Paganism, Germany, and the Queen. All of these contributed to the Christmas tree tradition we practice today. How? Well, read on, my friend.
It’s already mid-December, which means most of us likely already have our Christmas trees proudly displayed in all their twinkling glory in some nook of our homes.
I don’t know about you, but in my house, with two small humans, it does not mean Christmas is coming until that tree is up and decorated. The stockings could be hung by the fire, carols could be blaring from the home pod, but if that tree is not up, it’s no dice.
Whether my own children have asked me or not, I cannot remember, but as a child, I wondered why we traditionally put up a tree in the first place. It wasn’t that I didn’t like it or didn’t want one; I was just curious. Who said this is what is done? Why a tree? Whenever I did ask, I was simply given the blanket statement, “Because it’s tradition.”
As children, we thought adults knew everything. They didn’t.
There were many contributing factors to our established tree tradition today, but to help prevent overwhelm, I’d like to focus on the three that I found most prominent in my research.
Then, just for funzies, I added my own personal holiday playlist if you feel so inclined to indulge your ears as the big day approaches.
The Pagans
In order to fully explain what pagans have to do with Christmas trees, I’ll have to give a little back-history.
Most people today associate Christmas with the birth of Jesus, which is fine, considering that no one will ever truly know when Jesus was actually born, though what little evidence there is points to either March, April or September.
Christmas literally means “mass on Christ’s day,” and was not celebrated in December in the beginning. The reason it was moved to December is because it was an easier way to get people to convert to Christianity, and December 25th was the date that was chosen to keep things consistent, and maybe to peg a date of birth for Christ. (This is a very truncated explanation. You can read more details here, or in any of the sources I site below.) Basically, Christians decided it would be easier to absorb pagan traditions that to try to dissuade them from giving them up altogether.
Ancient cultures celebrated this time of year way before the birth of Jesus, regardless of when he actually was born. The winter solstice occurs on December 21st or 22nd, and is the shortest day/longest night each year. The solstice celebration would occur on this week, celebrating the fact that the days would begin to grow longer and spring would return.
As part of the festivities of the solstice, decorating would occur. Because of the bleakness of winter, evergreen plants and trees (i.e. plants that remained green all year) were sought and gathered, mostly boughs that were hung over doorways and windows. Some cultures believed this was to help keep witches, evil spirits and even illness out of the home. Mostly, though, the evergreens would serve as a reminder of what was to come, bringing the outside in until spring could warm the earth and replenish the life of nature once again. In some cultures, the evergreens, therefore, were a symbol of everlasting life.
In almost every article I came across was this folktale about Saint Boniface. In this piece by Rittika Dhar via History Cooperative, she states:
Early Germanic folktales about Saint Boniface and Donar’s Oak talk of how an evergreen tree grew in the place of the felled oak. The triangular shape was supposed to be reminiscent of the Trinity and an indication to look toward heaven. Thus, we can conclude that the Christmas tradition of setting up a tree is rooted in ancient pagan beliefs.
Germany
Also in every article I came across: the modern Christmas tree is 100% credited to the Germans. Sometime in the Middle Ages or Renaissance, but definitely probably the 16th century, Germanic people would decorate trees with many things, including apples and gingerbread. Even if they were not able to acquire a tree, they would build a pyramid out of wood and place candles and other decor atop it to represent a tree.
There is even another myth or folktale around Martin Luther and the Christmas tree, as summarized by History.com:
It is a widely held belief that Martin Luther, the 16th-century Protestant reformer, first added lighted candles to a tree. According to a common version of the story, walking home one winter evening, Luther was awed by the stars twinkling amidst evergreens. To recapture the scene for his family, he erected a tree in the main room and wired its branches with lighted candles.
Because the United States is so commercially and religiously immersed in Christmastime nowadays, it may be difficult to believe that Christmas decor and festivities were not welcomed and even forbidden in the early years of the colonial establishing of this country. This was due to the Puritans shunning the pagan rituals because they were seen as unholy, and residents would actually be penalized if they were caught celebrating any of this frivolity on December 25th.
