Why is Christmas celebrated on December 25?

Selon les historiens, on ne connaît pas avec certitude le jour exact de la naissance de Jesus. Ils savent, par contre, que c’est en l’an 306 AP.JC que le pape de l’époque, Jules 1^er, chose December 25 as the official date of the Nativity, nine months after the feast of the Annunciation.

Le terme « Christmas »

It is interesting to note that there are two interpretations of the term "Christmas." One maintains that it comes from the fusion of two words "noio" and "hel," which mean "rebirth of the sun," in Celtic. The other version maintains that the term "Christmas" is rather a phonetic evolution of the word "nael," which means "relating to birth." Its vocalic modification in Latin is "natalis."

Distant origin

In ancient Rome, a seven-day festivities, the Saturnalia, took place in winter at the same time. Many sacrifices were offered to the god Saturn, and this occasion included many celebrations. For example, slaves were freed for the duration of the festival to exchange roles with their masters. Houses were decorated with fir branches and holly. The day was also dedicated to children, who received gifts.

In the West, the liturgical celebration of Christmas is said to have appeared around the year 340, with representations of the nativity scene with its figures. A ritual that became widespread and remained, from the 5th^e century. In the current Gregorian and Julian calendars, Christmas is fixed on December 25 by most churches. In the old Gregorian calendar, Christmas was celebrated on January 7.