It is curious that initially spruce in Russia was considered a funeral tree and could not accompany holidays in any way. One and a half centuries have passed since the day Peter I issued a decree on the postponement of the New Year to January 1 and a special decoration of houses, before the Russian people dared to bring the first Christmas tree into the room.

The history of the New Year tree is closely connected with Christmas, and in Europe it is called the Christmas tree. And the very severity of this tree, and the decorations, and the pommel in the form of a star - everything is connected with the New Testament story of the Savior coming into our world. The Gospel does not say anything about spruce, and this is understandable: such trees do not grow in hot and dry Israel. Even in our time in the promised land on New Year buy cypress or araucaria. Therefore, for the Christmas story of our forest beauty, let's turn to legends.

Advice. Get a live spruce in a tub and put it in your bedroom. You will be guaranteed healthy sleep, air saturated with phytoncides and New Year's mood.

She came from the north for the Star of Bethlehem

According to the main European legend, not only the Magi, but even animals, birds and plants came to express their joy to the Infant and his Mother. I also heard about the miraculous birth of the mighty Hyperborean spruce. However, having come to the nativity scene where the Mother of God was feeding the Son, the spruce felt shy and remained on the sidelines. Other trees began to ask her why she did not come closer. Spruce looked at their rich fruits and lush foliage and replied that she was afraid to scare the people sitting inside.

The trees understood that the guest was embarrassed by her simplicity and gloom, and began to present her with flowers, apples, figs, nuts, sprinkled juice on her cones, which made them golden. And the modest spruce began to shine and shimmer, and entered the cave. The Son of God saw her, smiled and waved his hands in greeting. Most of all he liked the elegant northern spruce.

In that beautiful story all the details have been perfected over the centuries:

• sweet and fruity decorations symbolize the gifts that the Magi brought to the Child;
• the star at the top is the same Bethlehem herald who showed the way to the den;
• is a web woven by spiders for very poor people, which Jesus himself turns into sparkling threads.

Advice. Check the quality of the garlands with which you are going to illuminate the holiday every year: they often cause fires.

The tale of how spruce pagan symbols won

In foreign Europe, spruce is not widely distributed: Scandinavia, the Alps and the east of Germany. It is not surprising that it was in these places that the tradition of decorating Christmas with fragrant coniferous trees was born. But even earlier, the spruce became an object of worship among the ancient Celts, opening the year according to their plant horoscope.

Celtic priests - druids - at the end of December chose the highest and most powerful spruce in the vicinity and dressed it up with gifts for forest spirits. This happened during the Yule holiday, the twelfth night of which corresponds to our New Year's.

The branches of the tree were richly hung with lamps with burning fat - symbols of light, as well as nuts, cookies, and sometimes the entrails of animals that were intended for good spirits. Many symbols of Christmas are derived from Druidic rites:

• the wreath that must be hung on the door is the former Yule fir wreath, a symbol of the merging of the end and beginning of the year;
• delicacy "Christmas log" - a Yule log turned into sweetness, which burned without ceasing, all 12 days of the holiday;
• indispensable candles on the table - a way to call good spirits into the house.

However, all these are pagan signs, how did they penetrate into Christianity? And it's all thanks to the tree. In the 8th century A.D. missionary priests roamed the German forests, trying to convert the pagans to the path of truth. Among them was Saint Boniface, who was not afraid of either the dense northern thickets or Druid sacrifices.

Boniface called the Druids to their sacred tree, the Oak of Thor, and proclaimed that he would cut it down with the help of his Christian god. The druids chuckled and continued to watch the monk's companions cut down the oak. And a mighty tree collapsed, and the pagans realized that the unknown god effortlessly subjugated Thor. And in place of the fallen oak, a beautiful Christmas tree grew, which Boniface pointed out to the Druids with the words: “Here it is, the Christian tree.”

And how glorious that the ancient custom of celebrating the New Year with a coniferous miracle shining in the corner of the living room, mysterious and winking garlands, has survived to this day!

