圣誕節(jié)又到了，又是一個天上飛著馴鹿、家里擺著圣誕樹、樹下還有禮物的日子。
　　不過，小伙伴們雖然對西方慶祝圣誕的方式已經(jīng)不再陌生，但你知道這些習(xí)俗都是如何起源的嗎？英國《每日電訊報》總結(jié)了10種慶祝圣誕節(jié)的習(xí)俗以及它們的來歷。我們?yōu)榇蠹易隽艘粋€梳理，小伙伴們不妨一邊玩耍，一邊漲漲知識。
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　　圣誕卡片Christmas Card
　　Having helped set up the Public Records Office(now the Post Office),Sir Henry Cole and artist John Horsley created the first Christmas card in 1843 as a way of encouraging people to use its services.在協(xié)助成立了公共檔案室（后發(fā)展成現(xiàn)代郵局）之后，亨利·科爾爵士和藝術(shù)家約翰·霍斯利在1843年一起制作了世界上第一張圣誕卡片，以此來鼓勵人們使用公共檔案室的服務(wù)。
　　Cards cost a shilling(equivalent to almost 5.75 now)and stamps a penny(about 40p at modern prices).Advances in printing brought prices down,making cards hugely popular by the 1860s.By 1900 the custom of sending Christmas cards had spread throughout Europe.當(dāng)時一張圣誕卡值一先令（大致相當(dāng)于現(xiàn)在的5.75鎊），一張郵票一便士（大概相當(dāng)于今天的40便士）。印刷術(shù)的進(jìn)步使得卡片和郵票更加便宜，也讓圣誕卡片在19世紀(jì)60年代變得極為流行。到1900年時，贈送圣誕卡片的習(xí)俗已經(jīng)傳遍歐洲。
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　　圣誕樹The Christmas Tree
　　While Christmas trees have been around for a millennium in northern Europe,the first one did not appear in the UK until the 1830s.When Prince Albert put up a Christmas tree at Windsor Castle in 1841,he started what became an evergreen trend.盡管圣誕樹已經(jīng)在北歐流行了近千年，但英國直到19世紀(jì)30年代才有了第一棵真正意義上的圣誕樹。1841年，當(dāng)阿爾伯特親王在溫莎城堡上第一次豎起圣誕樹的時候，他開啟了這一長青不衰的傳統(tǒng)。
　　百果餡餅Mince Pies
　　Early mince pies were made of meat,fruit and spice and inspired by Middle Eastern cuisine brought back by the Crusaders.受十字軍東征帶回的中東飲食啟發(fā)，早期的百果餡餅包含了肉餡、水果和香料。
　　They commonly had 13 ingredients representing Christ and the Apostles,and were formed in a large oval shape to represent the manger.Meat had disappeared from the recipe by Victorian times,although beef suet is often still included.通常來說，百果餡餅包含13種原料，分別代表著耶穌和十二使徒。而餡餅的橢圓形狀則代表著耶穌降生的馬槽。自維多利亞時期起，配料就不再包含肉餡了，但牛油仍然是常用原料。
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　　圣誕長襪Stockings
　　Leaving stockings out at Christmas goes back to the legend of St Nicholas.Known as the gift giver,on one occasion he sent bags of gold down a chimney at the home of a poor man who had no dowry for his unmarried daughters.The gold fell into stockings left hanging to dry.St Nicholas was later referred to by the Dutch as Sinterklaas and eventually,by English-speakers,as Santa Claus.在圣誕節(jié)擺放圣誕長襪的傳統(tǒng)，要追溯到圣·尼古拉斯的事跡。他是一個樂善好施的人。曾經(jīng)有個窮人付不起女兒的嫁妝，他就順著那家人的煙囪，往他家里扔了幾包黃金。黃金正好掉進(jìn)了掛在壁爐烘干的襪子里。圣·尼古拉斯后來被荷蘭人稱作“Sinterklaas”，最終被英語國家的人稱作“圣誕老人”。
　　冬青與常青藤Holly and ivy
　　Synonymous with Christmas and the subject of a traditional British folk carol,both holly and ivy were originally used in pre-Christian times to celebrate the winter solstice.As they provide a rare splash of colour in the darkest month of the year,their popularity has endured.這兩種植物與圣誕節(jié)簡直就是同義詞，它們也是一首英國傳統(tǒng)民謠的主題。早在基督教之前，冬青和常青藤就被用來慶祝冬至了。它們在一年中最灰暗的月份里難得地為大地增添了一抹顏色，因此它們也就一直備受歡迎。
