How Did Christmas Get Started
Where did xmas come from.
How did christmas get started. The idea of turning this day into a celebration started in the early middle ages in europe. How did all of these customs find their way into contemporary christianity ranging from catholicism to protestantism to fundamentalist churches. But the history of the word xmas is actually more respectable and fascinating than you might suspect. The fact that christmas was celebrated on the birthday of the unconquered sun dies solis invicti nati gave the season a solar background connected with the kalends of january january 1 the roman new year when houses were decorated with greenery and lights and presents were given to.
Learn about the history of christmas santa claus and holiday traditions worldwide. Most christians today probably can t imagine christmas on any other day than december 25 but it wasn t always that way. During reformation and up until the middle of the 1800s christmas was often not celebrated because partying and merry making was seen as unchristian. The timing of the british pantomime at christmas and the role reversal of the lead characters the principal boy being played by a girl and the dame by a man may have also evolved from the tudor feast of fools presided over by the lord of misrule.
The resulting image of santa claus in the united states crystallized in the 19th century and he has ever since remained the patron of the gift giving festival of christmas. It was first used in the mid 1500s x represents the greek letter chi the initial letter in the word χριστός chrīstos. The feast was an unruly event involving much drinking revelry and role reversal. In fact for the first three centuries of christianity s existence.
Trick or treating setting off on halloween night in costume and ringing doorbells to demand treats has been a tradition in the united states and other countries for more than a century. The word christmas itself reveals who married paganism to christianity. First of all the abbreviation predates by centuries its use in gaudy advertisements. Christmas is a religious holiday celebrating the birth of jesus as well as a cultural and commercial event.
The word christmas is a combination of the words christ and mass.