Joyeux Noël, Feliz Navidad, Frohe Weihnachten, Buon Natale; so many ways in so many languages just to say Merry Christmas. Oftentimes, during the holiday season, we say this without really thinking about it. We intend it as a friendly greeting. We are wishing them well and hope that they are happy. We want people to be happy during this holiday celebrating family and love. But, are we really merry during the holidays, or are we collectively as a whole unhappy as some songs and research suggest? Or are we truly happier during the holiday season? Also, where do many of the traditions around the holiday season come from? Why do we have a decorated tree in our houses, and why do we feast? Why is gift giving a huge part of today’s holiday season?
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In the sixteenth century Germany is when evergreen trees where first brought into homes. Originally they were decorated with hazelnuts and other food items. Not long after this tradition started a protestant pastor named Martin Luther was the first one to add candles to his tree because he was trying to recapture the beauty of the stars to his family. In “Oh Christmas Tree,” it says “each shining light” this is tradition brought from the candles. Putting lights on the tree are now one of the most common and honored Christmas traditions in western civilization. They can be seen on almost all Christmas trees and on several houses and yards. One of the most famous of these trees, the one in Rockefeller center has over twenty thousand Christmas lights on it. This holiday tradition, of having a Christmas tree, was not always accepted by Americans. It was not until the early to mid 1800’s that Americans began to accept Christmas …show more content…
Some of the lines say “So hang your stockings and say your prayers,” and “So let 's give thanks to the Lord above 'Cause Santa Claus comes tonight.” This shows a combination of the two, secular and Christian elements, which would not seem to belong together. “He 's got a bag that 's filled with toys for boys and girls again”, this is obviously part of today’s legend, but it is also a part of the history of Saint Nicolas because it is reminiscent of the Dutch Children putting their shoes
In the sixteenth century Germany is when evergreen trees where first brought into homes. Originally they were decorated with hazelnuts and other food items. Not long after this tradition started a protestant pastor named Martin Luther was the first one to add candles to his tree because he was trying to recapture the beauty of the stars to his family. In “Oh Christmas Tree,” it says “each shining light” this is tradition brought from the candles. Putting lights on the tree are now one of the most common and honored Christmas traditions in western civilization. They can be seen on almost all Christmas trees and on several houses and yards. One of the most famous of these trees, the one in Rockefeller center has over twenty thousand Christmas lights on it. This holiday tradition, of having a Christmas tree, was not always accepted by Americans. It was not until the early to mid 1800’s that Americans began to accept Christmas …show more content…
Some of the lines say “So hang your stockings and say your prayers,” and “So let 's give thanks to the Lord above 'Cause Santa Claus comes tonight.” This shows a combination of the two, secular and Christian elements, which would not seem to belong together. “He 's got a bag that 's filled with toys for boys and girls again”, this is obviously part of today’s legend, but it is also a part of the history of Saint Nicolas because it is reminiscent of the Dutch Children putting their shoes