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Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. Christmas is celebrated by many Christians on December 25 in the Gregorian calendar. Christians and non-Christians participate in some of the most popular Christmas traditions, many of which have no origins in Christianity. In ancient Rome, December 25 was a celebration of the Unconquered Sun, marking the return of longer days. It followed Saturnalia, a festival where people feasted and exchanged gifts. Christmas did not start in Germany, but many of the holiday’s traditions began there, including decorating trees. The corresponding terms in other languages—Navidad in Spanish, Natale in Italian, Noël in French—all probably denote nativity.

Origin and development The early Christian community distinguished between the identification of the date of Jesus’ birth and the liturgical celebration of that event. The actual observance of the day of Jesus’ birth was long in coming. The precise origin of assigning December 25 as the birth date of Jesus is unclear. The New Testament provides no clues in this regard. Christmas began to be widely celebrated with a specific liturgy in the 9th century but did not attain the liturgical importance of either Good Friday or Easter, the other two major Christian holidays.