Christmas in Ritual and Tradition, Christian and Pagan

Origins of the Mediaeval Drama--Dramatic Tendencies in the Liturgy--Latin Liturgical Plays--The Drama becomes Laicized--Characteristics of the Popular Drama--The Nativity in the...

Advent and Christmas Offices of the Roman Church--The Three Masses of Christmas, their Origin and their Celebration in Rome--The Midnight Mass in Many Lands--Protestant Survival...

Austria, Christmas poetry in, 45-46; Christmas drama in, 143-6; soul-cakes in, 194; St. Nicholas in, 218-20; St. Lucia's Eve in, 223; St. Thomas's Eve in, 225; Frau Perchta, etc...

The Church and Superstition--Nature of Pagan Survivals--Racial Origins--Roman Festivals of the _Saturnalia_ and Kalends--Was there a Teutonic Midwinter Festival?--The Teutonic,...

The Twelfth Cake and the "King of the Bean"--French Twelfth Night Customs--St. Basil's Cake in Macedonia--Epiphany and the Expulsion of Evils--The Befana in Italy--The Magi as P...

All Saints' and All Souls' Days, their Relation to a New Year Festival--All Souls' Eve and Tendance of the Departed--Soul Cakes in England and on the Continent--Pagan Parallels...

The Reformation marks a change in the character of Christmas poetry in England and the larger part of Germany, and, instead of following its development under Protestantism, it...

Christkind, Santa Klaus, and Knecht Ruprecht--Talking Animals and other Wonders of Christmas Eve--Scandinavian Beliefs about Trolls and the Return of the Dead--Traditional Chris...

The Christmas-tree a German Creation--Charm of the German Christmas--Early Christmas-trees--The Christmas Pyramid--Spread of the Tree in Modern Germany and other Countries--Orig...

Christmas, as we have seen, had its beginning at the middle of the fourth century in Rome. The new feast was not long in finding a hymn-writer to embody in immortal Latin the em...

Principle of New Year Customs--The New Year in France, Germany, the United States, and Eastern Europe--"First-footing" in Great Britain--Scottish New Year Practices--Highland Fu...

Prominence of Eating in the English Christmas--The Boar's Head, the Goose, and other Christmas Fare--Frumenty, Sowens, Yule Cakes, and the Wassail Bowl--Continental Christmas Di...

English Court Masking--"The Lord of Misrule"--The Mummers' Play, the Sword-Dance, and the Morris Dance--Origin of St. George and other Characters--Mumming in Eastern Europe--The...

The Origin and Purpose of Festivals--Ideas suggested by Christmas--Pagan and Christian Elements--The Names of the Festival--Foundation of the Feast of the Nativity--Its Relation...

The Log as Centre of the Domestic Christmas--Customs of the Southern Slavs--The _Polaznik_--Origin of the Yule Log--Probable Connection with Vegetation-cults or Ancestor-worship...

St. Clement's Day Quests and Processions--St. Catherine's Day as Spinsters' Festival--St. Andrew's Eve Auguries--The _Klöpfelnächte_--St. Nicholas's Day, the Saint as Gift-bring...

trace their exact pedigree. Sometimes St. Nicholas himself appears in a non-churchly form like Pelzmärte, with a bell,{42} or with a sack of ashes which gains him the name of As...

The three saints' days immediately following Christmas--St. Stephen's (December 26), St. John the Evangelist's (December 27), and the Holy Innocents' (December 28)--have still v...

48. Music from #Trier "Gesangbuch"# (1911), No. 18, where a very much weakened text is given. Text from Weinhold, 114. Another form of the air is given in "The Cowley Carol Book...

1. This account of the mediaeval Christmas drama owes much to Chambers, "The Mediaeval Stage," especially chaps. xviii. to xx., and to #W. Creizenach, "Geschichte des neueren Dr...

17. Quoted from #"Libanii Opera,"# ed. by Reiske, i. 256 f., by #G. Bilfinger, "Das germanische Julfest"# (vol. ii. of "Untersuchungen über die Zeitrechnung der alten Germanen,"...

1. See especially for Latin, German, and English hymnody #J. Julian, "A Dictionary of Hymnology"# (New Edition, London, 1907), and the #Historical Edition of "Hymns Ancient and...

33. Accounts of the carols used in Little Russia are given by Mr. Ralston, 186 f., while those sung by the Roumanians are described by Mlle. Stratilesco, 192 f., and those custo...

16. A great number of these _villancicos_ and _romances_ may be found in #Justo de Sancha, "Romancero y Cancionero Sagrados"# (Madrid, 1855, vol. 35 of Rivadeneyra's Library of...

4. Or plural _Weihnachten_. The name _Weihnachten_ was applied in five different ways in mediaeval Germany: (1) to Dec. 25, (2) to Dec. 25-8, (3) to the whole Christmas week, (4...

The Twelfth Cake and the "King of the Bean"--French Twelfth Night Customs--St. Basil's Cake in Macedonia--Epiphany and the Expulsion of Evils--The Befana in Italy--The Magi as P...

18. This account of the Feast of Fools and the Boy Bishop is mainly derived from Chambers, "M. S.," i. 274-371, and from #Mr. A. F. Leach's# article, #"The Schoolboys' Feast,"#...

Advent and Christmas Offices of the Roman Church--The Three Masses of Christmas, their Origin and their Celebration in Rome--The Midnight Mass in Many Lands--Protestant Survival...

The Christmas-tree a German Creation--Charm of the German Christmas--Early Christmas-trees--The Christmas Pyramid--Spread of the Tree in Modern Germany and other Countries--Orig...

The Church and Superstition--Nature of Pagan Survivals--Racial Origins--Roman Festivals of the _Saturnalia_ and Kalends--Was there a Teutonic Midwinter Festival?--The Teutonic,...

All Saints' and All Souls' Days, their Relation to a New Year Festival--All Souls' Eve and Tendance of the Departed--Soul Cakes in England and on the Continent--Pagan Parallels...

St. Clement's Day Quests and Processions--St. Catherine's Day as Spinsters' Festival--St. Andrew's Eve Auguries--The _Klöpfelnächte_--St. Nicholas's Day, the Saint as Gift-bring...

English Court Masking--"The Lord of Misrule"--The Mummers' Play, the Sword-Dance, and the Morris Dance--Origin of St. George and other Characters--Mumming in Eastern Europe--The...

Origins of the Mediaeval Drama--Dramatic Tendencies in the Liturgy--Latin Liturgical Plays--The Drama becomes Laicized--Characteristics of the Popular Drama--The Nativity in the...

Christkind, Santa Klaus, and Knecht Ruprecht--Talking Animals and other Wonders of Christmas Eve--Scandinavian Beliefs about Trolls and the Return of the Dead--Traditional Chris...

Prominence of Eating in the English Christmas--The Boar's Head, the Goose, and other Christmas Fare--Frumenty, Sowens, Yule Cakes, and the Wassail Bowl--Continental Christmas Di...

The Origin and Purpose of Festivals--Ideas suggested by Christmas--Pagan and Christian Elements--The Names of the Festival--Foundation of the Feast of the Nativity--Its Relation...

Principle of New Year Customs--The New Year in France, Germany, the United States, and Eastern Europe--"First-footing" in Great Britain--Scottish New Year Practices--Highland Fu...

The Log as Centre of the Domestic Christmas--Customs of the Southern Slavs--The _Polaznik_--Origin of the Yule Log--Probable Connection with Vegetation-cults or Ancestor-worship...