Christmas is popular festival in England. The origin of this festival in this
country can be traced back to the 596 AD, when St Augustine landed on the shores
of this country along with some monks who intended to spread Christianity among
the residents of this place. As soon as the people of this land became familiar
with the religion, the celebrations of Christmas became an annual phenomenon.
Like a traditional Christmas celebration, the celebrations in the United Kingdom
comprises of Christmas carols, decoration of Christmas tree and hanging up of
evergreen branches of holly and ivy.
Christmas Celebrations in UK
In UK also, Christmas is celebrated with popularly-followed rituals like
decorating a Christmas tree and kissing under Mistletoe. The decoration of
Christmas tree, basically a German custom was popularized in the United States
in 1841 by Prince Albert, and also gradually transpired to United Kingdom. The
practice of 'kissing under the mistletoe' came to the country's Christmas
celebrations from very old Druid rites. Singing Christmas carols is also one
popular tradition that emerged from this country by the groups of serenades who
used to visit every house to spread the holiday spirit of the festival.
In UK, Santa Claus is known as Father Christmas. Here it is a popular trend to
write letters to Father Christmas detailing their requests and tossing them into
the fireplace. Children also hang stockings from the bookshelf and wish them to
be stuffed with gifts of Father Christmas. Children often keep cakes and
pastries along with the socks to please Father Christmas. There is also a
popular custom of exchanging Christmas gifts in this country. Gifts are
exchanged between loved ones, relatives and friends on the Christmas day.
There is a huge feast on the occasion of Christmas in England. Christmas dinner
in the United Kingdom is generally eaten at midday on the day of Christmas. The
typical menu for Christmas 'daylight' dinner comprises of roasted turkey with
vegetables and sauces. Traditionally, a scrumptious fruity Christmas pudding
with brandy sauce is served as the dessert on this occasion. Other popular
dishes of a traditional Christmas menu includes crumble pies and pastry cases
filled with a mixture of chopped dried fruit.
The day after the Christmas celebrations in the United Kingdom is called as
'Boxing Day'. On this day, young boys of the country go around with clay boxes
to collect money. When these clay boxes are full, these are broken at the
churches and the entire money is given to the poor and needy. This ritual
related to the Christmas celebrations began in the country mid-nineteenth
century and is a unique and exclusive part of the Christmas season in the United
Kingdom. This day is basically meant for providing riches to the poor so that
they can fulfill their necessities on festive occasions.
