Christmas: The Surprisingly Intriguing History Behind America’s Favorite Holiday

It’s the holiday season. For many that means an excuse to listen to an excessive amount of Mariah Carey, baking diabetes, playing dress up with trees and furniture, and exchanging presents. ‘Tis the very core of our extravagant 21st century take on a celebration thousands of years old, and as most modern holidays are, Christmas today is vastly different from its ancient predecessors. So, what’s changed?

Christmas first emerged as a religious holiday around the second to third century AD. By the fourth century, this day was widely accepted to be Jesus’ birth date, although the specific date of December 25 was most likely chosen by the church to adopt the traditions of Saturnalia, a Roman festival ending two days prior. Similarly to Saturnalia*, on Christmas, observers would attend church** before joining a series of rowdy carnival-like celebrations and getting progressively more and more drunk (until they presumably passed out). On that day, the poor could also visit the houses of the rich and demand food and drink; if denied, they would often cause mischief and terrify the hosts.

This continued on until the 1600s, when, following the Protestant Reformation, Christmas was cancelled in an effort “rid the country of decadence”.*** Although this lasted briefly, the Pilgrims brought this belief with them when they landed in America. After the American Revolution, Christmas was not celebrated by many, as it was considered English.

In the early 19th century, unemployment was at an all time high, and class riots spread throughout the country during Christmas. In an attempt to quell these conflicts, America’s favorite winter holiday was reinvented with a new personality! Works such as A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens and Washington Irving’s The Sketchbook of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. spread messages about generosity and goodwill, and Christmas soon transformed from an excuse for dangerous activities and excessive drinking to an excuse to spoil one’s children. Due to its widespread popularity, buried religious customs were rediscovered, Christmas characters were created, and new (but not original) traditions, such as decorating trees, were added. Despite its purpose being to fit evolving cultural norms, most (American) families delusioned themselves into believing that Christmas had been celebrated the American way since forever.****

Today, Christmas is no longer “just another holiday.” Economy-wise, it generates nearly $1 trillion in retail and contributes $3 million to Mariah Carey’s income*****. But far more importantly, it has deeply ingrained itself into the souls of billions across the globe as a prominent cultural and religious phenomenon, bringing together strangers with the promise of joy, peace, and food. To all those who celebrate (and those who don’t) — Merry Christmas!

*Saturnalia was a Roman holiday celebrated in honor of Saturn, the Roman god of harvest and counterpart of Kronos/Cronos, the Father of Zeus in Greek mythology

**The Saturnalia equivalent of that was a sacrifice (of an animal, such as a goat) at the Temple of Saturn.

***According to the “History of Christmas”.

****Refer to this quote from “History of Christmas”, cited in sources below: “Although most families quickly bought into the idea that they were celebrating Christmas as it had been done for centuries, Americans had really reinvented a holiday to fill the cultural needs of a growing nation.”

*****If you don’t know who Mariah Carey is, first, you live under a rock. Second, she’s the singer of the Christmas pop hit “All I Want for Christmas is You” a.k.a. “One of the Most Overplayed Christmas Songs Every Year”. For more information about Mariah Carey, check out the Mariah Carey article in Life & Culture of Issue 2!