Frumenty was a spiced porridge, enjoyed by both rich and poor. It was a forerunner of modern Christmas puddings. It is linked in legend to the Celtic god Dagda, who stirred a porridge made up of all the good things of the earth.
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Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer was invented for a US firm's Christmas promotion in 1938.
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Carols began as an old English custom called wassailing, toasting neighbours to a long life.
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In Greek legend, malicious creatures called Kallikantzaroi sometimes play troublesome pranks at Christmas time. In order to get rid of them, salt or an old shoe is burnt. The pungent burning stench drives off, or at least helps discourage, the Kallikantza
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The tradition of putting tangerines in stockings comes from 12th-century French nuns who left socks full of fruit, nuts and tangerines at the houses of the poor.
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The first postage stamp to commemorate Christmas was issued in Austria in 1937.
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7.6 million Christmas trees are sold each year.
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Although now mostly vegetarian, in Victorian times, mince pies were made with beef and spices.
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