Is It Christmas Yet?

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The earliest extant specifically Christmas hymns appear in fourth-century Rome. Latin hymns such as " Veni redemptor gentium", written by Ambrose, Archbishop of Milan, were austere statements of the theological doctrine of the Incarnation in opposition to Arianism. "Corde natus ex Parentis" ("Of the Father's love begotten") by the Spanish poet Prudentius (d. 413) is still sung in some churches today. [210] In the 9th and 10th centuries, the Christmas "Sequence" or "Prose" was introduced in North European monasteries, developing under Bernard of Clairvaux into a sequence of rhymed stanzas. In the 12th century the Parisian monk Adam of St. Victor began to derive music from popular songs, introducing something closer to the traditional Christmas carol. Christmas carols in English appear in a 1426 work of John Awdlay who lists twenty five "caroles of Cristemas", probably sung by groups of ' wassailers', who went from house to house. [211] Child singers in Bucharest, 1841

Saint Nicholas traditionally appeared in bishop's attire, accompanied by helpers, inquiring about the behaviour of children during the past year before deciding whether they deserved a gift or not. By the 13th century, Saint Nicholas was well known in the Netherlands, and the practice of gift-giving in his name spread to other parts of central and southern Europe. At the Reformation in 16th–17th-century Europe, many Protestants changed the gift bringer to the Christ Child or Christkindl, corrupted in English to Kris Kringle, and the date of giving gifts changed from December 6 to Christmas Eve. [107] As in England, Puritans in Colonial America staunchly opposed the observation of Christmas. [93] The Pilgrims of New England pointedly spent their first December 25 in the New World working normally. [93] Puritans such as Cotton Mather condemned Christmas both because scripture did not mention its observance and because Christmas celebrations of the day often involved boisterous behavior. [123] [124] Many non-Puritans in New England deplored the loss of the holidays enjoyed by the laboring classes in England. [125] Christmas observance was outlawed in Boston in 1659. [93] The ban on Christmas observance was revoked in 1681 by English governor Edmund Andros, but it was not until the mid-19th century that celebrating Christmas became fashionable in the Boston region. [126] Christmas Day is a holiday in many, but not all, countries. Many homes have Christmas trees and other decorations in the weeks leading to Christmas Day. Some workplaces hold Christmas parties prior to December 25. Festive activities include exchanging presents, singing Christmas songs, going to parties.The prominence of Christmas Day increased gradually after Charlemagne was crowned Emperor on Christmas Day in 800. King Edmund the Martyr was anointed on Christmas in 855 and King William I of England was crowned on Christmas Day 1066. Light brown – countries that do not recognize Christmas as a public holiday, but the holiday is given observance. Many Christians attend church services to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. [166] Ah, learned something today. In Germany and several neighbouring countries Christmas has two days, a first and a second Christmas day (25th and 26th of December). As Christ was born in the night, both days around that night get celebrated. Stupidly I assumed this would be the case in English speaking countries too. So, the UK and a few former colonies have only one day of Christmas, and a "Boxing Day". Thanks for making me spill my time on wikipedia and other sources.;) 172.69.54.39 08:10, 4 December 2019 (UTC) Christmas remains a time to forget about the long dark days and celebrate with friends and family. Bibliography This is a state public holiday. State government offices are closed. Some schools and businesses may also be closed on this day.

Ancient people were hunters and spent most of their time outdoors. The seasons and weather played a very important part in their lives and because of this they had a great reverence for, and even worshipped, the sun. The Norsemen of Northern Europe saw the sun as a wheel that changed the seasons. It was from the word for this wheel, houl, that the word yule (another name for Christmas) is thought to have come. At Winter Solstice the Norsemen lit bonfires, told stories and drank sweet ale. It may be Randall uses Server-Time, and not client-time like isitchristmas.com - Also, in the official Calendars, there are two Christmas days, first and second day of Christmas. I think Randall went only for the gifting day, which is different in many countries anyway. My kids get there presents on Christmas eve (24 December), their friends mostly on 6 December (Sint Nicolas) (or the evening before). 141.101.77.62 07:45, 3 December 2019 (UTC) Based on his 99.73% accuracy comment, I assume the comic is a static image, and will always show "NO", even on Christmas day. I think that is the whole joke, that his comic is correct 364 (+ leap days) of the year, when it is not Christmas. 172.69.34.158 08:23, 3 December 2019 (UTC)This also started the cultural conflict between the holiday's spiritual significance and its associated commercialism that some see as corrupting the holiday. In her 1850 book The First Christmas in New England, Harriet Beecher Stowe includes a character who complains that the true meaning of Christmas was lost in a shopping spree. [147] There are different hypotheses regarding the date of Jesus' birth and in the early fourth century, the church fixed the date as December 25. [b] [13] [14] [15] This corresponds to the traditional date of the winter solstice on the Roman calendar. [16] It is exactly nine months after Annunciation on March 25, also the date of the spring equinox. [17] Most Christians celebrate on December 25 in the Gregorian calendar, which has been adopted almost universally in the civil calendars used in countries throughout the world. However, part of the Eastern Christian Churches celebrate Christmas on December 25 of the older Julian calendar, which currently corresponds to January 7 in the Gregorian calendar. For Christians, believing that God came into the world in the form of man to atone for the sins of humanity, rather than knowing Jesus' exact birth date, is considered to be the primary purpose in celebrating Christmas. [18] [19] [20]