For more than 2,000 years, Christmas is celebrated on December 25, by Christians as well as those of other religious beliefs. Christians from around the world celebrate the day as they consider it to be the birth of Jesus — the Prophet whose teachings form the basis of their religion.
Decorating Christmas tree, preparing delicacies, meeting with friends and families and of course Santa Claus, whose arrival is awaited by thousands of children, are the common traditions of the day.
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Why December 25?
The day wasn’t celebrated till the 4th century AD. In the Bible, there is no mention of December 25 being the day Jesus was born.
According to some accounts, he was born in spring.
December 25 was chosen by Pope Julius I in around 350 AD. He was a native of Rome.
Some believe the day was chosen to absorb the Roman festival of Saturnalia.
The custom of celebrating December 25 as the birthday of Jesus first spread to Egypt by 432 AD and to England by the sixth century and to Scandinavia by the eighth century.
Christmas on January 7
Greek and Russian orthodox churches celebrate Christmas on January 7. This is because they follow Julian calendar which is 13 to 14 days behind the Gregorian calender, followed by Roman and other western churches.
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Tale behind Santa Claus
The legend of the beloved Santa Claus can be traced back to 280 AD in Turkey when St Nicholas was born. The monk gave away all his inherited wealth and travelled to the countryside to help the poor and needy.
He entered North America’s popular culture in the 18th century. Dutch families gathered to honour the death of St Nicholas — ‘Sint Nikolaas’ in Dutch, or ‘Sinter Klaas’ for short.
The iconic image of Santa Claus as a jolly man with white beared, donned in red attire, was drawn by political cartoonist Thomas Nast in 1881.
He drew on the 1822 poem of Episcopal minister Clement Clarke Moore, called ‘An Account of a Visit from St Nicholas.’
It is popularly known by its first line — ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas.’
