Christmas Symbols

Christmas is the most widely celebrated festival world over, and also the most popular festival globally. Apart from traditions, customs and rituals, there are some of the interesting and enjoyable information on the different icons and symbols that are associated with Christmas. In fact, these things have become so common with the celebration of Christmas, through these symbols people come to know that Christmas has come. For, these are what Christmas mean to the masses, at least symbolically. Following are some of the symbols that have been eventually attached to the Day celebrated as the birth of Jesus Christ.

Christmas Star
The Christmas star has traditionally been associated with the spirit of the celebration and the significance of the star can be found in the story related to the birth of Jesus Christ. The Christmas star symbolizes high hopes and high ideals.
Mistletoe
A symbol of love, peace and goodwill, Mistletoe is an aerial parasite that has no roots of its own and lives off the tree that it attach itself to. It is believed that the plant had special healing powers for everything from female infertility to poison ingestion.
Ivy, Laurel & Rosemary
The Christmas symbol of ivy stands for the eternal life in pagan religions, whereas Romans believed laurel was sacred to the sun god Apollo. Rosemary was used during the Middle Ages by housewives to spread on the floor at Christmas.
Holly
The holly is a man's plant and is believed to bring good luck and protection to men. It is thought that whoever brings the first sprig of Christmas holly into the home will wear the pants that year.
Christmas Rose
A European evergreen plant with white or purplish rose like winter-blooming flowers, the Christmas rose, is frequently used with an evergreen branch for decorations.
Poinsettia
The poinsettia flower is small, green or yellow and situated in the middle of the bracts. The poinsettia is named after Joel R. Poinsett, who served as the USA first ambassador to Mexico, from 1825-1829.
Glastonbury Thorn
Glastonbury Thorn, also known as "The Holy Thorn of Glastonbury". The glastonbury thorn legend ties in Christ's death as well as the celebration of his birth.
Christmas Stocking
Children all over the world continue the tradition of hanging Christmas stockings. Originally, children simply used one of their everyday socks, but eventually special Christmas stockings were created for this purpose.
Christmas Wreath
Widely known, the customs of Christmas wreath come from the traditional celebration of the birth of Christ, which was later on combined with the harvest and winter solstice festivals in ancient Rome.
Christmas Toys
Children anywhere in the world are excited and joyous on receiving Christmas toys as a gift. Available in almost infinite variety of choices, Christmas toys are for every age of childhood, and there are many different kinds for each age.