It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…

You definitely know that it is almost Christmas when you begin to hum this tune, and many other great Christmas carols, on your way to an 8 a.m. calculus class.

Christmas is right around the corner and for most students, this means going home to great food and Mom’s old “Jim Nabors Best Christmas Hits” album. It also means that Santa will be visiting, along with every member of your entire family.

Christmas is a time for celebrating, and for most people, this means special family traditions. How did these Christmas traditions evolve? Who is Santa and where did he come from? Why do people kill green trees and put them in their living rooms? For the answer to these and other burning questions, read on.

Why do people give each other gifts at Christmas? The idea for exchanging gifts at Christmas stems from an ancient Roman custom in which people would give “good luck” gifts to friends and family. The gifts these Romans gave consisted mainly of fruits and pastry, a change from the leather jacket and gold chain that is commonly received today at Christmas.

One of the most famous and well-loved customs of Christmas is Santa Claus and his gifts. This custom of Santa Claus evolved from the Dutch. Dutch children would fill wooden shoes with straw for Santa Claus’s horses in hopes that these shoes would then be filled with candy and toys.

Oh, by the way, in Italy, Santa Claus is female.

Sending Christmas cards to relatives and friend is a popular tradition in the United States. At the present time, in the U.S., it is estimated that approximately three billion Christmas cards are sent out per season. Louis Prang, a German printer, was the first to introduce the Christmas card to the U.S.

What would Christmas be without the Christmas carol? One of the most popular and touching carols is “Silent Night” which was written by a priest named Josef Mohr in 1818. This carol was composed in only one afternoon. As the story has it, Father Mohr was in desperate need of a song for his parishioners because the usual song, accompanied by the organ, could not be played. Father Mohr then sat down to write a poem. He asked his friend, a guitar player, to accompany him that night at church. So on Christmas Day in 1818, “Silent Night” was heard for the first time.

The custom of trimming and lighting a tree for Christmas had its origin from Germany; therefore, it makes sense that German immigrants were the first to introduce it to the United States. The evergreen was not always used to decorate homes. The idea of using the evergreen originated in Rome during pre-Christian times. It was during the celebration in which they gave the aforementioned “good luck” gifts that the Romans used the evergreen to decorate their homes.

In Northern Europe, the evergreen, because it did not die in the winter, was a symbol of eternal life and became almost worshipped. The custom of setting up lighted Christmas trees in public places was first originated in the United States.

The traditions and customs of the past is what shapes the future customs and traditions. People all over the world celebrate Christmas in many different ways, ranging from religion to family traditions. Because of this diversity in beliefs, there is always an opportunity to adapt new traditions. Who knows, in 20 years we may be leaving Mrs. Claus the milk and cookies.

For those students that will be sticking around DeKalb during Christmas break, there will be various fun things to do. The Ellwood House will be having a open house this weekend from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

Santa will be at the Santa house every weekend from now until Christmas from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursday and Friday and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. For more imformation on things to do, contact the DeKalb Chamber of Commerce at 756-6306.