Christmas 2019 (& Did You Know..?)

Christmas Day - beautiful crisp day for a morning walk.

Crisp - but muddy, hence the wellies!

Did you know...

Advent - the period leading up to Christmas - starts on the Sunday nearest to 30 November. It ends on the Sunday before 25 December.  The word Advent comes from the Latin "adventus" meaning "arrival" or "coming".

Christmas comes from the Middle English ‘Cristemasse’ which in turn comes from the Old English Cristesmæsse, a phrase first recorded in 1038.

The letter “X” (Chi) in Greek is the first letter of the Greek word for Christ ("Χριστός"), and “Xmas” has been used as an abbreviation for Christmas since the mid 1500s.

Boxing Day gets its name from all the money collected in church alms-boxes for the poor.

Puritan Oliver Cromwell outlawed Christmas celebrations and carols in England from 1649-1660. The only celebrations allowed were sermons and prayers.  It’s still technically illegal to eat mince pies on Christmas Day in England; Oliver Cromwell banned Christmas pudding, mince pies and anything to do with gluttony and the law has never been rescinded.

Holly and Ivy have been used to decorate homes since the 9th century because they symbolise everlasting life. The holly represents Christ’s crown of thorns and the berries his blood.
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The first recorded date of Christmas being celebrated on December 25th was in 336, during the time of the first Christian Roman Emperor, Constantine, but it was not an official Roman state festival at this time.

Christmas Eve - freshly dug parsnips

Decorated window

Didn't they do well?!