　　圣誕爆竹Christmas crackers
　　London sweet-maker Tom Smith invented Christmas crackers in the late 1840s,inspired by traditional,paper-wrapped French bonbons.Even though he included mottos or riddles inside each,it was not until he found a way to make them“crack”when pulled apart that sales took off.His sons Tom,Walter and Henry later added hats and novelty gifts.倫敦的糖果師湯姆·史密斯受法國傳統(tǒng)紙卷的小糖果啟發(fā)，在19世紀(jì)40年代末發(fā)明了圣誕爆竹。盡管他在每個爆竹里都放了格言和謎語，但銷量一直不是很好。直到他找到了一種方法，讓爆竹被拉開的時候能“爆”，銷售量才突飛猛進(jìn)。他的兒子湯姆、沃爾特和亨利后來又給爆竹加進(jìn)小帽子和新奇的禮物。
　　火雞Turkey
　　Turkeys originated in Mexico and were first brought to Britain in 1526 by William Strickland.Henry VIII enjoyed turkey and although the bird became fashionable in high society in the late 19th century it was Edward VII who made it de rigueur at Christmas for the middle classes.吃火雞的習(xí)俗起源于墨西哥，最初由威廉·斯特瑞蘭德在1526年引入英國。亨利八世很喜歡吃火雞。盡管這道菜在19世紀(jì)晚期已經(jīng)成為上流社會的最愛，但最終是愛德華七世把吃火雞變成中產(chǎn)階層的節(jié)日必備活動。
　　Even by 1930,however,it took a week’s wages to buy one and turkey remained a luxury until the 1950s.但即使到了1930年，買一只火雞也得花上一周的薪水，因此直到20世紀(jì)50年代為止，吃火雞一直是一種奢侈的享受。
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　　圣誕布丁Christmas Pudding
　　Also known as plum or figgy pudding,this Christmas staple possibly has its roots as far back as the Middle Ages in a wheat-based pottage known as frumenty.By the mid 17th century,it was thicker and had developed into a dessert with the addition of eggs,dried fruit and alcohol.圣誕布丁也叫作梅子布丁或無花果布丁。這款圣誕的主菜可能要追溯到中世紀(jì)的一種叫做牛奶麥粥的食物，它主要以小麥為原料。到了17世紀(jì)中葉，它漸漸變厚，并加入了雞蛋、干果和酒精而變成了一種甜點(diǎn)。
　　In Victorian times plum pudding was a Christmas favourite.It is traditionally made a week before Advent on what is known as“stir-up Sunday”.在維多利亞時代，梅子布丁是基督徒們最喜歡的食物之一。傳統(tǒng)上，梅子布丁要在基督降臨節(jié)的前一周制作，那一天被稱作“喚醒星期日”。
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　　槲寄生Mistletoe
　　Hanging mistletoe in the home is an ancient pagan practice adopted by early Christians.The word itself is Anglo-Saxon and the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe originated in England.Each kiss required a berry to be plucked until none remained.在屋里掛一束槲寄生是早期基督徒從古代異教習(xí)俗中吸納的一種做法。這個詞本身是盎克魯-撒克遜語，在槲寄生下接吻這一傳統(tǒng)則起源于英格蘭。每一次親吻都要摘除一顆槲寄生的漿果，直到摘完為止。
　　圣誕頌歌Christmas Carols
　　Carols were songs and dances of praise and joy in pagan times and the practice of carol singing carried over into the Christian era.Carols have been written through the centuries but the most familiar date from Victorian times.Today,popular songs such as Bing Crosby’s White Christmas and Slade’s Merry Xmas Everybody are just as much a part of Christmas as carols.頌歌是異教時期用來表達(dá)贊美和愉悅的歌舞形式，唱頌歌這一習(xí)慣后來被帶入到基督教時代。幾個世紀(jì)以來都有圣誕頌歌的作品不斷被創(chuàng)作出來，但最有名的要數(shù)維多利亞時期的那些。今天，流行的圣誕歌曲包括賓·克羅斯比演唱的“白色圣誕節(jié)”，以及斯萊德的“大家圣誕快樂”，這些頌歌都是圣誕的一部分。
　　怎么樣？又漲了不少新知識吧？和小伙伴玩耍的時候，別忘了也給他們科普一下哦。祝大家圣誕快樂！