Christmas [Christ's Mass], in the Christian calendar, feast of the nativity of Jesus, celebrated in Roman Catholic and Protestant Churches on Dec. 25. In liturgical importance it ranks after
Easter Easter [A.S. Eastre, name of a spring goddess], chief Christian feast, commemorating the resurrection of Jesus after his crucifixion. In the West, Easter is celebrated on the Sunday following the full moon next after the vernal equinox (see calendar ); thus,
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Pentecost Pentecost (pĕn`təkôst) [Gr.,=fiftieth], important Jewish and Christian feast.
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Epiphany Epiphany (ĭpĭf`ənē) [Gr.,=showing], a prime Christian feast, celebrated Jan.
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The observance probably does not date earlier than A.D. 200 and did not become widespread until the 4th cent. The date was undoubtedly chosen for its nearness to Epiphany, which, in the East, originally included a commemoration of the nativity. The date of Christmas coincides closely with the winter solstice in the Northern hemisphere, a time of rejoicing among many ancient cultures. Christmas, as the great popular festival of Western Europe, dates from the Middle Ages. In England after the Reformation the observance became a point of contention between Anglicans and other Protestants, and the celebration of Christmas was suppressed in Scotland and in much of New England until the 19th cent.
In the mid 19th cent. Christmas began to acquire its associations with an increasingly secularized holiday of gift-giving and good cheer, a view that was popularized in works such as Clement Clarke Moore Moore, Clement Clarke, 1779–1863, American educator and poet, b. New York City, grad. Columbia, 1798. A biblical scholar, he was professor of Asian and Greek literature at the Episcopal General Theological Seminary, erected in New York City on land that he had
..... Click the link for more information. 's poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas" (1823) and Charles Dickens's story A Christmas Carol (1843). Christmas cards first appeared c.1846. The current concept of a jolly Santa Claus was first made popular in New York in the 19th cent. (see Nicholas, Saint Nicholas, Saint, patron of children and sailors, of Greece, Sicily, and Russia, and of many other places and persons. Little is known of him, but he is traditionally identified as a 4th-century bishop of Myra in Asia Minor.
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The Yule Log [Yule, from O.E.,=Christmas], the boar's head, the goose (in America the turkey), decoration with holly, hawthorn, wreaths, mistletoe, and the singing of carols by waifs (Christmas serenaders) are all typically English (see carol carol, popular hymn, of joyful nature, in celebration of an occasion such as May Day, Easter, or Christmas. The earliest English carols date from the 15th cent. The carol is characterized by simplicity of thought and expression.
..... Click the link for more information. ). Gifts at Christmas are also English; elsewhere they are given at other times, e.g., at Epiphany in Spain. The Christmas tree was a tradition from the Middle Ages in Germany. The crib (crèche) with the scene at Bethlehem was popularized by the Franciscans. The midnight service on Christmas Eve is a popular religious observance in the Roman Catholic and some Protestant churches.
See also Advent Advent [Lat.,=coming], season of the Christian ecclesiastical year preceding Christmas, lasting in the West from the Sunday nearest Nov. 30 (St. Andrew's Day) until Christmas Eve.
..... Click the link for more information. and Twelfth Night Twelfth Night, Jan. 5, the vigil or eve of Epiphany , so called because it is the 12th night from Christmas, counting Christmas as the first. In England, Twelfth Night has been a great festival marking the end of the Christmas season, and popular masquerading parties
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Bibliography
See M. Hadfield and J. Hadfield, The Twelve Days of Christmas (1961); P. L. Restad, Christmas in America (1995).
Christmas
The Nativity, fresco by Giotto,
c. 1305–06, depicting the …
(credit: SuperStock)
Christian festival celebrated on December 25, commemorating the birth of
Jesus. December 25 had already been identified by Sextus Julius Africanus in
AD 221 as the day on which Christmas would be celebrated, and it was celebrated in Rome by
AD 336. During the Middle Ages Christmas became extremely popular, and various liturgical celebrations of the holiday were established. The practice of exchanging gifts had begun by the 15th century. The Yule log, cakes, and fir trees derive from German and Celtic customs. Christmas today is regarded as a family festival with gifts brought by Santa Claus (
see St.