Why decorate a Christmas tree: video

In December, we automatically buy a Christmas tree, decorate it, light it, and sometimes give it to the cat to be torn to pieces. At the same time, we rarely think about what kind of tradition it is and why we do it. SCAPP decided to delve into the history of the issue and find out who came up with decorating the Christmas tree for the New Year.

Legend

Exists ancient legend, according to which the tree received its status due to the birth of Jesus Christ. If you do not go into the details of the legend, then you can schematically outline the rise of spruce along career ladder trees: modesty, humility and fruits and vegetables on the branches. As a result, the star of Bethlehem is at the crown and the position of the main tree of Christmas.

Ancient Germans

Some archaeological finds allow us to assert that the Germanic tribes celebrated the mid-winter festival at the end of December. The spruce was most often the symbol of the holiday, since only it remained green in cold times. Later, when the pagan gods of the Germans began to be supplanted by Christianity, there was a story connected with Saint Boniface. Trying to show the powerlessness of the pagan gods, Boniface cut down an oak tree dedicated to Thor, the god of thunder. And then the unforeseen happened: a felled oak, falling, filled up all the trees around, except for spruce. But the resourceful preacher was not at a loss and called the coniferous tree - "the tree of Christ." You understand, after that - the Christmas tree was "carried on the hands."

Martin Luther

Another version says that in 1513, on the eve of Christmas, Martin Luther, admiring the beauty of winter forest, not that starry sky, decided to cut down one of the coniferous trees and make a splash in his house: decorating the Christmas tree with candles and bows. The popularity of Luther and the novelty of the idea helped to implant the new Christmas tradition into the masses.

The tradition of "dressing" the Christmas tree

Historians claim that the Christmas tree began to be decorated in the 16th century in the city of Alsace ( modern France), using mainly fruits for this. At first, the Christmas tree was decorated only with apples (a symbol of the tree of paradise), but over time, other decorations began to be added that symbolized Christmas. For example, apples meant fertility, the star at the top - the Star of Bethlehem, bells - a symbol of shepherds, candles and lanterns - stars and bonfires that lit the way to baby Jesus. Later, the decorations became more sophisticated and not so religiously symbolic.

The history of the Christmas tree in Russia

Yes, as you might guess, the tradition of using Christmas trees for Christmas came from Peter I. One of the newfangled decrees said that Christmas trees should be placed near "noble houses."

Along the big streets, near deliberate houses, in front of the gates, put some decorations from trees and branches of pine, spruce and cerebellum

Nevertheless, the Christmas tree did not take root: only the rich put it up - the poor had no time for green fun. The non-survivability of a coniferous tree is also due to the fact that in Russia, spruce branches were laid on the path along which the deceased was carried to the cemetery. In the 19th century royal family began to use decorated Christmas trees in her residences, which increased the popularity of the latter. Eventually to late XIX For centuries, the tree has become an invariable attribute of Christmas, though not for long. After October revolution spruce was banned, as it symbolized the old royal customs.

A coniferous tree was saved from oblivion by the Pravda newspaper and famous phrase Stalin: "We must live better, we must live more cheerfully." On December 28, 1935, the Pravda newspaper published an article with the headline “Let's organize a good Christmas tree for the children for the New Year!”. Soon the evergreen came under an amnesty and has since become a symbol of the New Year in Russia.

Hello, Dear friends and blog guests! The wonderful New Year and Christmas holidays are coming. It is customary to decorate a room on them, decorate a Christmas tree, give gifts to each other.

Do you know why a Christmas tree is put up and decorated on New Year's Eve? This is the question I will try to answer in this article.

Even in ancient times, people believed in the life of forest spirits, which, in their opinion, lived on coniferous trees. In order for the spirits not to send misfortunes, it was necessary to appease them. Therefore, ancient people performed certain rituals and decorated the Christmas tree with various fruits and delicacies.

Why is a Christmas tree decorated for the New Year?

> There are several legends why the Christmas tree has become an attribute of Christmas and New Year.

