Christmas comes from Christ's Mass, from Christian religion. Roman Catholic and Protestant Churches celebrate Christmas Holiday on Dec. 25. Some other religions celebrate Christmas on different dates like January 07 or January 25. The date of Christmas coincides closely with the winter solstice in the Northern hemisphere, a time of rejoicing among many ancient cultures. Today Christmas Holiday is celebrated in many countries but primarely in Western Europe, South and North America and Austarlia.
In the mid 19th cent. Christmas began to acquire its associations with an increasingly secularized holiday of gift-giving and good cheer and it is practiced today even more. Christmas cards first appeared 1850's.
Gifts at Christmas are primarely English; elsewhere they are given at other times. The Christmas tree was a tradition from the Middle Ages in Germany. The crib with the scene at Bethlehem was popularized by the Franciscans during the Crhistmas Holidays. The midnight service on Christmas Eve is a popular religious observance in the Roman Catholic and some Protestant churches during Christmas Holidays. |