The history of Christmas.

The word 'Christmas' comes from Cristes maesse, an English phrase that means Mass of Christ.

Christmas History - an overview


            The history of Christmas dates back over 4000 years. Many of our Christmas traditions were celebrated centuries before the Christ child was born. The 12 days of Christmas, the bright fires, the yule log, the giving of gifts, carnivals (parades) with floats, carolers who sing while going from house to house, the holiday feasts, and the church processions can all be traced back to the early Mesopotamians.

           Many of these traditions began with the Mesopotamian celebration of New Years. The Mesopotamians believed in many gods, and as their chief god - Marduk. Each year as winter arrived it was believed that Marduk would do battle with the monsters of chaos. To assist Marduk in his struggle the Mesopotamians held a festival for the New Year. This was Zagmuk, the New Year's festival that lasted for 12 days.

          The Mesopotamian king would return to the temple of Marduk and swear his faithfulness to the god. The traditions called for the king to die at the end of the year and to return with Marduk to battle at his side.

           To spare their king, the Mesopotamians used the idea of a "mock" king. A criminal was chosen and dressed in royal clothes. He was given all the respect and privileges of a real king. At the end of the celebration the "mock" king was stripped of the royal clothes and slain, sparing the life of the real king. More

BRITISH HISTORY

          

         History as taught in English schools is very incomplete and kids tend to end up knowing something about Henry 8th or World War Two and very little about the broad picture and a feeling of what 1000 years ago actually means. I have also been amazed how little young people know about 50 years ago and what life was like before the sexual revolution of the 1960s. I experienced the Blitz first hand (shows my age) and could always entertain the young people in the office with stories, indeed personal experiences, of that era...More