Christmas Day in United Kingdom by Kon/na Ralle

When-Where Christmas Day is celebrated in the United Kingdom on December 25. It traditionally celebrates Jesus Christ's birth but many aspects of this holiday have pagan origins. Christmas is a time for many people to give and receive gifts and prepare special festive meals.

What Do People Do? people decorate their homes and gardens prior to Christmas Day. These decorations may include: ~Christmas trees. ~Small colored fairy lights. ~Leaves and berries from holly trees and mistletoe bushes. ~Various other decorations

Public Life December 24 is not a public holiday. However, schools are closed for the Christmas holidays and many people have a day off work or leave earlier than usual. Stores and post offices are generally very busy, but may close earlier than usual. Early in the day, many public transport systems run to their usual schedule, but they may have a reduced service or close down in the late afternoon or evening. There may be a lot of congestion on the roads, at major train and bus stations and airports. This is because many people travel to spend Christmas Day with family or friends.

Background In the United Kingdom, Christmas Eve is both the religious and secular start of the festive season at the end of the year. For Christians, the celebration of the birth of Jesus is an extremely important part of the festivities. However, celebrations of life and light around the winter solstice pre-date the introduction of Christianity to the British Isles by thousands of years. People lit fires that were kept burning day and night to 'tempt' the sun back after the darkest part of the year and decorated their homes with leaves or branches from evergreen trees to symbolize everlasting life. These customs continue today as people put up Christmas trees and decorate their homes with small electric lights.

Symbols A wide variety of things symbolize Christmas Eve. These include Christmas trees, including the decorations and lights that people hang on them, and other evergreens, such as holly, ivy and mistletoe, which are used to decorate homes and other buildings. Other symbols are: the Christmas stocking; and Father Christmas (or Santa Claus), who travels on a sleigh pulled by reindeer, to fill these stockings with gifts; as well as the glasses of sherry and mince pies that people leave out for Father Christmas.

Love Christmas*-*

Presents

Santa Claus