man who flew a sled driven by reindeer, visiting homes and bringing toys to the children. You might know the poem from its popular first line “Twas The Night Before Christmas”.
Once more; Merry Christmas from all of us at Chanz!