The history of Christmas can be traced back to more than 4000 years ago. Many celebrations now actually started before the birth of Jesus. Customs such as 12 Christmas, beautiful fireworks, gift exchange, holiday banquets, church services and choir singing Christmas songs from door to door can be traced back to the early Mesopotamian people.

Many traditions began when Mesopotamians celebrated the New Year. Mesopotamia believed in many gods, among which Marduk was the main god. They believe that Marduk will fight the devil every winter. In order to help Marduk, Mesopotamia hosted a banquet for him in the New Year. This is Zagmuk Festival on 12 day.

There are similar festivals in Persia and Babylon called Sacaea, and the festival activities include a game of "exchanging places", in which slaves become masters and slave owners play the role of slaves.

Ancient Europeans believed in demons, wizards and ghosts. When the solstice of winter comes, the cold nights are long and the days are short. Many people worry that the sun will never come back. Therefore, people hold various special ceremonies to welcome the return of the sun.

In Scandinavia, the sun disappears for many days in winter. Generally, after 35 days of disappearance, a group of people will be sent to the top of the mountain to welcome the return of the sun. When the first light appeared, they came back to report the good news and held banquets and various celebrations. People in some places hang apples on branches to show the arrival of spring and summer.

The ancient Greeks also had festivals similar to Zagmuk/Sacaea to celebrate the war between their gods kronos and Zeus.

The ancient Romans believed in Saturn (Satan), and their festival was called Saturnalia, which began in the middle of 65438+February and ended at 1. Their celebrations include street masquerade balls, large banquets, visiting friends and exchanging gifts. They also put laurel trees or other green trees in the hall and decorate them with candles and other decorations. Slave owners and slaves will also perform a game of exchanging identities.

"Joe Saturnalia!" This is a slogan shouted by the ancient Romans at grand events to show their respect for God. Full of entertainment and festive atmosphere. However, Christians believe that non-Christian gods are pagans, and they believe in Christ. They want to commemorate the birthday of Christ as a sacred religious festival, not as joyful as Saturnalia.

With the popularity of Christianity, they are increasingly disgusted with the custom of non-Christian celebrations, and even prohibit churches from holding these activities, but the effect is minimal. Finally, Christianity decided to integrate these activities into their activities to commemorate the son Christ.

Some legends believe that the "Christmas" of Christianity comes from the competition between Christ and non-Christ. 65438+February 25th was sacred not only to the Romans, but also to the Persians who believed in Mithraism, which was one of the main rivals of Christianity at that time. Finally, the church successfully integrated the festive atmosphere of Saturanilia, such as colored lights and gifts, into Christmas.

The date of birth of Christ has never been confirmed. According to legend, "Christmas" began to be commemorated in 98 AD. In A.D. 137, the Archbishop of Rome announced a solemn banquet on Christmas Day. In 350 AD, another Roman Archbishop, Julius I, designated 65438+February 25th as "Christmas Day" every year.