Posts Tagged ‘Christmas’
History of Epiphany and Twelfth Night: Ending the 12 Days of Christmas?
HISTORY OF TWELFTH NIGHT AND EPIPHANY Twelfth Night is on January 5, the eve of Epiphany. Epiphany occurs in the Christian calendar on January 6, signifying the event of the Magi, or Wise Men, visiting the baby Jesus. It is known in some Latin cultures as the Feast of the Three Kings or Three Kings…
Read MoreHistory of Childermas: Feast of the Holy Innocents
HISTORY OF CHILDERMAS: FEAST OF THE HOLY INNOCENTS Childermas, from an Old English word meaning the Mass of the Infants, is the festival in the church calendar begun in the fifth century — celebrated in the Western Church on December 28 and in the Eastern Church on December 29. It is also known as Bairn’s…
Read MoreHistory of the Christmas Truce of 1914: Peace in the WWI Trenches
History of the Christmas Truce of 1914: The Surprising Peace in the WWI Trenches
Read MoreHistory of Christmas Eve: Polish Christmas Wafer
History of Christmas Eve: Polish Christmas Wafer, its tradition and background
Read MoreHistory of the First American Christmas: 1776
HISTORY OF THE FIRST AMERICAN CHRISTMAS: 1776 It is called the first “American” Christmas because the Declaration of Independence was created the previous summer, essentially “divorcing” America from England and declaring our country an independent nation. Admittedly, the country had not yet created a solid form of government. The Articles of Confederation had not yet…
Read MoreHistory of A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story of Christmas
History of A Christmas Carol and the impact of Charles Dickens’ classic
Read MoreHistory of the Magi: Who were the Wise Men?
History of the Magi: The Wise Men. Who were they, where were they from, why did they come?
Read More5 Christmas Myths, Not Found in the Nativity Story
5 CHRISTMAS MYTHS: NOT FOUND IN THE NATIVITY STORY I’m often asked to explain the history behind a holiday: is it based on history, tradition, or legend? The best historical sources we have on the birth of Jesus are found in two Gospel accounts in the New Testament: St. Matthew and St. Luke. St. Matthew…
Read MoreHistory of Christmas: Caesar Augustus
HISTORY OF CHRISTMAS: CAESAR AUGUSTUS Perhaps it is fitting that our last historical Nativity character in the History of Christmas series should be the first person mentioned in St. Luke‘s story of the first Christmas. But he was not Jewish, nor a shepherd, nor a Magi. Instead, he was 1,500 miles away — the Roman emperor Caesar…
Read MoreHistory of Santa Lucia: Luciadagen — St. Lucy’s Day
History of Santa Lucia. Who is St Lucy and how does Sweden’s Luciadagen relate to Sicily? #HistoryOfTheHolidays
Read MoreHistory of the Poinsettia: Why is it the Christmas Flower?
History of the Poinsettia: the history of the “Christmas flower” from its origin in Mexico to its popularity in the US. #HistoryOfTheHolidays
Read MoreIs Die Hard Really A Christmas Movie?
IS DIE HARD REALLY A CHRISTMAS MOVIE? Scholars and historians have debated for centuries the question: “Is Die Hard a Christmas Movie?” Or at least during the last three decades since the movie was released. So readers have turned to me, your friendly neighborhood historian, to wrestle with this age-old question and help them resolve…
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