The word Christmas comes from Cristes maesse, or "Christ's Mass." There is no set date for his birth in scripture and it wasn't celebrated on any particular day. However Christmas was first celebrated on the 25th of December in Rome in 336AD with an aim t
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Black Friday in the UK is the Friday before Christmas. Instead of shopping, many people get very drunk!
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The first postage stamp to commemorate Christmas was issued in Austria in 1937.
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At Christmas, it is traditional to exchange kisses beneath the mistletoe tree. In ancient Scandinavia, mistletoe was associated with peace and friendship. That may account for the custom of "kissing beneath the mistletoe".
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Coca Cola was the first beverage company to use Santa for a winter promotion.
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Carols began as an old English custom called wassailing, toasting neighbours to a long life.
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In 1999, residents of the state of Maine in America built the world's biggest ever snowman. He stood at 113ft tall.
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The definition of a white Christmas in the UK is for a single snow flake (perhaps amongst a shower of mixed rain and snow) to be observed falling in the 24 hours of December 25th.
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