Hello everybody. This is Andrew D. Harsh on Winter Holidays! I have placed these in alphabetical order.
CHANUKAH (or Hanukkah)
This is an eight-day Jewish holiday that begins on the 25th of the Jewish month Kislev. It fell very early this year, around Thanksgiving, but it usually falls in December. According to Jewish belief, a few rebels in Jerusalem fought the Syrian soldiers out of their temple after the Jewish religion had been banned. They tried to light a candle in the center of the temple, but they were dismayed to find that they had only enough oil for one night. However, the candle instead burned for eight days; it was a miracle! This is why Chanukah is eight days long and there are eight lower candles on a menorah (the ninth stays lit all the time).
CHRISTMAS
Though many of you probably only associate Christmas with Santa and presents, this is a Christian holiday on December 25th celebrating the birth of Jesus (son of God and second in line of the Three Prophets). Christian beliefs state that his mother, Mary, had to give birth to him in a manger because all of the inns in Bethlehem (the town, meaning “house of bread”) were full. An angel led three kings to the birthplace to give the gifts of myrrh, frankencense, and a golden apple.
KWANZAA
Kwanzaa, celebrated from December 26th to January 1st, was founded in 1966 to celebrate African-American culture; it is not associated with religion. It comes from the Swahili phrase for “first fruits,” which is “matunda ya kwanza.” Seven candles are lit to symbolize the holiday’s seven principles: unity, self-determination, group work, cooperation with money, purpose, creativity, and faith.
NEW YEAR’S EVE and NEW YEAR’S DAY
New Year’s Eve usually isn’t stressed much, but in New York we all watch the ball drop at midnight. Many people celebrate New Year’s Day in different ways. Venezuelan people wear yellow underpants and eat twelve grapes at midnight. In Colombia, one stuffs a doll with things that represent the past year and burns it at midnight, while in India one cleans and decorates with mango leaves. In the Netherlands, people eat donuts, while they eat rice cakes called mochi in Japan. In parts of the United Kingdom, you even roll barrels of burning tar down the street!
WINTER SOLSTICE
December 21st is the first day of winter in the Northern Hemisphere and an important holiday for many cultures. In Ancient Greek and Roman mythology, it mourned the goddess Persephone arriving in the Underworld. She had eaten a few enchanted pomegranate seeds while she was imprisoned by her uncle Hades (god of dead people). These forced her to marry him (gods were a bit crazy back then) and spend half of each year in the Underworld. Since her mother, Demeter, was the goddess of the harvest, all of our crops died every year when Persephone left her.
YULE
Yule is a Northern European festival from which many of our winter traditions come, though most people don’t know it. Ever wonder why we have Santa Claus? Decorate trees? Deck the halls with bowls of holly? Kiss each other under mistletoe (not as popular now)? Give each other presents? Well, here you go. We falsely associate many of these with Christmas, but they actually come from Yule.
Acknowledgments: Brainpop.com for info and image