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How Christmas Traditions Came to Be

Filled Xmas stockings

Who doesn’t love a good Christmas tradition?! The holidays are filled with cheer and happiness to make it the most wonderful of the time year, but how did your favorite traditions come to be? Read along with us…

The Christmas Tree is credited to Germany, where people started bringing green trees into their home and decorating them in the 16th century. When German settlers came to America, they brought the tradition with them. At first, in around the 1840s, Christmas trees weren’t widely accepted, and were seen as a pagan symbol. Queen Victoria was seen later in the decade with her beautifully decorated tree, which made the tree that we now know and love become popular throughout the UK and America.

Christmas stockings date all the way back to St. Nicholas who was born in 280 AD. The legend goes that Nicholas overheard someone in their community talking about widowed man who was worried his three beautiful daughters would not be able to marry because they were poor. Nicolas overheard this conversation, went to their chimney, and dropped three gold coins down. Coincidentally, the gold coins landed in their stockings – and the tradition of hanging Christmas stockings was created!

Our favorite confection creation, the gingerbread house, also dates back in Germany the 1800s. In 1812, Hanzel and Gretel was published widely, and gingerbread houses shortly followed. It didn’t take long for bakers to start adding decorations and German immigrants who came to Pennsylvania brought the tradition with them!

Leaving sweet treats for Santa dates back to Norse Mythology time period, cookies and milk came to be right here in America. Back in the 1930s, when the Great Depression was ravaging people around the country, leaving milk and cookies for Santa was seen as a token of gratuity and thankfulness for him coming to leave gifts!

a plate of food on a table

From your friends at Grand Canyon Rentals Adventures, we hope you and your family enjoy a magical holiday season. Don’t forget, when it’s time to book your next getaway, we’ll be here to help you every step of the way!