Christmas
The most important day of the holiday is 25 December, or Christmas Day.
- The word “Christmas” comes from the words “Christ’s Mass”-the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ.
History of Christmas
- Christmas is a religious holiday .It’s celebrated on the 25-th of December.
- On this day British people celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ .
- This holiday means the beginning of the new year and the new life.
Christmas
Symbols
Christmas symbols
wreath
bell
candle
fireplace
reindeer
Christmas
tree
stocking
Father Christmas
gift
Snowflakes
Star
Angels
Crackers
Santa Claus
Stockings
Fireplace
Presents
- It is traditional custom in Britain for children to put stockings at the foot of their beds at Christmas for Santa Claus to fill them with presents .
- Father Christmas comes at night and puts presents in the colorful stockings and under the Christmas tree
- In the morning children find their presents there.
Christmas lights Рождественские гирлянды
The most big cities, especially London, are decorated with coloured lights and Christmas trees.
Greenery
Зелень для украшения
Омела (mistletoe )
Плющ
(ivy)
Остролист (holly )
Holly
остролист
Ivy
плющ
Mistletoe
омела
Святочное полено (Christmas log / Yule log)
Nowadays the Christmas log
should be cut down by the
head of the family. It should
be burnt down in a fireplace
together with the rest of the last
year's Christmas logs. The log
should be burnt for all twelve
days of Christmas.
The Christmas log
Candles
Candles
One of the main traditions of these weeks are wreaths with candles which have special meaning. Such wreaths are done on the first Sunday of this period, and usually they consist of 5 candles: four red and one white.
Рождественские открытки (Christmas Cards)
- Christmas Day is the greatest holiday in England. It is interesting to visit the shops before this holiday. There are a lot of nice Christmas cards and presents there.
- People send Christmas cards to their relatives and friends and wish them a Merry Christmas
Рождественские песни (Christmas Carols)
- One of Christmas traditions is singing carols
- Christmas is a family holiday and people try to celebrate it with their families.
Christmas carols are special songs which are sung during а Christmas season.
The songs are about Jesus and
the time when he was born.
Christmas
Tree
Balls
- People put up a Christmas tree near the fireplace and decorate it with toys, lights and sweets. British families always go to churches on Christmas
- Schoolchildren have two-week Christmas holidays
- Children write letters to Father Christmas and ask him for presents.
- Every Christmas British people are presented a big Christmas tree by Norway. They put it up in Trafalgar Square in London.
- Streets and houses are decorated with lights.
- In Trafalgar Square in London in front of the National Gallery, stands an enormous Christmas tree.
Christmas tree
Christmas tree is a part of the holiday. It is believed that it brings good luck.
Let’s decorate our
Christmas Tree
and sing a song “We wish you a Merry Christmas”!
Рождественский ужин (Christmas dinner)
- English families gather to have Christmas dinner. They eat traditional Christmas food : a roast turkey and a pudding . Every young woman in each household helps to stir the Christmas pudding if she wishes to be married that year.
Turkey
Puddings
Candy cane
Candycane
Parents treat children for Christmas candycane with sticks in the shape of a cane (or the shepherd's staff).
The sugar candy reminds letter J with which name Jesus begins.
Кристингл (Christingle)
Christingle
It actually means 'Christ Light' and celebrates
the light of Jesus coming into the world:
but no one is really sure how the Christingles
came into being.
- The orange is round like the world.
- The candle stands tall and straight and
gives light in the dark like the love of God.
- The red ribbon goes all around the 'world'
and is a symbol of the blood Jesus shed
when he died for us.
- The four sticks point in all directions and
symbolise North, South, East and West –
they also represent the four seasons.
- The fruit and nuts (or sometimes sweets!)
represent the fruits of the earth, nurtured
by the sunshine and the rain.
Печенье для Санты (Cookies for Santa)
Cookies for Santa
Children leave on a fireplace cookies for Santa as a token of gratitude for work which he does each Christmas.
Cakes and biscuits
Sing carols
Eat a Christmas pudding and roast turkey
Decorate a Christmas tree
Send Christmas cards
Give each other presents
Christmas traditions
Celebration
For people all over the world Christmas is a season of giving and receiving presents. People go from house to house to sing Christmas carols.
День подарков (“Boxing Day”)
Санта Клаус (Santa Claus)
Santa Claus brings present on New Year Eve in Britain .
Sleigh
Reindeer
an elf -
elves
- Santa Claus lives at the NORTH POLE, with a large number of magical elves, and nine (originally eight) flying reindeer.
Santa Claus, also called Santa, Father Christmas (in Britain), or Kriss Kringle (in America) travels through the sky on a sledge that is pulled by reindeers . He comes into houses down the
chimney at night and puts presents for the children in socks, in front of the Christmas tree, or near the fire place.
50
And what about Russia?
In Russia Christmas isn’t too much popular. In our country the main holiday is New Year’s Day. We celebrate it on the 31st of December. Children wait for Father Frost and Snowgirl who bring presents for them.
Rudolph
the Red-Nosed Reindeer