Happy holidays, pandas! We hope you had a wonderfulChristmas(if you celebrate)—filled with thoughtful gifts, quality time with loved ones, and plenty of delicious food. But as you finish off the last of your leftovers, don’t let the festive cheer fade just yet. We’ve rounded up a collection of hilarious Christmas memes to keep the celebrations going a little longer. Scroll down to enjoy them, and upvote the ones that make you laugh!This post may includeaffiliate links.
Happy holidays, pandas! We hope you had a wonderfulChristmas(if you celebrate)—filled with thoughtful gifts, quality time with loved ones, and plenty of delicious food. But as you finish off the last of your leftovers, don’t let the festive cheer fade just yet. We’ve rounded up a collection of hilarious Christmas memes to keep the celebrations going a little longer. Scroll down to enjoy them, and upvote the ones that make you laugh!
This post may includeaffiliate links.
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Christmas is all about joy, togetherness, and festivities, with plenty of activities to share with friends and family. Decorating the Christmas tree, waiting for Santa, exchanging gifts, watching holiday specials, and enjoying hearty meals are all part of the fun. But technically, it’s a celebration of Jesus’s birthday. So, where did all these other traditions come from?
The exact origins of modern Christmas celebrations, as they are known in the U.S., are difficult to pinpoint. However, there are some clues about their cultural beginnings. According toKyle Smith, a professor of the history of religions at the University of Toronto Mississauga, many of the significant changes in how Christmas is celebrated emerged in the second half of the 19th century.
At that time,Christmas was outlawedin the English colonies where Puritans held power. They opposed the holiday because it wasn’t mentioned in the Bible and viewed it as an excuse for debauchery. However, in the Dutch-controlled New Netherland colony, including cities like New Amsterdam (modern-day New York), there were no such strict prohibitions.
In 1624, New Netherland’s population was just 270 people, with few, if any, children. But over the following decades, dozens of families settled in the outpost, bringing their traditions with them. As the number of Dutch residents grew and eventually outnumbered others, their customs became the most widespread and influential in the area.
Sinterklaas eventually evolved into Santa Claus among English-speaking communities. His popularity grew as stories and images of the Dutch figure spread through literature. At the same time, writers like Washington Irving and Clement Clark Moore in the United States (‘Twas the Night Before Christmas) and Charles Dickens in England (A Christmas Carol), along with numerous other authors and illustrators, played a significant role in shaping Christmas into the more modern, commercialized celebration we know today.
The origin of the Christmas tree is also somewhat mysterious. According to Smith, there’s a long history of people across Europe bringing greenery into their homes during the cold winter months and decorating it.The modernChristmas tree, however, traces back to 19th-century Germany. That’s why it’s typically a fir or pine tree, and almost never something like a palm tree. Even so, the exact origins are hard to trace. “There’s no aha moment to say, ‘Oh that’s a Christmas tree,’” Smith explains.
The origin of the Christmas tree is also somewhat mysterious. According to Smith, there’s a long history of people across Europe bringing greenery into their homes during the cold winter months and decorating it.
The modernChristmas tree, however, traces back to 19th-century Germany. That’s why it’s typically a fir or pine tree, and almost never something like a palm tree. Even so, the exact origins are hard to trace. “There’s no aha moment to say, ‘Oh that’s a Christmas tree,’” Smith explains.
While the winter solstice now falls on December 21st, it was celebrated on December 25th before Julius Caesar reformed the Roman calendar in 44 BCE. Later, in 325 CE, the First Council of Nicaea officially decreed December 25th as Christmas, aligning it with existing solstice celebrations like the pagan Feast of the Unconquered Sun.Still, the idea of Jesus being born on December 25th stuck. “The most compelling theory is the whole point of the idea of the Messiah coming into the world at its darkest hour,” Smith says.
While the winter solstice now falls on December 21st, it was celebrated on December 25th before Julius Caesar reformed the Roman calendar in 44 BCE. Later, in 325 CE, the First Council of Nicaea officially decreed December 25th as Christmas, aligning it with existing solstice celebrations like the pagan Feast of the Unconquered Sun.
Still, the idea of Jesus being born on December 25th stuck. “The most compelling theory is the whole point of the idea of the Messiah coming into the world at its darkest hour,” Smith says.
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