Christmas Traditions - English

For many of us, Christmas means a time for family and friends to celebrate at parties or dinners. Today, I'm going to focus on the British Isles for our traditional roots.

Many of the songs we sing for caroling or at our churches have their roots in English tradition. Joy to the World, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, and Coventry Carol are all from the British Isles. In fact, Christmas caroling seems to have originated in the British Isles then transferred to the United States. Probably due to English being the national language of the United States, England's history is closely connected to our own. Oddly, when we place Christmas carolers in "traditional" style, it's usually during the Victorian Era.

Both in Lancaster County area and Western New York, Christmas carolers can be heard. Some of the carolers might be families or groups of friends who wander around, but my experience has church groups providing most of the caroling.

Even more than the French, English traditions permeate American traditions to the point where the traditions are strictly Christmas. The English have their own Christmas traditions which we don't follow, such as Boxing Day, but some have carried over.

In looking through American history, and wondering why some traditions remain, and others disappear, the conclusion I came to is a simple one: by America welcoming many different ethnicities, we tend to accumulate cross-cultural celebrations (Christmas tree, stockings, caroling) in favor of traditions tied to a particular culture such as Boxing Day.

Out of all the English traditions that we maintain, it's the sound of Christmas that comes from the British Isles: caroling and the songs sung.

Today is Christmas Eve, so I will be taking a vacation for the remainder of the week. In the new year, I'll focus a bit more on both locations as everyone begins to consider summer vacation and spring breaks. Until then: Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.