Few symbols represent Christmas like the tree. Every year, families across the Western world are lit up with festive lights; strings of tinsel and Lighted Lantern Snow Globe, ornaments reflected bright lights in the windows, and people inside drank wine by the fire to keep warm, waiting for Santa Claus to arrive.
Come January, however, when the needles are no longer welcome, those same trees are neatly lined up by the roadside, becoming dispensable ornaments awaiting their fate as waste.
Cutting down a tree, bringing it to your home, and covering it with ornaments is, frankly, a bit of an odd way to celebrate. How did this Christmas tradition come about? In the western world, the majority of the Christian faith, Christmas, is to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ. But the ubiquitous presence of Christmas trees in Christmas celebrations has nothing to do with Christianity.
In fact, the Christmas tree’s history has its roots in pagan winter solstice celebrations, a fact that once made the now popular symbol scorned by Christian believers.
So how did this once-controversial symbol become such a central element of Christmas celebrations?
The importance of evergreens in pagan Christmas celebrations
Like many pagan traditions, the exact origin of evergreen symbolism and its meaning are uncertain, and historians can only determine a general range.
“The midwinter evergreen tree has been a traditional symbol since ancient times, symbolizing the triumph of life and light over death and darkness,” Carole Cusack, professor of religious studies at the University of Sydney, told National Geographic.
Several countries claim to be the origin of the tradition, but according to historians, the tradition is believed to have originated in northern Europe, where forests are covered with evergreens.
Evergreens have special significance in pagan cultures because they retain their color during the winter months; while other trees shed their leaves and look like dead things coming out of the ground, evergreens are a symbol of life.
Many pagan cultures decorated their homes with evergreen branches to ward off evil spirits, a common feature in many pagan winter solstice rituals. In fact, the period now known as the 12 Days of Christmas (December 25 to January 5) is considered by pagan cultures to be the darkest and most dangerous days of the year, according to the Ethnobiological Society.
Pagan mythology says that during those 12 days Odin would ride across the sky, the sun obscured by dark clouds, ready to kidnap any unfortunate person who could not find a place to hide.
Fearful devotees cover their homes with aromatic plants such as pine and fir and paint the walls with resin as a measure of protection.
The importance of these protective trees was detailed in the writings of the 12th-century German scientist and Catholic saint Hildegard von Bingen: “Wherever first stand, the spirits of the air detest and shun them. Magic and magic spells have less influence there than elsewhere.”
There are versions of the story in many ancient cultures, including references in ancient Greek mythology to the Kallikantzaroi, a race of elves who attempt to cut down the world’s trees throughout the year, but only appear to the world during the 12th.
Similar beliefs can be found in ancient Roman and Egyptian cultures, where greenery was equally protective and spiritually uplifting. Although Christianity eventually overtook many paganism to become dominant, elements of the pagan tradition remained – and eventually became the Christmas tree as we now know it.
The first Christmas tree probably originated in Germany and spread throughout Europe.
Although many countries claim to be home to the first Christmas tree, Latvia and Estonia each claim that an association called the “House of Blackheads” carried a Christmas tree through town, decorated it, and then burned it. But historians say the first Christmas tree is more likely to have appeared in modern Alsace, France, in the 16th century.
But Alsace was part of Germany at the time, and in that sense, the tradition belonged to the Germans.
Historical records show that a Christmas tree was indeed erected in Strasbourg Cathedral in 1539, and the tradition soon spread throughout the region.
How popular is this tradition in the area? So many people are cutting down trees that the local government has enacted laws against cutting down pine branches and, according to Time magazine, limits each house to one Christmas tree.
Protestant reformer Martin Luther is also widely credited with being the first to light a Christmas tree, decorating it with candles after a long night trek through the forest, where he was mesmerized by the stars overhead.
As the Germans settled in other European countries, they carried the tradition with them, and by the 18th century, the Christmas tree had become a common element of Christmas celebrations in European countries.
Around this time, in the mid-18th century, Queen Charlotte, the wife of George III, is said to have brought the first Christmas tree into the royal palace, but it wasn’t until 1848 that a common image of decorated trees and gifts appeared.
That year, the Illustrated London News published a print depicting Queen Victoria and Prince Albert gathered around a tree, their children staring at presents under the branches.
Christmas trees have been mentioned in American history since the late 18th and early 19th centuries, as it is likely that the Germans also brought the tradition of Christmas trees with them to the United States, where they grew in popularity with the publication of Godey’s.
But Christmas trees weren’t that popular at first.
Christmas trees in America
Christmas trees followed German immigrants into the United States, but fell out of favor because of entrenched cultural attitudes and fears that leisurely celebrations like Christmas would reduce labor productivity.
In 1621, the Puritan governor William Bradford wrote that he was trying to dispel the “pagan mockery” of the Christmas tree, arguing that it had no biblical origin.
A few years later, the Puritans in New England made it illegal to celebrate the holiday, and if anyone was caught doing it secretly, they were fined. Even after the ban was repealed, New Englanders remained disdainful of Christmas trees and holidays, so much so that many carolers were prosecuted for “disturbing the peace.”
The vitriol over Christmas trees continued into the 19th century, eventually tempered by popular ICONS, technological innovations, and a desire to unite America.
Then Godey’s illustrations were published, with some editing to remove the Queen’s crown and other references to the royal family to better resonate with American workers.
It was a clear success in the late 19th century, when Thomas Edison’s long-lived carbon filament lamp took Christmas tree decoration up a notch.
Electricity lobbyists spearheaded a push for the White House’s “National Christmas Tree” to showcase the wonders of electricity, decorating a 60-foot balsam fir with 2,500 light bulbs.
Not long after, Rockefeller Center, still under construction, displayed a 20-foot Christmas tree, and soon, Christmas trees began appearing in town squares across the country.
More than 25 million real Christmas trees are now sold each year in the United States, accounting for about $1.3 billion in annual sales — and that doesn’t include the families who put artificial trees in their homes each year.