Christmas is the time of year in the Christian calendar when families come together to really appreciate each other and to celebrate this festive period with gifts and food. Here’s some fun facts about Christmas!
1. Armenian Christmases have interesting menus!
In Armenia, the traditional Christmas Eve meal consists of fried fish, lettuce and spinach. Many Armenians fast for a week before Christmas Eve, so the menu for the Christmas dinner is pretty light.
2. A finger-lickin’ Christmas?
Japanese people traditionally eat at KFC for Christmas dinner as it’s the closest food to turkey that you can get in Japan – It’s so popular they usually have to have place their Christmas orders 2 months in advance!
3. It’s… different, we’ll give you that.
The first artificial Christmas tree wasn’t a tree at all. It was created out of goose feathers that were dyed green – artificial trees were first developed in Germany in the 19th century due to major continuous deforestation.
4. Jingle Bells was never a Christmas song.
“Jingle Bells” was originally a Thanksgiving song – James Lord Pierpont wrote a song called ‘One Horse Open Sleigh’ which he performed at his church’s Thanksgiving concert. It was then in 1857, that the song was re-published under ‘Jingle Bells’ and eventually became one of the most popular Christmas songs ever.
5. Santa Claus has global appeal!
Santa Claus has different names around the world – Kriss Kringle in Germany, Le Befana in Italy, Pere Noel in France and Dushka Moroz (Grandfather Frost) in Russia.
6. Fancy a punch-up?
There is a village in Peru where people settle the previous year’s grudges by fist fighting. They then start the near year off on a clean slate.
7. Christmas is a big time for British travel.
Before the Covid pandemic it was normal for around 4.25 million British people to travel abroad for Christmas.
8. British people aren’t too frugal when it comes to Christmas…
£700 million each year is spent on unwanted Christmas gifts. Make sure to spend your money wisely! Plus, around £18 billion is with withdrawn from UK cash machines over Christmas.
9. Americans are crackers for cards!
An astonishing 3 billion Christmas cards are sent in the USA every year.
10. Watch what you eat where possible.
Around 230,000 tons of Christmas food is wasted and thrown away each year.
11. The Brits love their puddings…
£48 million a year is spent on Christmas puddings by UK families, and around 300 million mince pies are eaten over Christmas.
12. Can your tree beat that?
The world’s tallest Christmas tree was put up in a Washington shopping mall in 1950 – This tree reached 221ft high.
13. Deck the halls, not yourself!
The Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that 14,700 people visit hospital emergency rooms each November and December from holiday-related decorating accidents.
FAQs about Christmas
How did Christmas first start?
While Christmas is widely celebrated around the birth of Jesus Christ, it’s thought that modern celebrations first emerged in around 500 AD - but we’ve been celebrating since ancient times around December 25th.
Is Santa Claus real?
Yes! Santa’s legend dates back centuries - he’s been delivering presents since around 300 AD. He must be tired!
What does Christmas actually mean, as a word?
It’s a contraction of the phrase Christ’s Mass, where people come together to celebrate the birth and life of Jesus Christ.
Do you know any fun facts about Christmas? Share them in the comments below!