But the influx of German and Irish immigrants overwhelmed the Puritan’s strict measures, and soon undermined it as they brought the tradition of the Christmas tree to the Americas. Even still, the practice of having a Christmas tree was not widely accepted in the U.S. until the mid-1800’s.
The Queen
What, or rather who, solidified the acceptance of the tree in America was Queen Victoria and her family, which included her husband, Prince Albert. In 1848, this lovely Victorian picture was published in the Illustrated London News:
Because Queen Victoria was quite popular at the time, having a properly decorated tree with presents underneath as pictured with the Queen’s family became the trendy thing to do, and word made it all the way to the east coast of America, where the trend spread.
This photo also spun its own mythical tale, writes Judith Flanders, author of Christmas: A Biography:
This single image cemented the Christmas tree in the popular consciousness, so much so that by 1861, the year of Albert’s death, it was firmly believed that this German prince had transplanted the custom to England with him when he married.
By the late 1800’s, Christmas trees adorning U.S. homes became more plentiful, growing until it became the tree we all know today. In the early days of the tree coming to America, there was a distinguishable difference between the European tree and the American tree. Europeans tended to house trees that were closer to four feet tall, while Americans preferred trees that stood from floor to ceiling. Who’s surprised? Not me, she who grew up in this land where bigger has been understood to be better.
In summary:
WHO made the Christmas tree a tradition: Pagans, Germans, and The Queen
WHAT made the Christmas tree a tradition: evergreens and their symbolism throughout many cultures of eternal/the return of life
WHERE did the (modern) Christmas tree tradition come from: Germany
WHEN did the Christmas tree become a tradition: (evergreen boughs) all the way back to ancient times; (Christmas trees) 16th century Germany, but mid-19th century in America
WHY: to celebrate the winter solstice, and the promise and reminder that spring will return with gods of the sun, longer days and nature’s splendor
HOW did the Christmas tree become a tradition: evergreens as part of the ancient pagan festivals, followed by the Christian appropriation of the celebrations to make Christianity widespread
Thank you for reading my Monthly Musing of Why Do We Do That? I have always loved the history behind Christmas rituals that actually originated from pagan practices. I find it fascinating, so this was fun to research. Please leave a comment below if there is any mini-dive you’d like me to take on a particular subject.
As promised, here is my Holiday Playlist, if you would like to indulge:
A Brief Holiday Hiatus
This will be my only published newsletter this month. The holiday season is especially busy for me and my family. Just from the time span of October through January, we have an anniversary and three birthdays, and I do not need to mention the holidays that coincide with these months.
I plan on returning mid-late January, but until then, I please encourage you to catch up on my previous writings and musings here.
Thank you for being here, it means the world to me. Happy Holidays, and until next year!
XOXO-Jitsie
Sources:
Rittika Dhar, "The Pagan Origins of Christmas: Saturnalia, Yule, and Other Pre-Christian Traditions", History Cooperative, August 24, 2023, https://historycooperative.org/pagan-origins-of-christmas/. Accessed December 12, 2023
History.com Editors, “History of Christmas Trees”, HISTORY, November 28, 2023, https://www.history.com/topics/christmas/history-of-christmas-trees. Accessed December 12, 2023
Olivia B. Waxman, “How Christmas Trees Became a Holiday Tradition”, TIME, December 5, 2019, https://time.com/5736523/history-of-christmas-trees/. Accessed December 12, 2023
Morgan Cutolo, “Why Do We Put Up Christmas Trees”, Readers Digest, December 11, 2019, https://www.rd.com/article/why-do-we-put-up-christmas-trees/. Accessed December 12, 2023
Dave Roos, "When Was Jesus Really Born? Not Dec. 25", HowStuffWorks.com., December 23, 2021, https://people.howstuffworks.com/when-was-jesus-born.htm. Accessed December 12, 2023
Hans J. Hillerbrand. "Christmas". Encyclopedia Britannica, 11 Dec. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Christmas. Accessed December 12, 2023.
History.com Editors, “History of Christmas”, HISTORY, October 27, 2009, https://www.history.com/topics/christmas/history-of-christmas. Accessed December 12, 2023