How Did Evergreen Trees Become a Christmas Symbol?

Many people look forward to bringing home a traditional tree for Christmas. There’s nothing like picking out the biggest evergreen from the farm, decorating it, and waiting for the day to open presents. The trees are a ubiquitous part of the holiday season, but how did the tradition start? Pagan solstice celebrations, German influences, and Queen Victoria’s reputation are the primary reasons the custom became mainstream.   

Believe it or not, evergreens initially had nothing to do with Christianity—although religion was involved. According to History, many ancient cultures viewed the sun as a god whose strength ebbed and flowed throughout the year. When the winter solstice (the shortest day and longest night of the year in the Northern Hemisphere) arrived on December 21 or 22, it was a sign that the sun god was about to regain his strength. They brought greenery indoors to mark the sun’s return and evoke the lusher, warmer times soon to come. People from many parts of the world, including Egypt, Rome, and northern Europe, celebrated the winter solstice in this way. 

As Texas A&M University history professor Troy Bickham wrote on the school’s blog, many Europeans continued to practice the pagan winter solstice traditions even as Christmas gained popularity. However, the Christmas tree as we know it today didn’t rise to prominence until the 16th century. In their effort to distance themselves from the Catholic church, Protestant leaders in Germany promoted the Christmas tree to replace images of the nativity, also known as the birth of Jesus. German religious reformer Martin Luther is said to have been the first to decorate a tree for Christmas by adding lit candles. 

The earliest European settlers in North America considered Christmas, and the evergreen tradition, sacrilegious. Puritan colonists in Massachusetts even fined people who were caught celebrating the holiday. As German people migrated to the soon-to-be United States in the 18th century, they brought their Christmas traditions with them, and Christmas trees gained popularity accordingly.

Queen Victoria is largely responsible for solidifying the Christmas tree's place in popular culture. The queen’s mother and husband hailed from Germany and influenced the royal holiday celebrations, which included the decorating of a large evergreen tree and placing gifts underneath its boughs. The Christmas tree custom became widespread in England after an 1848 issue of the London Illustrated News showed the queen and her family decorating one. America’s middle class, in turn, deeply admired Victorian culture at the time and adopted the trend. Today, 25 to 30 million Christmas trees are sold annually in the U.S.

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