International Marketing Review -
Christmas Trees Around The World
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More Cultural & International Christmas 2008 Links:
35 European Christmas Markets
Christmas Travel Destinations
International Christmas Shopping
Santa Claus In Different Cultures
Christmas trees are one of the main symbols of Christmas in the United Stated. Not all countries decorate their Christmas Trees the same way.
Welcome to the 13 December 2008 edition of the International Marketing Review.
German Christmas Trees
Many of today’s Christmas traditions started in Germany. There are at least 2 stories about how the Christmas tree began.
The first, Martin Luther is supposed to have gone for a walk in the woods near his home. He saw how beautifully the stars shone through the trees. He wanted to share the beauty with his wife so he cut down a fir tree and took it home. He used small candles on the branches and said that it would be a symbol of the beautiful Christmas sky.
Another legend says that in the early 16th century, people in Germany combined two customs that had been practiced in different countries around the world. The Paradise tree, a fir tree decorated with apples, representing the Tree of Knowledge in the Garden of Eden. The second, a small, pyramid-like frame called The Christmas Light decorated with glass balls, tinsel, and a candle on top. The Christmas Light was a symbol of the birth of Christ as the Light of the World. Changing the tree’s apples to tinsel balls and cookies and combining this new tree with the Light placed on top, the Germans created the tree that many of us know now.
Today, the Christmas tree is traditionally decorated by the parents in secret with lights, tinsel, and ornaments by the mother and is lit and revealed on Christmas Eve with cookies, nuts, and gifts under its branches.
Canadian Christmas Trees
German settlers migrated to Canada from both Germany and the United States before 1800. These immigrants brought many of the things that we associated with Christmas today. Advent calendars, gingerbread houses, Christmas cookies and the Christmas trees.
English Christmas Trees
Queen Victoria’s German husband, Prince Albert, put up a Christmas tree at Windsor Castle in 1848. Almost immediately, the Christmas tree became a tradition in England, the United States, and Canada. Today, the Norway spruce is the traditional tree used in British homes. The Norway spruce used to be a native species in the UK (until the last Ice Age) and it has been reintroduced before the 1500s.
Swedish Christmas Trees
Most Swedes buy Christmas trees well before Christmas Eve. It is not common to take the tree inside and decorate it just a few days before Christmas. Christmas trees are decorated with stars, sunbursts, and snowflakes made from straw. Other decorations include colorful wooden animals and straw centerpieces.
Norwegian Christmas Trees
Norwegians will often make a trip to the woods to select a Christmas tree themselves. The Christmas tree was only introduced into Norway in the latter half of the 19th century. On Christmas Eve the Christmas tree is usually done by the parents while the children wait out of site. Christmas trees are decorated with white lights, tinsel, Norwegian flags and other ornaments. Children often use shiny, colored paper to make paper baskets that are filled with candy or nuts. Chains made of colored paper are also very popular. Colored lighting is becoming popular, but the white lights are more like the candles they are supposed to represent.
Japanese Christmas Trees
Only about 1% of the Japanese are Christian, so Christmas is not a national holiday there and the year end celebration is more important than Christmas. Trees are decorated with small toys, gold paper fans and lanterns, wind chimes and small candles. A popular ornament is origami creations, with the origami swan being the most popular.
Greenlandic Christmas Trees
Because of the arctic climate, Christmas trees don’t grow in Greenland the Christmas trees are shipped in from Denmark. Greenlanders decorate their trees with candles and bright ornaments.
Italian Christmas Trees
The presepio (nativity scene) is very common in Italy. The scene is often set out in the shape of a triangle which is the base of a pyramid-like structure called the ceppo. This is a wooden frame arranged to make a pyramid several feet high. It is decorated with colored paper, gilt pine cones, and miniature colored pennants. Small candles are fastened to the tapering sides. A star or small doll is hung at top. The shelves above the manger scene have small gifts of fruit, candy, and presents. The ceppo is in the old Tree of Light tradition which became the Christmas tree in other countries. Some houses even have a small ceppo for each child in the house.
Brazilian Christmas Trees
Christmas falls during the summer in Brazil. Some people decorate pine trees with pieces of cotton that represent falling snow.
Philippine Christmas Trees
Since fresh pine trees are too expensive for many Filipinos, handmade trees are often used. Filipinos often make Star lanterns from bamboo sticks, covered with brightly colored rice paper or cellophane, and usually feature a tassel on each point. One will be placed in each window, representing the Star of Bethlehem.
Chinese Christmas Trees
Only 3 to 4% of Chinese are Christian and few people celebrate Christmas. Of the small percentage of Chinese who do celebrate Christmas, most erect artificial trees decorated with paper chains, paper flowers and lanterns. Christmas trees are called “trees of light.”
Greek Christmas Trees
Christmas trees are not commonly used in Greece but they have become more popular recently. In Greece, many people believe in kallikantzeri, goblins that appear to cause mischief during the 12 days of Christmas. Gifts are usually exchanged on January 1, St. Basil’s Day. Christmas trees in many houses are decorates with lights, stars, angels, and any kind of shining Christmas ornaments.
Saudi Arabian Christmas Trees
Christians living in conservative Muslim Saudi Arabia have to celebrate Christmas privately in their homes. Christmas lights are generally not tolerated. Most families place their Christmas trees somewhere out of site and decorate as they do in their home country
Decorating the Christmas Tree with Feng Shui
When decorating the Christmas tree, think about colors. Green is a calming color and red a fiery and energetic color. These colors balance each other out, and they happen to be traditional Christmas colors. The Christmas tree should be in the center of the main room, or slightly to the left of the main room.
A Feng Shui tree should have something that family and friends put on of their own, something special as part of the decorations. Decorating the Christmas Tree should be a shared experience that will help create a special moment and increase the good energies of this festive ritual.
Decorating the Christmas Tree For Geeks
No, not Greeks, Geeks. A Geek Christmas tree is something to behold. It is usually a ‘regular’ Christmas tree, but a Geek will occasionally use an old PC as the base and make branches with old IT material. Decorations include CD’s, a broken mouse or two, old USB keys, the CPU from old mother boards and other similar shiny material. The star on top is built out of any appropriate material that is sitting around. Often the star sill be based on the ‘flavor’ of the Geek. A Star Wars Geek may use a Death Star model as the star of their tree.
Since there are many breeds of Geek, ornaments may be figurines from Star Wars, Harry Potter, World of Wars, and Star Trek. Fake snow at the base of the tree is usually the Styrofoam left over from packing material.
That concludes this edition of The International Marketing Review. If you have a post that you would like included in a future review, email me the link and if appropriate, I will try to include it.
More International Marketing Reviews
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- #44 – World Water Day
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- #35 – Globalization and the Global Economy
- #34 – Cross-Cultural Encounters
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- #30 – Christmas Trees Around The World
- #29 – Santa Claus In Different Cultures
- #28 – International Christmas Shopping
- #27 – On Multicultural Matters
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Here is a complete list of International Marketing Reviews
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