Sarah Freiberg
It's time to delve into some Christmas Urban Legends!
*Disclaimer* When it comes to Christmas, whether it comes to religious reasons or other for you (as in the reader), these are theories, they are not meant as an explanation for ANYTHING, they are meant for entertainment purposes and entertainment purposes only.*
It's Christmas time, this means we can start decorating or welcoming the Christmas spirit into our lives for the month of December. But where do these habits come from, and can we identify certain theories concerning Christmas traditions? More specifically, where could the story of Santa originate from, why are the main colors of Christmas red and white, and why are pine trees regarded as the famous Christmas tree? Once again, I am in no way stating facts, I am engaging in a theory for entertainment purposes.
Growing up, the story of Santa was a prominent one, you would write a list, and whether you had been good or not during the year, you would get your presents or receive coal. Santa would stop by each house the night of Christmas Eve, down the chimney he would go, and there the presents would be, under the ornamented tree. There are many other stories along these lines, but where does it come from, where can we connect the dots? Why red and white, why gifts under the tree? And thus, this brings us to the theory of the red and the white presents under the tree, more specifically known as the Theory of Shamanic and Christmas Traditions from Siberia.
Back in Siberia and the Arctic Regions, Shamans who used to dress in red and white robes would collect a specific type of mushrooms. These little fungi wore the signature colors of red and white, and were regarded as a symbol of spirituality and benevolence. Shamans would then dry these, and give them to villagers which would further hang these as ornaments in their households. An interesting fact to note, these would only grow under conifers and birch trees, and therefore can remind us of the red and white wrapped presents under the pine tree.
Keeping in mind, the amounts of snow in these regions would sometimes block in the door, and therefore the shamans would bring down these offerings through the chimney, the same way Santa drops down the chimney dropping off the presents.
With the story of Santa, the elves play a big part as they would make the Christmas presents for the children. But where do these elves come from, how can we connect them to ancient folklore? In nordic mythology, elves have portrayed an important part in which they were also seen as their own godly-type of creature.
In modern times, in some households, elves are informants for Santa, they will help determine whether you have been bad or not. For instance, children in Iceland would wait for the ‘Yule Lads’, types of elves to put gifts in their shoes. This could even further entertain the reason for why we put gifts in stockings.
Additionally, elves have always been seen as creatures of magic and nature, which is very fitting for Christmas, especially when it comes to its magic and festivity.
Christmas and its traditions from all over the world, however celebrated, are amazing! Christmas over history has been recognized as a time of gatherings, food, family, festivities, and giving. It is a time of thanks, celebration, and even one of magic. Christmas, Yule, and many other types of celebrations and holidays are just around the corner, so here were some theories which link to some of the traditions we’ve taken in. Many end of year celebrations are around the corner, so let's commemorate the final month of the year and celebrate this wonderful time of the year!
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