Today, Saturday, December 24, marks the beginning of the Christmas season with Christmas Eve dinner. It is a celebration held in almost every country in the world where families get together, have fun, reflect and, in short, have a beautiful time to say goodbye to the year.
Regardless of religion, Christmas Eve is the night before Christmas and getting together has already become a creation. Here we will provide you with information about its history, origin, meaning and why it is celebrated on December 24. To explain this feast the night before Christmas, the Christian and pagan religions are one of its origins
The origin and history of Christmas Eve: pagans and Christians
First of all, it is necessary to refer to the etymological origin of the word, where ‘Christmas‘ comes from the Latin ‘Natalis‘, which means the birth of an individual. Therefore, for the pagans it was the celebration of the foundation of the city and its anniversary, since the name was ‘natalis solis invicti‘, the feast of the sun god.
With the arrival of Christianity, the celebration of the sun god was replaced by the birth of Jesus Christ. From then on, the celebration the night before was established in order to reaffirm the Christian faith. Family togetherness, sharing and reflection became one of the reasons for getting together on Christmas Eve.
The most important symbols of Christmas Eve are, among other things, the Nativity scene, the tree, the Christmas flower (more traditional in Mexico), the baby Jesus and Santa Claus.