The Colors of Christmas

There are several colors which are traditionally associated with Christmas. The most common colors people uses are Red, Green and Gold. But why do we have them and what do the colors represent?

Most the colors and their meanings come from the western/northern European traditions and customs, when Christmas is in the middle of winter and it's dark and cold.

Green is the symbol for nature, youth and the hope of eternal life. It is for this reason that Christmas is a feast of hope, with a newborn child as its central symbol. People observed that long after other plants have died during the winter, fir trees and holly bushes have remained evergreen. So they thought that something magical must be making these trees and bushes survive the harshest of winters. These plants were thus worshipped and feared at the same time. From then on, they have come to be associated with the mystery of life and green became the color of life. Evergreen plants, like Holly, Ivy and Mistletoe have been used for thousands of years to decorate and brighten up buildings during the long dark winter. They also reminded people that spring would come and that winter wouldn't last forever!

Historical records show that the Romans wove wreaths of holly and hang these on their walls and doors to celebrate the winter solstice. These wreaths show that they are looking forward to the "rebirth" of the sun and the return of warmer weather. The Romans would exchange evergreen branches during January as a sign of good luck. The ancient Egyptians used to bring palm branches into their houses during the mid winter festivals.

In many parts of Europe during the middle ages, Paradise plays were performed, often on Christmas Eve. They told Bible stories to people who couldn't read. The 'Paradise Tree' in the Garden of Eden in the play was normally a pine tree with red apples tied to it.

Now the most common use of green at Christmas is the Christmas Trees.

Red is the color that is considered the greatest excitement, and is also the color of the month December. As the religious symbol it stands for fire, blood and charity. As mentioned above, an early use of red at Christmas was the apples on the paradise tree. They represented the fall of Adam in the plays. Red is also the color of Holly berries, which is said to represent the blood of Jesus when he died on the cross. Red is also the color of Bishops robes. These would have been worn by St. Nicholas and then also became Santa's uniform!

Gold stands for sunlight and radiance. It is the color of the Christmas stars, tinsel, candles, and electric lights. Gold is the color of the Sun and light - both very important in the dark winter. And both red and gold are the colors of fire that you need to keep you warm. Christians who were once pagans saw the new god as they had the sun that is the radiant being that lighted the world. Many artists show Christ in a pool of light, or with a bright halo around his head. Gold was also one of the presents brought to the baby Jesus by one of the wise men and traditionally it's the color used to show the star that the three wise men followed. It also signifies the gift of eternal life.

White is often associated with purity and peace in western cultures. The snow of winter is also very white! With much of the Northern Hemisphere blanketed in snow, white is a natural color to represent winter. It is also important to the Christian Church, which uses the hue to portray purity, joy, forgiveness and the light of God. White paper wafers were also sometimes used to decorate paradise trees. The wafers represented the bread eaten during Christian Communion or Mass, when Christians remember that Jesus died for them. White is used by most churches as the color of Christmas, when the altar is covered with a white cloth (in the Russian Orthodox Church, Gold is used for Christmas).