Christmas is coming...

1
Christmas is coming...

• Svetlana Olonen
• English
• Inglise keelt kõnelevad maad
• Christmas Customs and Traditions
• Form 6
• Supervisior Igor Jallai

2
What do you know about Christmas?

• People everywhere have different traditions that
  they observe when celebrating the Christmas
  season. Some put a candle in the window others
  hang mistletoe and holly around the house. Many
  people sing carols, put up nativity scenes, and
  decorate Christmas trees.

3
Christmas tree

• The Christmas tree is thought to have developed
  from the "Paradise Tree," an evergreen tree
  decorated with apples and used in a popular play
  about Adam and Eve held on December 24th in
  medieval Germany. Martin Luther is credited with
  being the first to decorate a tree with lights.
  As he walked through the woods near his home, he
  looked up into the night sky and thought about
  the star that led the wise men to the Holy Child.
  He then took home a small tree and decorated it
  with candles to represent the stars he saw that
  night and told hes family about his walk through
  the woods and recounted to them the story of the
  Christ Child.

4
Christmas Carols

• A carol is defined as a song of rejoicing,
  usually associated with festive occasions and
  religious celebrations. The first Christmas carol
  was sung by the angels who announced the birth of
  Christ to the shepherds in the fields near
  Bethlehem. Since that time many carols have been
  sung to honor the birth of Jesus. In fact, more
  that 500 English carols from the 15th century
  still survive, with the earliest printed copy of
  a carol that still exists being the "Boar's Head"
  carol.

5
Jingle Bells

• Dashing through the snow,In a one horse open
  sleigh,O're the fields we goLaughing all the
  way.Bells on bob-tail ringMaking spirits
  bright,What fun it is to ride and singA
  sleighing song tonight!CHORUSJingle Bells,
  Jingle Bells,Jingle all the way.Oh what fun it
  is to rideIn a one horse open sleigh!Jingle
  Bells, Jingle Bells,Jingle all the way.Oh what
  fun it is to rideIn a one horse open sleigh!A
  day or two agoI thought I'd take a rideAnd
  soon Miss Fannie BrightWas seated by my
  side.The horse was lean and lank,Misfortune
  seemed his lot,He got into a drifted bankAnd
  we, we got upset!

6
Gift Giving

• The tradition of giving gifts at Christmas is
  attributed to the wise men who gave gold,
  frankincense, and myrrh to the Christ Child.
  However, the true origin of gift giving at
  Christmas is this. "For God so loved the world
  that He gave His only begotten Son. That
  whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but
  have everlasting life."

7
Santa Claus
The legend of St. Nicholas came to America with
the Dutch settlers in New York. As America grew,
so did the gift-giver's traits with each ethnic
group adding more details. St. Nicholas's
northern residence, fur-lined suit, and
reindeer-pulled sleigh probably came from the
Slavic regions while his red suit, his secret
arrival, and his giving to good boys and girls
came from Europe. He was given physical
attributes first by Clement C. Moore in his poem
"The Night Before Christmas." Later, engravings
by Thomas Nast in the late 1800's and paintings
by Haddon Sundbloom, as advertisements for
Coca-cola in the mid-1900's, allowed the world to
see Santa as we know him today. Thus grew the
modern day Santa Claus.

• St. Nicholas was born in 280 AD, in Patara, a
  city of Lycia, in Asia Minor. He was the Bishop
  of Myra and was known for hes great generosity
  and his love for children. He would often give
  gifts to people at night or while he was
  disguised so that his identity would remain
  secret. He died on December 6, 343. Many European
  countries celebrate this date as St. Nicholas's
  Day, and gifts are given on that day rather than
  December 25th.

8
Christmas Greeting Cards

• Christmas cards are tokens of friendship and good
  will and have become the means by which people
  and families keep in touch with those far away.
  The first Christmas card was made in 1843 by an
  English illustrator named John Calcott Horsely.
  Sending cards at Christmas became quite popular
  in Europe and America during the next few
  years.Christmas cards have truly become a
  tradition of Christmas. Nearly 3 billion
  Christmas cards will be sent through the U. S.
  Post Office alone, not counting the ones sent via
  the internet. So get out your pens, flex your
  tired fingers, and think,
• "Who have I forgotten this year?"

9
For a Special Friend

• This special Christmas greeting,
• Choosen just for you,
• Is filled with happy thoughts
• And loving wishes too -
• And thoughts these loving wishes
• Have a special Christmas touch,
• Theyre hor the year-round happiness
• That you deserve so much.

Have a very Merry Christmas