Celebrating Christmas: old and new Christmas traditions
For most people Christmas is the best time of the year. The pre-Christmas season starts at the beginning of December where people start to decorate their homes and gardens with colourful lights and Christmas decorations. Each Sunday in Advent one of the candles on the Advent wreath is lit and during advent children and adults alike can enjoy opening their Advent calendars. Another popular activity to do in the run up to Christmas is to bake Christmas biscuits, which smell very festive and will get you into a Christmassy mood. We all enjoy these traditional and Christmassy things in the run up to Christmas, which we celebrate with family and friends. But where do Christmas traditions come from? And would you like to celebrate Christmas a bit differently this year?
Old Christmas traditions - where do Christmas traditions come from?
Advent wreaths and Christmas trees are an important tradition at Christmas for many families. Another popular tradition at Christmas time is visiting the Christmas markets with your family. However, in many places the origin of these Christmas traditions has been forgotten. Below we will briefly explain how these traditions came about.
The festively decorated Christmas tree
One of the highlights at Christmas is the Christmas tree, which is well recognised as one of the main symbols for Christmas. Commonly they are put up in people’s living rooms or in market squares. Supposedly this Christmas tradition originated from the church. When the biblical story of Adam and Eve was first re-enacted, a tree represented the “tree of paradise” with the apples. Over time, a green tree with red baubles has become a tradition.
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Did you know that Christmas trees keep their beautiful, green needles all year round. This reflects the hope that nature will awaken in spring and the cold winter will come to an end.
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The Advent wreath
The Advent wreath has four candles and on each Sunday in the run up to Christmas a candle is lit to mark the four Sundays of Advent, which is seen by some as a countdown to Christmas. It is not long until Christmas when all four candles have been lit. This was also the original idea of the Advent wreath, which has not been forgotten. In 1839 a pastor from Hamburg invented the first Advent wreath, which he gave to the orphans so that they knew when Christmas would be celebrated. At the time they still used 24 candles, however, today this has been reduced down to four candles to mark the four Sundays of Advent.
Visiting the Christmas markets
Christmas markets are great festive fun as you can try warm mulled wine, roasted chestnuts and buy some regional Christmas decorations. One of the oldest Christmas markets is probably the Dresdner Striezelmarkt, which dates back to as early as 1434. This means that we have been enjoying this festive tradition for around 600 years. Back then, the people of Dresden were able to stock up before Christmas and buy meat for the festive roast. Even today you can buy regional products at the Christmas market and enjoy getting together with family and friends to enjoy the Christmassy atmosphere.
New Christmas traditions – alternative ways to celebrate Christmas
Old Christmas traditions are indispensable, however, some new ideas at Christmas can help to spice up old traditions or help you to feel inspired to try something new. Below you will find some ideas on how to celebrate Christmas a little differently this year:
Fancy a festive giggle – try an “Ugly Christmas jumper”
Why not start Christmas with a big grin on your face? An ugly Christmas jumper has become a modern-day tradition at Christmas. Ugly Christmas jumpers are always a good laugh, and they help people to get into the festive spirit. Get into the Christmas spirit and enjoy this wonderful time of year by adding a Christmas headband or some quirky Christmas glasses to your outfit.
Tip: Get the whole family involved in some fun Christmas games or write down some interesting or unusual conversation topics on little cards. In the following article you will find inspiration for fun games and activities for kids: Festive activities & Christmas games for kids
Environmental awareness at Christmas
This is all about trying to use environmentally friendly packaging or trying to minimise waste. When it comes to cooking make sure to try and buy only locally sourced produce. How about trying a vegetarian Christmas dinner this year? You can still enjoy Christmas to the fullest whilst protecting the environment. This is why lots of people are becoming conscious consumers and giving fewer but more meaningful gifts. You can find more tips on this topic in the following article: .
Enjoying Christmas without getting stressed
At Christmas time it is becoming more and more popular to focus on time spent with family and friends. Some people like to go on holiday with their families, whereas others prefer to spend a relaxed Christmas at home with their family. At Christmas time everyone should relax and just enjoy spending time together. Christmas dinner is a tradition in almost every household, but the time spent preparing and cooking everything can be a bit stressful. However, if everyone decides to cook together or if everyone brings something for a Christmas dinner then this can make everything a bit easier. The main thing is to make time for family and friends and to enjoy this wonderful time of year together.
A new approach to Christmas presents
Christmas presents change each year depending the on new trends. However, a lot of families have decided to only give a couple of presents, but the presents are more meaningful and better quality. It is also important to remember to be environmentally friendly especially at Christmas time to avoid any unnecessary waste. Here are a few ideas on how to exchange Christmas presents for a unique and fun experience:
Secret Santa: this fun Christmas tradition is suited to large groups or families. The names of the family members are written on individual pieces of paper and folded up and put into a hat or a bowl. Everyone draws a name from the hat or bowl and then gets a present for that person. This makes Christmas shopping easier as each person only needs to get one present.
