Stories, legends, myths - Christmas tree

Christmas is the time of presents, joy and spending time with loved ones around the Christmas tree. But it is also the time of romantic stories, of tales of elves and enchanted toy factories, of legends about the customs that accompany the holiday. Christmas stories never seem to be enough. That's why today will be all about Christmas stories, and Christmas tree stories.

The Christmas tree, symbol of hope, love and faith

There are many legends about the Christmas tree. One of them says that a little bird couldn't leave for warmer climes because it had a broken wing. When bad weather came, it tried to hide in the woods. First she took shelter in an oak, then in an elm, but none would take her in for fear of eating their fruit. In despair, she sat in the snow awaiting her end. Then a fir tree saw her and called her to it, hiding and saving her. On Christmas night there was a wind that was so strong that all the trees lost their leaves. All except the fir, which God rewarded for his kindness by leaving its leaves evergreen.

Another legend says that once upon a time, three sister virtues - Hope, Love and Faith - set out in search of the tree that best represents them. It had to be as tall as Hope, as big as Love and as strong as Faith. Searching through the forest, the three virtues came across the tree and realized that it was what they were looking for. For joy, they illumined it with the rays of the stars, decorating it. And so it became the tree that symbolizes eternal hope, love and faith.

When the Christmas tree tradition started

The origins of the Christmas tree go way back to prehistoric times, when our pagan ancestors celebrated the winter solstice around December 21 with evergreen boughs or decorated branches. Such customs were not limited to Europe. Evidence of the holiday was also found in Egypt and China. The Druids of England and France worshipped the oak and decorated oak branches in honor of the god of the harvest.

While pagans worshipped the oak tree, Christians chose the fir tree because of its triangular shape, which is reminiscent of the Holy Trinity. The first person to use the triangular shape of the tree associated with Christianity is believed to have been St. Boniface in the 8th century on his journey through Germany. However, pagan festivals, those celebrating pre-Christian gods or customs, continue to use oak leaves.

The first publicly erected and documented Christmas tree was in Riga, Latvia, in 1510. It was decorated with paper flowers and fruit, combining pagan and Christian traditions. Around the same time, in Germany, Martin Luther told people to put candles on the Christmas tree to symbolize the stars shining all night, a custom that quickly spread throughout the country.

Later, in the 1700s, German immigrants brought the custom to what is now the USA, and by the turn of the century it had reached Canada. Also in the 1700s the Christmas tree arrived in Russia, brought by Peter the Great. The custom lasted over 200 years, until it was outlawed after the Bolshevik revolution in 1917.

Although Denmark is now the world's largest producer of Christmas trees, the first Christmas tree was officially erected in Copenhagen's Town Hall Square in 1914. But it was not the first Christmas tree in Denmark. The first documented record of a Christmas tree here dates back to 1808. In England, the Christmas tree first appeared in 1841 when Queen Victoria's German-born husband, Prince Albert, presented his wife with a Christmas tree, which was put up in Windsor Castle and decorated. The custom quickly spread throughout England and the colonies.

Christmas tree tradition in Romania

In Romania, the Christmas tree has always been seen as a symbol, even before it was Christian. It was given at birth, decorated at weddings and funerals. Even today, in the villages it is still customary to decorate the Christmas tree with fruit and colored paper at weddings.

Christmas tree decorations appeared in Romania in the second half of the 19th century. The custom originated in Germany and there are two versions of the first Christmas tree. One says that it all started with the German nanny of a wealthy boyar who decorated a Christmas tree for the children in her care. The second, the one considered official and supported by documents, says that the custom was brought to the country by Prince Carol of Hohenzollern, the future King Carol I of Romania. The royal family's custom of celebrating Christmas around the Christmas tree quickly spread among the nobility, thus establishing the custom.

The Christmas tree is mostly decorated with baubles and lights. About the first glass globes, in another story

Other stories, legends, myths.