Christmas or Christmas Day is a holiday celebrating the birth of Jesus. It has many aspects, both religous and secular, including the exchange of gifts, the Santa Claus myth, decoration and display of the Christmas tree, religious ceremonies, and others. Some Eastern Orthodox Churches celebrate on December 25 by the Julian calendar, which currently corresponds to January 7 on the Gregorian calendar. These dates are merely traditional; the precise chronology of Jesus' birth and death is still debated.

The popularity of Christmas can be traced in part to its status as a winter festival. Many cultures have historically celebrated their most important holiday in winter because there is less agricultural work to do at this time. Examples of winter festivals that have influenced Christmas include the pre-Christian festivals of Yule and Saturnalia. Many of the traditions associated with the holiday have origins in these pagan winter celebrations.

However, various local and regional Christmas traditions are still practiced, despite the widespread influence of American and British Christmas motifs disseminated by film, popular literature, television, and other media.

Etymology

The word Christmas is derived from Middle English Christemasse and from Old English Cristes masse. It is a contraction meaning "Christ's mass".

The name of the holiday is sometimes shortened to Xmas because Roman letter "X" resembles the Greek letter Χ (chi), an abbreviation for Christ (Χριστ?ς).

History

Pre-Christian Origins of holiday

Christmas has its origins in the Roman celebration known as the Saturnalia. The celebrations included the making and giving of small presents (saturnalia et sigillaricia). This holiday was observed over a series of days beginning on December 17th (the birthday of Saturn), and ending on December 25th (the birthday of Sol Invictus (the "unconquered sun")). The combined festivals resulted in an extended winter holiday season. Business was postponed and even slaves feasted. There was drinking, gambling and singing naked. It was the "best of days," according to the poet Catullus.

During the time in which Christianity was spreading throughout the Roman Empire, another similar religion known as Mithraism was also spreading throughout the empire. The followers of Mithraism worshipped Mithras, a god of Persian origin, who was identified with Sol Invictus. The followers of Mithraism, consequently, adopted the birthday of Sol Invictus as the birthday of Mithras. In 274 AD, Due to the popularity of Mithraism, Emperor Aurelian designated December 25 as the festival of Sol Invictus.

After the death of Constantine, three of his sons inherited the Roman Empire. Constantius, one of these, decreed that all non-Christian temples in the empire be immediately closed. He warned that anyone who still offered sacrifices of worship to the gods and goddesses in these temples were to be put to death. Those who were non-Christian or followers of Mithras were eventually forced to convert under these laws. In spite of their conversion, they adapted many elements of their old religions into Christianity. Among these, was the celebration of the birth of Mithras on December 25th, which was now observed as the birthday of Jesus.

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