Christmas Facts

Here are some interesting facts around Christmas.

  • Christmas trees take an average of 7-10 years to mature.
  • Holly berries are poisonous.
  • Christmas trees are baled to protect the branches from damage during shipping.
  • An artificial spider and web are often included in the decorations on Ukrainian Christmas trees. A spider web found on Christmas morning is believed to bring good luck.
  • In Britain, eating mince pies at Christmas dates back to the 16th century. It is believed that to eat a mince pie on each of the Twelve Days of Christmas will bring 12 happy months in the year to follow.
  • In 2007, 84% of Christmas trees purchased were pre-cut and 16% were cut your own.
  • In Sweden, a common Christmas decoration is the Julbukk, a small figurine of a goat. It is usually made of straw. Scandinavian Christmas festivities feature a variety of straw decorations in the form of stars, angels, hearts, and other shapes as well as the Julbukk.
  • The table for Christmas Eve dinner in the Ukraine is ste with two tablecloths: one for the ancestors of the family, the other for the living members.
  • Hallmark introduced its first Christmas cards in 1915, five years after the founding of the company.
  • The poinsettia is a traditional Christmas flower. In Mexico (its original birthplace), the poinsettia is known as the “Flower of the Holy Night”.
  • Christmas tree lights were first mass produced in 1890.
  • Child singer Jmmy Boyd was 12 years and 11 months old when he sang the Christmas favorite , “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus.” The song hit the top of the pop charts.
  • The biggest selling Christmas single of all time is Bing Crosby’s White Christmas.
  • Coca Cola was the first beverage company to use Santa for a winter promotion.
  • The custom of singing Christmas carols is very old – the earliest English collection was published in 1521.
  • In 1947, Toys for Tots started making the holidays a little happier for children by organizing its first Christmas toy drive for needy youngsters.
  • In an effort to sollicit cash to pay for a charity Christmas dinner in 1891, a large crabpot was set down on a San Francisco street, becoming the first Salvation Army collection kettle.
  • Clearing up a common misconception, in Greek, X means Christ. That is where the word “X-Mas” comes from. Not because someone took the “Christ” out of Christmas.