Christmas Trivia
Thursday, 18 December 2008 1. Christmas caroling began as an old English custom called Wassailing--wishing neighbors a long and healthy life.
2. The first United States President to decorate the White House Christmas tree was Franklin Pierce.
3. Santa Clause gets his origins from St. Nicholas a generous man from the 4th Century A.D. who helped children and the poor and often threw gifts threw children's windows to make them happy. The story was brought to America by Dutch immigrants who called the man "Sinter Klaas."
4. Electric lights for trees were first used in 1895.
5. Charles Dickens' famous work, "A Christmas Carol" was written in just six weeks.
6. During the Christmas buying season, Visa Cards alone are used an average of 5, 340 times every minute in the U.S.
7. Even though many believe the Friday after Thanksgiving is the busiest shopping day of the year, the Friday and Saturday before Christmas are actually the two busiest shopping days of the year.
8. In Greek, X means Christ. That is where the word "X-mas" comes from, contrary to the idea that people wanted to take the "Christ" out of Christmas.
9. "Rudolph" was created by Montgomery Ward in the late 1930's for a holiday promotion.
10. A traditional Christmas dinner in early England was the head of a pig prepared with mustard. Considering changing to this English classic?
11. Coca Cola was the first beverage company to use Santa Clause for a winter promotion.
12. If you received all of the gifts listed in "The Twelve Days of Christmas" song, you would receive 364 presents.
13. "It's a Wonderful Life" appears on television more than any other holiday film.
14. The U.S.'s official national Christmas Tree is located in King's Canyon National Park in California-- a giant sequoia over 300 feet high nicknamed the "General Grant Tree."
15. Christmas became a national U.S. holiday in 1870.
16. Charles Dickens' original choice for Scrooge's statement "Bah Humbug" was "Bah Christmas." Doesn't quite have the same ring.
17. "Jingle Bells" was first written for Thanksgiving but later became one of the most popular Christmas songs.
18. At lavish Christmas feasts in the middle ages, swans and peacocks were sometimes served "endored." This meant that the flesh was painted and the birds were served wrapped in their skin and feathers which had been removed an set aside prior to roasting. Care for some roast peacock?
19. Christmas trees are edible. The needles on pines, spruces and firs are actually a good source of Vitamin C and the pine cones are a good source of nutrition. So forget about the orange juice and go munch on your Christmas tree.
20. The first Christmas cards were vintage and invented in 1843, the Victorian Era.
21. "The Nutcracker" is the most famous Christmas ballet.
22. The poinsettia plant was brought into the United States from Mexico by Joel Poinsett in the early 1800's.
23. Kris Kringle is the German words for "Christ's Child"
24. The first Animal Crackers were not made for eating, they were made as Christmas tree decorations!
25. December 24, 1931: New York City construction workers, at the future site of Rockefeller Center, dragged in a 12-foot Christmas tree and decorated it with tin cans and paper. The first official Rockefeller Center tree, with 700 blue and white lights, appeared two years later.