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→Some Well Known Traditions
Christmas trees also have a likely pre-Christian link or influence, as in European and Near East cultures trees were sometimes seen as sacred, including evergreen trees that continued being green in the winter months. They were also celebrated at the time of Yule, which was a pre-Christian northern European celebration around the time of Christmas. The modern Christmas tree, however, may derive from the 15th century, when guildhalls in towns in Latvia and Germany began to put decorated trees in public places for people to enjoy and symbolize Christmas. The Protestant reformation may have inspired the idea of putting a Christmas tree in the home, as it allowed this symbol to be associated with Protestants, whereas Catholic families began to have nativity scenes used more commonly.
Christmas carols are perhaps among the most ancient traditions. Songs around the time of the Winter Solstice were sung by different pre-Christian societies worshiping in this period. After their conversion, Christian missionaries wanted to replace these songs with songs related to Christ. The first Christmas hymns and carols developed perhaps as early as the 2nd century AD, when a hymn called Angel's Hymn was ordered to be sung by Pope Telesphorus.
==Christmas Foods and Drinks==
