After the diversity of religious festivals and notable national days during the previous few months, the focus of December is undeniably one holiday – Christmas. This month we take a deeper look at the day when over two billion people (over a third of the world’s population) will celebrate the birth of Christ.
Month info: The tenth month in the old Roman calendar. In Latin decem means “ten”. The Anglo-Saxons referred to December–January as “Yule month”, marking the pagan festival which has contributed to some modern holiday traditions such as mistletoe and the Yule log..
Featured Holiday in December
December 25: Christmas Day
Under the Julian calendar, the winter solstice was fixed on December 25th, and this date was also the day of the popular roman holiday of Saturnalia, in honor of Saturn, the god of agriculture; which was later superseded by Sol Invictus, a day that bundled up the celebration of several sun based gods into one easy to manage festival.
As Christianity began to take a hold across the Roman empire and beyond, the date of when to celebrate the birth of Christ became a bit of an issue, with several different dates proposed.
It wasn’t until 350 AD, when the then Bishop of Rome, Pope Julius I, fixed the official Christmas day on December 25th. Unfortunately Julius I didn’t show his working out on how he reached this date; some scholars later suggested that it was calculated as nine months after the Annunciation (March 25th), when the angel Gabriel is said to have appeared to Mary and told her she would bear the son of God. Whatever the reasoning, it is clear that, just as key pagan sites were being chosen for new churches, so too the date was chosen with the intention to catapult Christmas into becoming a major festival by placing it over the pre-existing pagan festivals.
Facts about Christmas
- Alabama was the first US state to legalize the celebration of Christmas. The last state to make Christmas a legal holiday was Oklahoma in 1907.
- Many parts of the Christmas tree can actually be eaten, with the needles being a good source of Vitamin C.
- The bestselling Christmas single ever is Bing Crosby’s White Christmas, selling over 50 million copies worldwide since 1942.
- Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer was invented in 1938 by a department store, Montgomery Ward, as a marketing gimmick to get kids to buy holiday coloring books.
- Jingle Bells was originally a song intended for Thanksgiving.
- Kissing under the mistletoe is thought to derive from Frigga, the Norse goddess of love, who was associated with the plant.
- All the gifts in the song ‘Twelve Days of Christmas’ would equal 364 gifts.
- In Icelandic folklore, the Yule Cat (Jólakötturinn) will eat anyone who does not receive new clothes by Christmas Eve!
- Good King Wenceslas was not a king, he was a Duke
More fun facts about Christmas
Focus on Christmas
December 25: Christmas Day around the world
Not all countries celebrate Christmas on December 25th, and it is not a public holiday in many countries.
The Orthodox Church recognizes January 7th as the day that Jesus was born. The different date from the western tradition of December 25th is twofold. Firstly, in 1582, Pope Gregory XIII, ruled that the Catholic Church should follow a new calendar – called the Gregorian calendar rather than the Julian calendar which had been established by Julius Caesar in 46 BC. This meant the dates differed by 10 days with Gregorian Christmas on January 4th. Secondly, due to the way that leap years differ between the two calendars, Orthodox Christmas has moved forward by another 3 days since 1582 and is now on January 7th.
And more countries than you might think don’t celebrate Christmas at all.
December 25: Oh Christmas tree…
What better way to celebrate the birth of someone who is the basis for one of the world’s greatest religions than by chopping down a tree, sticking shiny things on it and putting it in your living room for a few weeks in December?
This rather strange arboreal custom emerged in the 16th century in Germany. The origins go back further yet, to ancient tree worship and pagan rituals tied to the winter solstice on December 21st.
The most popular and enduring origin for the Christmas tree traditions is that a monk who went on to become St. Boniface, the Apostle of the Germans, appropriated trees for Christmas back in the 7th century, putting a pre-Christian tradition into the service of Christianity.
Other Notable Holidays in December
December 8: Feast of the Immaculate Conception
Overshadowed by her son’s birthday, this is still an important holiday in many Catholic countries. For Roman Catholics, this day celebrates the belief that Mary, mother of Jesus, was preserved from original sin all of her life. It is observed as a day of obligation with required church attendance.
