As with many American holidays, Halloween was originally an attempt to combine ancient traditions with Catholic-sanctioned celebrations. Halloween was a Celtic practice which celebrated New Year. During the ancient times, the Celts believed that the souls of their dead ancestors return to earth on this day. With the passing of the centuries, the Halloween traditions of English colonials, particularly those of Irish descent, and American Indians meshed together to form a distinct set of American Halloween traditions. Click to continue »
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The United States join the entire Christian world in celebrating the nativity of Jesus Christ every 25th of December. Although there are traditions that are unique to each state of America, the general celebration of American Christmas include traditions that were borrowed from many different cultures.
One of the most striking images of American Christmas is Santa Claus. Although very popular as an American icon of festive celebration and gift giving, the idea of “Santa” actually originated from Scandinavia. He’s been around since 17 centuries ago, but he was born in the United States only during the 1860’s when Dutch immigrants began calling him Santa Claus from their own Sinterklaas. Today’s Santa Claus was popularized by Thomas Naast’s caricatures published during the 19th century.
Another popular symbol of American Christmas is the Christmas tree. The tree, which is by large associated with the celebration of Christmas, actually began as a pagan custom that had nothing to do with Christmas at all. The Germans brought this tradition in America around the late 1700s and since then, the practice of displaying decorated authentic and plastic trees had become a custom during this season. Click to continue »
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