Christmas is the festival of miracles. There are several facts and
strange Christmas customs related to the festival that will make you
smile. Here is some of the interesting trivia that we have found about
Christmas:
Handed down from Druids, burning Yule Log as a good luck charm
was part of the ancient 12-day Christmas celebration.
In medieval times, 'Hot cockles' was a popular Christmas game
until Victorian era. In this game, other players give a blow to the
blindfolded player, who had to guess the name of the person who gave
the blow.
In the Middle Ages, Boar's head used to be a traditional
Christmas dish. This custom started when a bear attacked a
university student and he saved himself by ramming a book of
Aristotle's writings down its throat. The bear choked to death and
then he cut off its head and brought it back to his college.
Originated from a Celtic legend about the harvest god Dagda, who
stirred a porridge made up of all the good things of the Earth,
Frumenty was a spiced porridge, enjoyed by both rich and poor, which
is now replaced by modern Christmas puddings.
Some people connect modern traditions related to Father Christmas
to ancient Celtic or pagan religion. Santa' elves are considered to
be the modernization of the Nature folk while reindeers are believed
to represent the Horned God, which was one of the Pagan deities.
Towns named on Christmas or related traditions in United States
are Santa Claus in Arizona & Indiana, Noel in Missouri and
Christmas in Arizona & Florida.
