Fun Christmas Facts

We all love a bit of trivia, so what better than to share some fun Christmas facts with your classoorm, or homeschooled children and families. Teachers and parents can make flash cards with the history of Christmas and use them for a fun quiz show night.

• Santa Claus – Also known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, and Kris Kringle, the origin of Santa Claus begins in the 4th century. Saint Nicholas lived in what is now present day Turkey and was Bishop of Myra. Everyone thought of St. Nicholas as a generous man, and particularly devoted to children. After his death around 340 A.D. he was buried in Myra, and his generous ways inspired the gift giving of today.


• Christmas Stockings – According to legend, in Myra where Saint Nicholas lived, a nobleman left his three young daughters without dowries. The generous St. Nicholas, went to help them, but wished to remain anonymous. So he threw three small pouches of gold coins down the chimney where they were caught by the stockings that the young women had hung by the fireplace to dry. This was then interpreted into the present day stockings filled with gifts.


• Christmas Trees – Starting in 16th century Germany, fir trees were decorated indoors and out, with apples, roses, gilded candies, and colored paper. The popularity of the Christmas tree grew further in the Middle Ages, and continued to spread across the globe.


• Mistletoe – Druid priests 200 years before the birth of Christ used this plant in their winter celebrations. They revered the plant because oddly enough it didn’t have roots, yet remained green during the cold months.


• Candy Canes – During the 17th century, craftsmen created white sticks of candy in the shape of shepherds' crooks at the suggestion of the choirmaster at the Cologne Cathedral in Germany. The candy treats were given to children to keep them quiet during ceremonies. The candy cane's symbolism became that the color white represented Christ's purity, the color red the blood he shed, and the three red stripes the Holy Trinity.


• Christmas Cards – The first form of Christmas card began in England when young boys practiced their writing skills by creating Christmas greetings for their parents. But it was in 1843 when the first commercial Christmas cards were commissioned by Sir Henry Cole who found himself too busy to send individual greetings so he got John Callcott Horsley to illustrate some for him.