Nicholas). As an increasingly secular festival, it has come to be celebrated by many non-Christians.
Christmas1. a. the annual commemoration by Christians of the birth of Jesus Christ on Dec. 25
b. Dec. 25, observed as a day of secular celebrations when gifts and greetings are exchanged
c. (as modifier): Christmas celebrations
2. the season of Christmas extending from Dec. 24 (Christmas Eve) to Jan. 6 (the festival of the Epiphany or Twelfth Night)
Amahl and the Night Visitorslame shepherd boy gives crutch as gift for Christ Child; first opera composed for television (1951). [Am. Opera: EB, VI: 792–793]
fairy fills stockings with toys on Twelfth Night. [Ital. Legend: LLEI, I: 323]
custom originating in England of singing songs at Christmas. [Christian Tradition: NCE, 552]
nostalgic remembrance of Welsh Christmases. [Brit. Lit.: A Child’s Christmas in Wales]
feast of the nativity of Jesus Christ (December 25). [Christian Tradition: NCE, 552]
custom originating in medieval Germany of decorating an evergreen tree at Christmas. [Christian Tradition: NCE, 552]
legendary bringer of gifts; another name for Santa Claus. [Children’s Lit.: Father Christmas]
traditional Christmas carol. [Western Culture: “Deck the Halls with Boughs of Holly” in Rockwell, 146–147]
traditional Christmas carol. [Western Culture: “The First Noel” in Rockwell, 136–137]
O. Henry’s Christmas story of love and self-sacrifice. [Am. Lit.: Rockwell, 77–80]
given to the infant Jesus by the three Wise Men. [N.T.: Matthew 2:1–11]
hating the delights of Yuletide, he steals Christmas presents but eventually relents and joins in the merriment. [Children’s Lit.: Seuss How the Grinch Stole Christmas in Weiss, 210]
traditional Christmas carol. [Western Culture: “Hark! the Herald Angels Sing” in Rockwell, 132–133]
symbol of Christmas. [Flower Symbolism: Flora Symbolica, 174; Kunz, 331
yuletide song composed by J. S. Pierpont. [Pop. Music: Van Doren, 200]
traditional Christmas carol. [Western Culture: “Joy to the World!” in Rockwell, 138]
Santa Claus in Germany. [Ger. Folklore: LLEI, I: 277]
formerly, person chosen to lead Christmas revels and games. [Br. Folklore: Misc.]
film featuring benevolent old gentleman named Kris Kringle. [Am. Cinema: Halliwell, 493]
traditional yuletide sprig under which kissing is obligatory. [Br. and Am. Folklore: Leach, 731]
poem celebrating activities of Christmas Eve. [Am. Lit.: “The Night Before Christmas” ]
traditional Christmas carol. [Western Culture: “0 Come, All Ye Faithful” in Rockwell, 142–143]
traditional Christmas carol. [Western Culture: “0 Little Town of Bethlehem” in Rockwell, 120–121]
traditional colors of Christmas. [Christian Tradition: Misc.]
his nose lights Santa on his way. [Am. Music: “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer”]
jolly, gift-giving figure who visits children on Christmas Eve. [Christian Tradition: NCE, 1937]
the great miser during season of giving. [Br. Lit.: A Christmas Carol]
traditional Christmas carol. [Western Culture: “Silent Night” in Rockwell, 130–131]
announces birth of the Christ child. [Christianity: N.T.: Matthew 2:2]
log burned at Christmas. [Western Tradition: NCE, 552]
traditional Christmas carol. [Western Culture: “We Three Kings of Orient Are” in Rockwell, 122–123]
)