By: Diana Avila Gutierrez November 18th, 2020
Have you ever wondered where the tradition of putting a Christmas tree in your home for December came from? The first record of a Christmas tree is from Latvia in 1510.
Hundreds of years ago people hung evergreen boughs to keep away evil spirits.
The ancient people also believed in the sun god, Ra, and when it was winter the weather was cold which meant the sun wasn’t out. When summer returned the people would later decorate their homes with green palms and were ecstatic that the sun was out once again.
The Germans in the 1600s were the first to light their trees. Christians brought trees inside their homes and decorated them.
So who brought Christmas trees to America?
The Germans continued their tradition of Christmas trees and they brought it in 1830.
Americans didn’t like the idea of the Germans having Christmas tress because they believed it was a pagan symbol. Americans would penalize those who had trees and decorations.
In 1846 Queen Victoria was sketched with a Christmas tree. Queen Victoria married a German so he brought the tradition of the Christmas tree to her. This made Christmas trees popular all over the world including in America.
The main difference of German and American Christmas tree is that a German tree is only a few feet tall while an American tree is very big.
Germans did not use ornaments. They used apples, nuts, shapes, and flowers.
Facts:
- It takes 7 years for Christmas trees to reach the height of 6 to 7 feet
- 98% of Christmas trees are grown in farms
- About 30 million families have Christmas trees in their homes
- The majority of Christmas trees come from Oregon, North Carolina, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Washington
Works Cited:
History.com Editors. “History of Christmas Trees.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 27 Oct. 2009, http://www.history.com/topics/christmas/history-of-christmas-trees.
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