Christmas in the UK is nothing short of magical\u2014a light dusting of snow covering historic
\nvillages, lights shining on glistening cobblestone streets, and an all around festive air\u2014what\u2019s
\nnot to like? But what makes Christmas in the UK so unique is many of today\u2019s traditions draw on
\nancient traditions that have been passed down for hundreds\u2014and in some cases,
\nthousands\u2014of years due to the sheer amount of history found within this part of the world.
\nUnlike some other places, less emphasis is placed on Christmas Eve in the UK with Christmas
\nDay and Boxing Day (December 26) being the main days of celebration. On Christmas Eve, it\u2019s
\nnot uncommon to sing carols, go to the local pub, attend a midnight church service (or do all
\nthree in one night).
\nOn Christmas Day, families gather around a Christmas tree and exchange gifts brought by
\nFather Christmas, not Santa Claus\u2014an important distinction. Although they\u2019re often considered
\nto be the same person now, Santa Claus and Father Christmas have two very different origins.
\nFather Christmas was originally more of a winter presence than a giver of gifts. His origins can
\nbe traced back to the 5th or 6th century and was offered gifts in a plea for a warmer winter. The
\npopularity of Santa Claus on the other hand can largely be traced back to Clement Clarke
\nMoore\u2019s legendary poem \u201cA Visit From St. Nicholas\u201d penned in 1823.
\nAfter the presents have been opened, it\u2019s time for a large feast typically of turkey and all the
\nfixings. For desert, it\u2019s common to have plum or figgy pudding\u2014a Christmas staple that can be
\ntraced back to the Middle Ages. It\u2019s also tradition to enjoy Christmas crackers after the meal.
\nNo, not a vessel for cheese, Christmas crackers are in their simplest form a cardboard tube
\nwrapped with festive paper. You pull on the ends (much like a wishbone) to pull them open
\nwhich happens with a \u2018crack\u2019. Inside, you will find a message, a small toy or trinket, as well as a
\npaper crown.
\nOne Christmas tradition in the UK that doesn\u2019t date back to ancient times is the Christmas Day
\naddress from the monarchy. This tradition began 1932 with King George V, and today is carried
\non by Queen Elizabeth. Many tune in to listen to the Queen\u2019s greeting during dinner.
\nDecember 26, better known as Boxing Day, was traditionally a day to bring gifts to employees or
\ndomestic staff. Today it\u2019s celebrated by bringing gifts and items to the less fortunate and by
\ngearing up for post-holidays sales.
\nAnd not to be forgotten, another important part of Christmas celebrations in the UK happens in
\nthe days leading up to December 25. From small villages to big cities, Christmas markets start
\npopping up across the UK in early December. Manchester is home to some of the largest
\nmarkets while Hyde Park\u2019s Christmas bonanza is an institution for locals and visitors alike. It\u2019s
\ncommon to find stalls selling food and drink as well as gifts, but some Christmas markets even
\ninclude Ferris wheels, roller coasters, ice rinks, ice sculptures, and more. And that\u2019s not even
\nmentioning the Christmas displays found in shop windows on every high street across the
\ncountry which as spectacular in their own right.
\nAs in many parts of the world, the excitement around whether it will be a white Christmas or a
\ngreen Christmas is the topic of much conversation in the UK. Although, statistically speaking, a
\nwhite Christmas tends to be fairly unlikely. Regardless, Christmas in the UK is an experience
\nthat should not be missed!<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Christmas in the UK is nothing short of magical\u2014a light dusting of snow covering historic villages, lights shining on glistening cobblestone streets, and an all around festive air\u2014what\u2019s not to like? But what makes Christmas in the UK so unique is many of today\u2019s traditions draw on ancient traditions that have been passed down for […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":122752,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[331],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.migrateworld.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122511"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.migrateworld.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.migrateworld.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.migrateworld.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.migrateworld.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=122511"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.migrateworld.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122511\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.migrateworld.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/122752"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.migrateworld.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=122511"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.migrateworld.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=122511"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.migrateworld.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=122511"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}