How ancient Pagan rituals have affected modern Christmas traditions

Landon Bowling - Sophomore | Features

Every year during the holidays, people put up Christmas trees, hang wreaths, and wait for Santa Claus on Christmas night. However, very few people ever stop to think about where traditions like these actually come from. Many of them originate from ancient Pagan traditions.

One of the most obvious traditions taken from older rituals is the date of Christmas itself. December 25th was originally the date of a celebration in Rome called Saturnalia. It celebrates the Winter Solstice, or the date when the length of each day starts to become longer. When Christianity became the official religion of Rome, its citizens began to celebrate Christmas on the same day.

Another classic Christmas tradition taken from Pagan rituals is Christmas trees. During the celebration of the solstice, some Pagans began to put evergreen trees up and hang things on them. This represented the “return of light” that came with the solstice.

Pagan beliefs have even affected what is probably one of the most recognizable holiday traditions, Santa Claus. Although a lot of Santa’s story is based on St. Nicholas, his appearance is largely from Pagan beliefs. One prominent Pagan god was named Odin. He was frequently depicted as a somewhat chubby man with a beard and a flowing coat. As one could probably see, this greatly affected the image we have for Santa Claus himself.

Finally, the tradition of hanging mistletoe was adopted from Pagans. Pagans believed that mistletoe was a sign of peace, and if they met someone in the forest under the mistletoe, they would show each other peace. Slowly, Pagans began to hang mistletoe on their doorways to continue this idea of peace. When Christianity became more prominent in Europe, Christians adopted the idea that mistletoe was a sign of peace.