Christmas Traditions In North America – The Customs That Make Up Our Holiday Season

The very mention of the holidays tends to bring smiles all over. This is the time that we eagerly await throughout the year. Some of the fondest memories of our childhood come from the moments we spend celebrating the holidays with our families and loved ones. And various Christmas traditions come together to make these moments even more exciting, joyful and memorable. Let us talk about the customs that we follow in North America and see how they have become an important part of our lives.

One of the first things that you would want to know about is the origin of these customs. You will be surprised to know that most Christmas traditions that we follow in the US have actually been brought to our country by immigrants coming in from Germany and England. Along with the well-known and practiced tradition of a brightly decorated Christmas tree, other traditions brought by these immigrants include Advent calendars, Christmas greeting cards, gingerbread houses and gingerbread cookies.

Some of these traditions are proven to have European roots while others are more mysterious and their origins seem to be completely untraceable! One example here will be the tradition of hanging the Christmas pickle on to the tree. Everybody in the US believes that the custom actually comes from Germany, but nobody in the Great Fatherland has even heard of the thing!

In fact most Christmas traditions in the US are similar to those followed in Canada. The Eskimo population however celebrates the festival differently. A practice also exists in Nova Scotia in which small groups of masked individuals march around about two weeks before Christmas. These masked groups attract attention by creating stir with much bell ringing and engaging in a noisy caper in an aim to get candy, sweets and goodies from onlookers. If the onlookers are able to correctly guess the identity of the masked individual, they can get them to turn down the noise. This tradition bears some similarity to Jonkonoo celebrations in the neighboring islands of the Caribbean.

The holiday and its many traditions that we follow in the US are usually focussed on family, travel, decorations and of course, shopping. You will also be surprised to learn just how many Christmas traditions are centered around shopping. The Christmas season officially begins on the Friday after Thanksgiving, known as Black Friday and which now ranks second in shopping for a single day to the Saturday before Christmas. We buy gifts for every member of our family and friend circle, to whom we want to express our love and care. We buy gifts for our employees and business associates to show that their presence and efforts are appreciated. We buy decorations that will light up our homes and offices with colour and brightness. And we buy stuff to ensure that we follow the rest of these interesting customs that make up our holiday time.

You can visit Christmaspickletradition.com for more information on Christmas traditions.

About The Author

Chamilla Williams is a historian and expert on the many ways people celebrate the festival of Christmas. She loves writing many interesting articles and blogs where she talks extensively about the many types and forms of Christmas traditions in practice around the world. Visit Christmaspickletradition.com for all the information you need.

Chamilla Williams is a historian and expert on the many ways people celebrate the festival of Christmas. She loves writing many interesting articles and blogs where she talks extensively about the many types and forms of Christmas traditions in pract