One of them says: When Jesus Christ was born, not only people, but also animals, birds, and plants came to congratulate the Virgin Mary on this event. Everyone carried some gifts for the baby and his mother.

Among all those present was El. But when it was her turn to come in with congratulations, she did not enter, but stepped aside. Other trees were very surprised and asked why she did this. Spruce, looking at their lush foliage and rich fruits, explained that she was afraid to scare the Son of God or prick with her needles, and she had nothing to give.

The plants felt sorry for the Christmas tree, and they shared their gifts with it: bright flowers, juicy fruits, green leaves, nuts. When such a beautiful Spruce tree approached the baby, he smiled, and immediately the Star of Bethlehem sparkled even brighter above her.

> Residents of Europe are sure that the head of the German Reformation, Martin Luther, introduced the custom of putting up and decorating a Christmas tree. Once, returning home on Christmas eve, at night through the forest, he wanted to please his family and brought a Christmas tree. The children happily decorated the Christmas tree with candles and ribbons. Subsequently, many residents followed his example.

So the tradition of putting up and decorating a Christmas tree for Christmas gradually spread around the world.

Why is a Christmas tree decorated on New Year's Eve in Russia?

> And in Russia, Peter I first introduced New Year's Eve with a Christmas tree, returning from another trip to Germany. Also, by his decree before 1700, he ordered the New Year to be celebrated on January 1, and not on September 1.

But at that time this tradition did not take root. Perhaps because then people associated spruce branches with seeing off the deceased to the churchyard, and not with New Year's fun.

> It is believed that the custom of decorating a Christmas tree in Russia was revived by the wife of Tsar Nicholas I, Princess Alexandra Feodorovna, a German by birth.

In 1818, she ordered that Christmas trees decorated with fruits and sweets be placed in all the premises of the royal court in Moscow.

Gradually, this tradition spread to other major cities. But still, dressing up the Christmas tree for the New Year and Christmas in Russia began only at the end of the 19th century.

> With the coming to power of the Bolsheviks, it was forbidden to put a spruce on holidays, as it was associated with religion and the church.

> But before the beginning of 1936, the spruce tree was allowed to be installed on New Year's Eve, New Year's holidays were organized, and toys for decorating the Christmas tree began to be sold in stores.

In the USSR, the Christmas tree turned into a New Year tree, and a five-pointed star began to be installed on its crown.

> Nowadays, the green beauty is considered an obligatory attribute of the celebration of the New Year, and is associated with fun, dancing, round dances, Santa Claus and gifts.

Now I think you know why they decorate a Christmas tree on New Year's Eve. And, if your child asks about it, you can always tell.

Happy New Year everyone! I wish you to have fun this holiday with your family next to a bright shining green Christmas tree (fir or pine)!

Why they decorate a Christmas tree for the New Year The work of a 4th grade student Irina Kudzieva

We invited the forest Christmas tree to visit, How elegant she is, The Christmas tree in our hall ... Why is this for the Christmas tree special treatment, why does she come to life in verses and, most importantly, why exactly is she a symbol, an indispensable attribute of the New Year, our favorite holiday?

I was interested in the opinion of other guys. (25 people) Here's what they think: What associations do you have with the word spruce? New Year - 7 hours gifts - 2 hours holiday - 1 hour winter - 1 hour thorns - 3 hours needles - 2 hours tree - 1 hour cones - 1 hour fluffy, tall, green - 6 hours nothing - 1 hour

Do you put up a Christmas tree on New Year's Eve? What? We put - 25 Real - 24 Artificial - 1

Why are you putting up a tree? New Year - 6 Tradition - 2 Fun - 7 Gifts - 2 Santa Claus will be pleased - 3 To make it beautiful - 4 Holiday - 1

Yes, there is such an interesting tradition: decorating the Christmas tree for the New Year. Many people follow this tradition. Surely, almost every one of us thought about why we decorate the Christmas tree and what does it symbolize?.. And in general, how long ago did the tradition of decorating an evergreen tree come to us?

