History of Winter Holidays

All year, kids and adults look forward to holidays like Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, Chinese New Year, and more. In this article we will dive into the history of why people celebrate these days.

Christmas is a Christian holiday, celebrated on December 25, that celebrates the birth of Jesus. Jesus is the spiritual leader in this religion and his teaching forms the base of Christianity. Inthe early years of Christianity, Christmas wasn’t celebrated and the birth of Jesus wasn’t recognized. In the early 4th century the Church declared that the birth of Jesus should be recognized as a holiday. The one problem was, there was no written document of the day of Jesus’s birth.

As a result, Pope Julius 1 chose Dec. 25. It is believed that he chose this date to try to adopt the traditions of the pagan Saturnalia festival. On this day people who chose to believe, would attend church and celebrate. The poor would go to the houses of the rich and demand hospitality; if the owners did not obey visitors would create mischief for them.

One of the most exciting things about Christmas for children is Santa Claus paying a visit to their house. Santa Claus started with a man named St. Nicholas, who is said to have been born in Turkey, around A. D. 280. He gave away all of his inherited wealth and helped the sick. He became known as, “The protector of children and sailors”. In 1822, Clement Clark Moore wrote a poem titled, “An Account of a Visit From St. Nicholas”. The poem created the idea of the jolly old man in a red suit that we imagine today.

Hanukkah is a Jewish holiday that falls on a different date every year. The origin of Hanukkah comes from about 200 B.C. Israel came under the rule of Antiochus IV, sources show that he exiled Jewish religion and forced believers to praise Greek gods. Around this time his soldiers went to Jerusalem and executed thousands of people, as well as destroying the holy Second Temple of Jerusalem. Soon Judah, son of Jewish leader Mattathias, started a rebellion against Antiochus and the Seleucid monarchy. Soon they had driven Antiochus and the Seleucid monarchy out of Israel. Afterwards, Judah and his followers rebuilt the temple and lit a menorah; the menorah's seven branches represent knowledge and creation, and were meant to be kept burning every night. Then Judah and his followers witnessed what they thought was a miracle, the menorah only had enough oil to keep burning for one night - it stayed lit for 8 nights. That gave them enough time to find a fresh supply.

Today Hanukkah is celebrated around the world. To celebrate, people often exchange gifts, light the menorah every night for eight nights, make jelly donuts, re cite prayers, and more.

Kwanzaa was created in 1966 by Maulana Karenga. He created Kwanzaa to unite African American people. He wanted it to have traditions that are similar to traditional African harvest festivals.

The name came from the Swahili phrase, “matunda ya kwanza,” which translates to, “the first fruits”. Kwanzaa has seven main principles; unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith.

People often celebrate both Christmas and Kwanzaa, “Kwanzaa is not a religious holiday, but a cultural one with an inherent spiritual quality,” Maulana Karenga writes. Something that sets Kwanzaa apart from a lot of holidays is that anyone can celebrate it, even though it started as bringing African Americans together.

Lunar New Year (also known as Chinese New Year or the Spring Festival) falls between January 21 and February 20 every year. The history of Lunar New Year is filled with legends. Legends are usually told to honor loved ones who have passed away. Tradition is a huge part of Lunar New Year. One example is cleaning one’s home to get rid of past bad luck.

Chinese zodiacs are 12 different animals that represent a different personality. They are assigned to a specific year in a 12-year cycle. After 12 years the rotation starts again. The personality that goes with the animal is believed to correspond with relationships and careers. The history of this varies, some say that it goes back to the Qin dynasty, others say the Han dynasty.

Each and every holiday is different so it’s important to honor the similarities and differences between different cultures, religions, and holidays.