The Immaculate Conception is a Holy Day of Obligation whose meaning is often confused. By the sounds of it, one would think we would celebrate the day Jesus was conceived. On the contrary, it is the day that the Blessed Mother Mary was conceived.
Mary’s mother was St. Anne and her father was Joachim. While they are not mentioned in the bible, their names appear in some very early Christian texts. Anne and Joachim had been a childless couple until an angel appeared telling Anne that she would give birth to a child that the world would honor. Anne became a saint as she offered her child to god’s service.
December 31: New Year’s Eve
New Year’s Day was fixed at January 1st in 153 BCE, when the two Roman consuls, after whom – in the Roman calendar – years were named and numbered, chose that date, mainly for military reasons.
During the Middle Ages, a number of different Christian feast dates were used to mark the New Year, though calendars often continued to display the months in columns running from January to December in the Roman fashion.
New Year’s Eve is traditionally the time to make New Year’s resolutions, which one hopes to fulfill or abide by in the coming Year; such as stop smoking or drinking alcohol, or lose weight or get physically fit.
“Auld Lang Syne”, written by the Scottish poet Robert Burns in 1788, is traditionally sung at midnight on New Year’s Eve. The words auld lang syne mean “times gone by”.
National Days in December
16 countries have their national days in December. How many people in the company do you know from each country? Remember to wish them a happy national day!
| Date | Country | Holiday |
|---|---|---|
| Dec 01 | Central African Republic | National Day: Proclamation of the Republic in 1958 |
| Dec 01 | Romania | Great Union Day: unification with Transylvania |
| Dec 02 | Lao | National Day: Peoples republic declared 1975 |
| Dec 02 | United Arab Emirates | National Day: Formation of federation of seven emirates on independence from the UK in 1971 |
| Dec 05 | Thailand | King Bhumibol’s Birthday: Birthday of late King Bhumibol Adulyade |
| Dec 06 | Finland | Independence Day: Declaration of independence from Russia 1917 |
| Dec 09 | Tanzania | Independence Day: Independence from the UK in 1961 of Tanganyika |
| Dec 12 | Kenya | Jamhuri Day: Marks the date of Kenya’s establishment as a republic on 12 December, 1964 |
| Dec 13 | Saint Lucia | National Day: Saint Lucia is the Patron Saint of Saint Lucia |
| Dec 16 | Bahrain | National Day: Accession Day for the late Amir Sh. Isa Bin Salman Al Khalifa |
| Dec 16 | Kazakhstan | Independence Day: Declared sovereign republic within the USSR in 1990 |
| Dec 17 | Bhutan | National Day: Ugyen Wangchuck elected hereditary king in 1907 |
| Dec 18 | Niger | Republic Day: Autonomous state within the French Community from 1958 |
| Dec 18 | Qatar | Qatar National Day: The assumption of power of Sheikh Jassem bin Mohamed al-Thani in 1878 |
| Dec 20 | Macau | Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day: Transfer of sovereignty to the PRC in 1999 |
There is a Day for That!
Throughout the month, there are days set aside to observe all sorts of events, some serious and some not so serious. These days can provide interesting ways to engage employees in diversity issues. The table below shows a selection of these days with some ideas how you could use them within your organization.
| Day | Observance | Suggestion |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Advent begins | Poll: Do you have an advent calendar? Get into the Christmas spirit with our Christmas Quiz. |
| 4th | National Cookie Day | Food: Like anyone needs an excuse to bring cookies to the office. |
| 11th | Christmas Jumper Day | Charity: Have a ‘wear a christmas jumper to work’ Day and support Save the Children. |
| 12th | Gingerbread House Day | Pictures: Post your pictures of your Gingerbread houses on the intranet. |
| 26th | National Thank-you Note Day | Discussion: Which colleague most deserves a thank you note this year – and why? |
| 31st | Make Up Your Mind Day | Poll: It’s the last day of the year. Are you the sort of person who looks back on what you have done or forward to what you will do? |
