Have you ever found yourself celebrating Christmas with one of the many festive traditions and wondered to yourself, “how did this come to be?” Well, all of the best Christmas traditions started in some way and here’s how!
Christmas Tree
The Christmas tree actually goes back to the Middle Ages in German. It is not confirmed whether or not decorated trees originated as a Christmas celebration or if they just originated as a means of any celebration; however, by the early 19th century, they were brough to America by European settlers as a Christmas decoration. In 1851, a man in New York opened the first Christmas tree lot and throughout the decades, the tradition has continued on.
Radio City Rockettes
Even if you are not from New York, the Radio City Rockettes are synonymous with Christmas. The dance troupe started in 1925, originally known as the Missouri Rockets. They moved to Radio City Music Hall in New York City in 1934, a year after they first performed a special Christmas performance. Since they have maintained their Radio City residency, they have performed a Christmas show every year.
Elf on the Shelf
This tradition is a fairly new one, with younger generations being the first to experience it. Starting in 2005, the Elf on the Shelf first began as a tradition when Carol Aebersold and her daughter Chanda Bell published the book Elf on the Shelf: a Christmas Tradition and sold it with the accompanying toy elf. Since, parents have happily and begrudgingly had to move their little elves around the house nightly to follow the story of the elf looking after the children in order to report their behavior back to Santa Claus.
Yule Log
As silly as it sometimes seems to have a crackling fireplace play on the TV, it is a long running tradition! WPIX-TV in New York City gets the credit for airing the first yule log in 1966. They aired a continuous 17-second loop of a fireplace for three hours straight with classic holiday music playing over the clip. Now, there are yule logs aplenty, and you can pick from a wide variety of backgrounds and landscapes.
Gingerbread Houses
While not all gingerbread houses turn out the best, the first one was fit for a queen, Queen Elizabeth I that is. Technically, the credit goes to the queen and two from another European country. German fairytale writers, the Grimm Brothers wrote their story “Hansel and Gretel” which laid the foundation for gingerbread houses with the house made of sweets feature in the story. Queen Elizabeth I is the one who posited decorating gingerbread cookies.
Ugly Christmas Sweaters
Not a holiday season goes by where you do not at least see one ugly Christmas sweater either on someone or at the store. This tradition comes from Canada, where ugly Christmas sweaters grew popular in the 1980s. Around 2001, parties themed around guests wearing ugly Christmas sweaters gained traction. Now, dedicated clothing brands exist who solely make ugly Christmas apparel.
