6th Day of Yuletide: The Christmas Tree
that’s me (left) and my oldest friend at the ripe old age of 1.
If you’re following along with these posts, you have probably gathered that most of the Christmas traditions I’m sharing have older roots in Northern and Eastern Europe. There are some Roman influences, but overall, much of our winter celebrations come from the cold, snowy lands where sunlight is in short supply this time of year. The beloved Christmas Tree is no different.
As with most of these traditions, there is no hard and fast origin date or place for the Christmas tree. Decking the halls with boughs of holly and evergreen has been a practice among pre-Christian Europeans for centuries. Often branches of evergreens, symbolising the continuation and ever-renewing force of life on earth, would be placed over windows and doors, or decorating major festivals such as Roman Saturnalia. This Roman festival of wild revelry, celebrated during what is now modern day Christmas, was a festival of joy and merrymaking in honour of the God Saturn.
Most decorated evergreens were set up in village squares or paraded from house to house. It wasn’t until the Victorian era that the indoor Christmas tree decorated with candles became popularised. Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert, was German and introduced many of our most popular Christmas traditions to the royal household and thus to England and the United States. In parts of Poland and other Eastern European countries, the top of a fir tree or a large branch was hung suspended from the ceiling, usually over the table. These were decorated with fruits and nuts. In Germany in the 16th century, there are records of trees also being decorated with dates, apples and other foods, as well as cut paper flowers.
The tradition of tinsel on the tree also comes from Eastern and Northern Europe, where strips of silver were hung from the tree. There is even a legend of a Christmas spider who weaves strands of silver and gold to decorate the tree as the family sleeps. In some places it is considered good luck to find a spider and her web in the Christmas tree.
