Where Did the Christmas Tree Come From?

You’ve put up a Christmas tree and decorated it every year for as long as you can remember, but you probably don't know why this is a symbol of our holidays. Why do we do such an odd thing as string lights and stale cookies up on a dying tree to celebrate the birth of Jesus? It just doesn’t make sense. Well, like a lot of Christian traditions, the Christmas tree comes with a lot of stories and legends, but ultimately, it appears as though it’s one more pagan tradition incorporated into Christianity as it spread across Europe.

Since ancient times, evergreen plants have adorned homes in the wintertime. Many ancient civilizations worshipped a sun god that they believed got sick in the winter. Late December was a time of celebration for them because at that time, the sun god’s physical condition began to improve.

The winter solstice, which occurs around December 22nd, is the day when there is the least amount of sunlight. The ancients knew that after that time, the days would begin to get longer and longer, winter would end, and the harvest would soon come. The solstice, therefore, was a time of great celebration, and evergreen trees and their branches played a big role in the festivals that took place because they were evidence that the sun god was not dead; he was simply weakened for a time, but he would regain his strength eventually.

As Christianity spread throughout Europe, a lot of pagan traditions were either incorporated into Christian worship or commandeered by it. It is possible that the early European Christians simply respected the local traditions and incorporated the use of evergreens into their celebration of the incarnation. Or they could have decided to celebrate the birth of Christ in late December in opposition to the pagan winter solstice celebrations, teaching them instead to use their previously held traditions to worship Jesus, not Balder, the sun god worshiped by the Vikings or Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture.

One legend says that in 8th century Germany, a British missionary now known as St. Boniface cut down an oak tree that represented the Norse god Thor. In some versions of the legend, a fir tree grew out of the roots of the oak. In other versions, the oak fell, destroying every tree in its path except a small fir tree. Either way, St. Boniface viewed the fir as a miracle and encouraged Christians to use the fir tree as a symbol of Christ.

No matter how it happened, we know that the Romans, the Vikings and the Druids all decorated their homes with evergreen plants in the winter as a symbol of life. And we know that in 16th century Germany, Christians brought evergreen trees into their homes, beginning the tradition of the Christmas tree as we know it today.

Martin Luther and the Christmas Tree

Another legend says that it was Protestant reformer Martin Luther who began the tradition of decorating evergreen trees with candles for lights in the 1500s.

As the legend goes, Luther was walking home one night when he was struck by the beauty of the stars through the evergreen trees. Wishing to share the moment with his family, he went home and attached lit candles to an evergreen tree in their home.

Although Martin Luther did live in Germany in the 16th century, it is unclear whether he is personally responsible for the tradition of the Christmas tree.

Christmas Trees in the U.S.

Apparently, early Puritan settlers arrived in the New World before Christmas trees had become a widely kept tradition. It was not until the 19th century that Christmas trees were recorded as being on display. And the first place they were seen was in Pennsylvania, where much of the population was from Germany.

Still, many people in the United States viewed the Christmas tree as a pagan tradition until the late 1800s, when it finally began to catch on, and by the time safe Christmas lights came out around 1917, Americans were ready to hang them on their trees.

The Christmas tree probably came from Germany, with roots in pagan winter solstice celebrations. But, if you want to know where the tree in your living room comes from each year, it could be from anywhere. Christmas trees are now grown in every U.S. state with California, Michigan, Oregon, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Washington and Wisconsin producing the most.