Reading books, talking with a teacher, I found out that it turns out that the custom of celebrating the New Year with a green beauty goes back to ancient times and is associated with the cult of greenery. Our distant ancestors endowed trees with the ability to create good and evil, to feel, they believed that spirits, both good and evil, found shelter in their branches. Therefore, people decorated trees to appease the spirits and get their support.

Spruce occupied a special position among trees, it has always been given a special place in people's lives. For ancient people it was a sacred tree. They believed that spruce, like other conifers, enjoyed a special location of the Sun, the main god in pagan beliefs. The sun allows spruce to remain always green, unlike deciduous trees, which is why spirits live in its branches, which are able to scare away evil demons, ward off misfortunes and diseases. Therefore, the ancient Germans, meeting the "turn of winter", decorated their homes with spruce branches, symbolizing eternal life and awakening nature.

I decided to look for answers to these questions that interest me and look far into the past.

According to old legend, spruce became a symbol of Christmas at the request of heavenly forces. When the Savior was born in Bethlehem, in a wretched cave, a new bright star lit up in the dark sky to the singing of angels.

Heeding the divine sign, not only people, but also animals and plants rushed to the cave. Everyone tried to show the newborn their sincere joy and bring some gift. Plants and trees gave the Child their fragrances, flowers, fruits and leaves.

Spruce hurried to the joyful event from the far north. She was the last to arrive and, embarrassed, stood aside. Everyone asked her in surprise why she didn't come in. El answered that she really wanted to enter, but she had nothing to give to the Divine Infant, and she was afraid to frighten Him or prick Him with needles. Then the plants shared their gifts with Spruce, and red apples, nuts, bright flowers and green leaves began to show off on its branches.

El was very happy, thanked everyone, and quietly approached Jesus. The baby smiled when he saw a beautiful, multi-colored, kind Spruce, and then the Star of Bethlehem shone even brighter above its very top ...

According to another, similar legend, the proud Olive and Palm trees did not let the Spruce to the Baby, mocking her prickly needles and sticky resin. The modest Christmas tree did not object and looked sadly into the bright, fragrant cave, thinking about her unworthiness to go into it.

But the Angel, who heard the conversation of the trees, took pity on the Spruce and decided to decorate its branches with heavenly stars. Spruce shone magnificently and entered the cave. At that moment, Jesus woke up, smiled and held out his hands to her. The spruce rejoiced, but did not become proud, and for modesty the angel rewarded the good tree, making it a sign from now on. happy holiday Christmas.

Europeans are convinced that the head of the German Reformation, Martin Luther, also helped spread the custom of decorating a Christmas tree. One day, on Christmas Eve, frosty starry night, he returned home through the forest and, deciding to surprise his family, brought a Christmas tree. She was decorated with candles and bows. After this incident, many began to follow his example.

AT early XIX in. this beautiful German custom began to spread throughout Northern Europe. In England, France, America, it was only in mid-nineteenth in.

So the Christmas tree, traveling, reached Russia. In Russia, the first Christmas tree was arranged by the Germans, who permanently lived in St. Petersburg. This happened in the 40s of the XIX century. The new game was enthusiastically received high society capital, spread to Moscow and went throughout the country. The custom has become fashionable.

By the end of the century, the Christmas tree had become commonplace. Gradually cozy family holiday turned into a rout with the participation of children from other families: the kids walked around the dressed-up tree, played. They looked for gifts under it.

In the late 20s of the XX century, the Christmas tree in Russia was banned along with the celebration of Christmas and even the New Year. But in 1936 she returned as an attribute precisely new year holidays And I hope he doesn't leave us again."

In conclusion, I would like to remind all people: take care of nature, the world around you. Let there be Christmas trees in our houses for the holiday, but artificial, made by ourselves, and in the park, in the forest, we will enjoy the aroma of "live" pines and firs. After all, if someday we cut down all the Christmas trees, they ... will not be. And I want the forest beauty - the Christmas tree to LIVE!