Christmas in Britain.
• Why do we decorate our houses at Christmas time? •
To celebrate Jesus' birthday on Christmas Day many people decorate their homes.
• What are the traditional Christmas Decoration Colours? •
Red and green are the traditional colours of Christmas.
Green represents the continuance of life through the winter and the Christian belief in eternal life through Jesus.
Red symbolizes the blood that Jesus shed at His Crucifixion.
• When are Christmas decorations put up? •
Christmas decorations used to be put up on Christmas Eve and not before. Indeed, many people believed that it was extremely unlucky to bring evergreens, the traditional item to decorate homes, into the house before that date.
• Christmas Decoration in the home •
In Britain today, few people would now wait until Christmas Eve. Most people put up their decorations about a fortnight to a week before
Every house decorated for Christmas in Britain will have a decorated fir tree.
• Natural Decorations •
People also hang greenery around the house, such as holly and ivy. The needlelike points of holly leaves are thought to resemble the crown of thorns that Jesus wore when He was crucified. The red berries symbolise the drops of blood Jesus shed.
• When should Christmas decorations be taken down? •
It is unlucky if you don’t take your decorations down before the end of the 12th Day of Christmas, on the 5th January. This custom has been around since the reign of Queen Victoria.
Up until the 19th century, people would keep their decorations of holly, ivy, box, yew, laurel and mistletoe up until 2nd February, Candlemas Day, the end of the Christmas season, 40 days after the birth of Jesus.