![]() In the Aegean civilizations, the exclusively female midwinter ritual, Lenaea or Lenaia, was the Festival of the Wild Women. Some would leave colanders on their doorsteps to distract them until the sun returned. In Greek and Cypriot folklore it was believed that children born during the festival were in danger of turning into Kallikantzaroi which come out of the Earth after the solstice to cause trouble for mortals. Saturnalia became one of the most popular Roman festivals which led to more tomfoolery, marked chiefly by having masters and slaves ostensibly switch places, temporarily reversing the social order. The slaves celebrated a banquet before, with, or served by the masters. Slaves were exempt from punishment, and treated their masters with disrespect. The toga was not worn, but rather the synthesis, i.e., colorful, informal "dinner clothes" and the pileus (freedman's hat) was worn by everyone. Gambling was allowed for all, even slaves during this period. ![]() The celebrations included a school holiday, the making and giving of small presents (saturnalia et sigillaricia) and a special market (sigillaria). Besides the public rites there were a series of holidays and customs celebrated privately. A large and important public festival in Rome, it involved the conventional sacrifices, a couch set in front of the temple of Saturn and the untying of the ropes that bound the statue of Saturn during the rest of the year. Originally celebrated by the ancient Greeks as Kronia, the festival of Cronus, Saturnalia was the feast at which the Romans commemorated the dedication of the temple of Saturn, which originally took place on 17 December, but expanded to a whole week, up to 23 December. In Penzance the festival has been given the name Montol believing it to be the Celtic Cornish word for Winter Solstice. It was originally part of the pagan heritage of midwinter celebrations that were regularly celebrated all over Cornwall where people would dance and disguise themselves by blackening up their faces or wearing masks. Mummer's Day is an ancient Cornish midwinter celebration that occurs every year on December 26 and New Year's Day in Padstow, Cornwall. Folk traditions and religious ceremonies throughout the world coincide with this time of new life, the mark of mid-winter. People during late Neolithic and Bronze Age eras may have been holding ceremonies to celebrate the Solstice. The Winter Solstice has been celebrated for thousands of years. ![]() German songs like "O Christmas Tree" (originally "O Tannenbaum"), "Silent Night" ("Stille Nacht"), and "Ode to Joy" ("An die Freude") have become synonymous with Christmastime, and most people don't realize that they were originally written in German. ![]() The Christians celebrate the birth of the Son.Ĭhristmas songs of today often find their roots in older folk traditions. The Pagans and other folk cultures celebrate the birth of the Sun. Interestingly, Christians celebrate Christmas around the same time as the Winter Solstice, taking folk traditions and Pagan celebrations of Yule and other ancient rituals and combining them with the story of the birth of Christ to create a holiday that coincides with other festivities, perhaps to encourage more people to accept Christianity or to make Pagan celebrations more acceptable. Some consider the Winter Solstice a rebirth, a celebration of mid-winter. The Winter Solstice is here! The shortest day of the year is today, so from tomorrow until the Summer Solstice in June, days will lengthen.
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