The biggest holiday of the Christian and UK calendar – Christmas – is almost upon us. Most people recognise December 25th as the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, but the truth is a little more complex than that. Actually, Christmas is a mix of ideas, incorporating ancient Roman Pagan, Norse and modern day commercial influences. This can be seen in the variety of names given to the large, white-bearded man tasked with delivering the gifts on Christmas Eve. He’s known as Saint Nicholas, Santa Claus and Father Christmas! The night before Christmas children will leave out a mince pie, carrot and glass of milk for Santa Claus and his reindeer
In the UK we celebrate by decorating Christmas trees, giving gifts and eating a special Christmas meal together. Many people go to church to listen to special services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day morning and special Christmas songs called carols will be sung.
The traditional Christmas meal is made up of turkey with stuffing, cranberry sauce, sausages wrapped in bacon, vegetables, roast potatoes and gravy. However, turkey is a recent addition to the Christmas meal as it was only introduced in the 16th century. Prior to that time, the meats of choice in medieval England were peacock or boar. And following the meal, if there’s still room, there’s Christmas or plum pudding with rum or brandy sauce and mince pies to enjoy.
When the feasting is over, it’s time to relax. This is usually done by sitting in front of the TV watching films and falling asleep.
Do you celebrate Christmas in your country and, if so, what will you do? Let me know and I’ll print the best responses.
Words to think about
Do you know what these word mean?
See if you can use them in another sentence.
CHRISTMAS QUIZ
Test your comprehension and research skills and have a bit of fun with the quiz below. Some answers are in the text above, others you’ll have to find elsewhere.
1. A synonym for gifts
p_ _ _ _ _ _ _
2. Another name for Father Christmas
S_ _ _ _ C_ _ _ _
3. The animals that pull Santa Claus’ sleigh
r_ _ _ _ _ _ _
4. The region where Santa Claus is supposed to live
N_ _ _ _ P _ _ _
5. Decorations to hang on a Christmas Tree
b_ _ _ _ _ _
6. What you usually find written inside Christmas cards
s_ _ _ _ _ _ g _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
7. Special hymns that are sung at Christmas
c _ _ _ _ _
8. A bird that we associate with Christmas dinner
t _ _ _ _ _
9. The traditional pudding served with rum sauce
p_ _ _ p_ _ _ _ _ _
10. It is traditional to kiss someone you like under bunches of this evergreen shrub
m _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