Focused gift-giving: everyone takes turns opening their presents. This helps to slow down opening presents, which means everyone takes their time and enjoys unwrapping them and seeing what they have got.
Group gifts: this is a more sustainable alternative, which is suited to larger groups. Get together as a group and give larger more useful presents, which helps to reduce waste and everyone gets a gift that they will cherish.
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Make notes of presents you would like to buy for your family and friends as this will help to avoid any stress in the lead up to Christmas. This will also help you to know what you need to buy when you go Christmas shopping.
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Christmas crafts with children
Christmas is a great time of year for decorating, baking biscuits or getting creative with your children. You can decorate your living room with your homemade decorations or give them as gifts. In the following article you will find a lot of great craft ideas, such as our snowman made out of old flower pots.
Easy biscuit recipes for children
One of the best Christmas traditions is baking biscuits together. Baking delicious little treats and then decorating them during Advent is a great way to spend time with your children. We will show you what you should be mindful of when baking biscuits with children. In the following article you will find biscuit recipes that are easy to make.
Making your own Advent calendar
Advent calendars are great especially for children who enjoy counting down the days until Christmas. Homemade Advent calendars are becoming more and more popular because they are often reusable, and you can choose what to put in them. In the following article we will show you three different ideas for homemade Advent calendars that you can make in no time at all.
Christmas card ideas
At Christmas time it is popular to send friends and relatives Christmas cards. In this article you will find various DIY ideas for homemade Christmas cards with step-by-step instructions on how to make them, as well as a lovingly designed Winter Wonderland card. We will also give you some tips on how to send Christmas presents in the post.
Upcycling for Christmas
If you would like to reorganise your wardrobe and be environmentally friendly at the same time, why not turn your old, knitted jumpers into great Christmas decorations? In this article you will find some ideas for upcycling old, knitted jumpers and woollen scarves with step-by-step instructions. You could make a modern Christmas tree from old jumpers.
Homemade Christmas presents
Christmas presents don't necessarily need to be expensive to show that a lot of thought has gone into them. Homemade Christmas presents are thoughtful and special, which your family and friends will love. They are also a great way to help you save you money. In the following article we will show you several simple creative ideas on how to make some fantastic homemade Christmas presents, which you can make at home to give to your loved ones.
Gift wrapping ideas – creative ways to wrap Christmas gifts
To make your Christmas presents really stand out under the Christmas tree, you will need the right gift wrap. In this article we will give you some tips on how to wrap different shaped presents. We will also show you some ideas on how you can creatively decorate your gifts. If you would like to wrap gifts in an environmentally friendly way, you will find information in this article on sustainable materials and alternatives.
How to celebrate a sustainable Christmas
Even at Christmas time it is still important to be environmentally friendly. By following a few tips and tricks, you can help minimise producing any unnecessary waste. It is also a good idea to use only locally sourced produce where possible when preparing your Christmas dinner. When buying Christmas presents it is important to adapt a sustainable approach to help reduce waste. In this article you will find useful tips and ideas on how you can be more environmentally friendly at Christmas time.
Christmas present ideas for children
Christmas is a great time of year for spending time together as a family. Children enjoy Christmas and they always look forward to unwrapping their Christmas presents from under the Christmas tree. In this article we will help you choose the right Christmas present with our helpful list of gift ideas which are sorted by age ranges.
Festive activities & Christmas games for kids
Fun Christmas games and activities for the whole family are a great idea to prevent boredom during the festive season. In this article you will find creative indoor and outdoor activity ideas for children of all ages that are guaranteed to be lots of fun. We will also show you some fun game ideas.
Christmas family photos: tips and creative ideas
Family photos at Christmas are popular for cards, gifts and as mementos. In this article we’ll show you how to organise the perfect Christmas photo shoot and what you should keep in mind when doing a photo shoot with children. You will also find lots of ideas for Christmas photo motifs and tips on getting the perfect family Christmas photo.
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Sources and further information:
https://burleydamgardencentre.co.uk/blog/the-history-of-christmas-wreaths/
(Last accessed on 08.11.2023)
https://www.german-way.com/history-and-culture/holidays-and-celebrations/christmas/christmas-markets-in-germany/
(Last accessed on 08.11.2023)
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/christmas-tree-customs
(Last accessed on 08.11.2023)
The image sources in this text are in chronological order:
Cover photo: iStock.com/AleksandarNakic
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Images 5 - 9 in text: C&A
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