Judith Pena | December 26, 2022
When you are a child and why not, even as an adult, one of the most anticipated Christmas traditions is to place the Christmas tree. Get garlands, balls, lights and how many decorations you have at home or update on year-end purchases.
Get excited by placing the star at the top and finally on the morning of December 25: “Christmas morning” open the gifts at the foot of the majestic decorated tree.
But do you have any idea where this tradition comes from? For many it becomes a symbol of joy and family unity, but for others it can mean simple consumerism.
Well, the history of the Christmas tree dates back to the 2nd century BC (ac) and was considered a pagan Roman tradition; that is, non-Christian since the tree was used as a symbol of worship to other gods. According to National Geographic, the Romans decorated the streets during the Saturnalia; but it was above all the Celts who decorated the oaks with fruit and candles during the winter solstices or Saturnalia with the aim of reviving the tree and ensuring the return of the sun and vegetation during the summer. Since time immemorial, the tree has been a symbol of fertility and regeneration.
There are countless other versions of how this wonderful custom slipped into the Christmas celebration; However, the current tradition was born in Germany, in the 8th century, where there was an oak consecrated to the Norse god Thor, in the Hesse region, where a sacrifice was offered to him every year.
A Christian missionary and evangelizer named Bonifacio arrived in this region and upon seeing this pagan cult he cut down the tree and to appease the waters among the locals he offered them a fir (pine) as a symbol of peace and decorated it with apples (reminiscent of the temptation of the man) and with candles that represented illumination. Since then, trees began to be cut down to decorate during Christmas.
The tree decorations evolved over time, while in some regions they were decorated with candies or candies wrapped in gold and silver paper, in others they placed exotic fruits for the season.
Subsequently, the creativity and imagination of the manufacturers flew and they began to produce ornaments, some more striking than others depending on the place where they were made, the glass-producing areas made beautiful decorations based on this material, in the wood-producing areas small carved ornaments with details and were painted in colors.
At present we already have lights of different colors, blinking and even musical ones that help to give a personalized touch to the Christmas tree.
