Traditions of Christmas are no secret

This is the season for … gift-giving, spending time with family, bundling up to stave off winter colds, eating a lot, celebrating different faiths.

We all know the Christmas tales and the roots of traditions, such as the story of Santa Claus or the three wise men searching for the Christ child in the desert.

But as you sing carols and hang boughs of holly, do you ever stop to wonder why red and green are the colors of Christmas? Or who you have to thank (or smite) for the tradition of sending Christmas cards?

We wondered. So we put a crack team of researchers together to get to the root of some lesser-known traditions. As with all stories and traditions that span centuries, there isn't universal agreement among historians, but here's what we found:

Carols and stories

I Saw Three Ships

I saw three ships come sailing by on Christmas Day, on Christmas Day. I saw three ships come sailing by on Christmas Day in the morning.

What do ships have to do with Christmas? The ships in the song, first published in England in 1666, are commonly thought to represent the three wise men or Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

Good King Wencelas

Good King Wenceslas looked out On the feast of Stephen, When the snow lay round about, Deep and crisp and even.

Who is this King Wenceslas, and why is he good? He was Saint Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia, who caused a lot of controversy by encouraging Christianity. His brother, Boleslaus, along with a group of Czech dissenters, murdered Wenceslas on his way to Mass. This song is an unusual carol in that it mentions St. Stephens Day, which is Dec. 26, rather than Christmas Day.

Here We Come A-Wassailing Here we come a-wassailing Among the leaves so green, Here we come a-wand'ring So fair to be seen.

In 1732, Sir Watkin Wynne prepared the first wassail bowl, which is typically filled with hot spiced ale and roasted apples. It became a tradition among English families to serve wassail to visitors, and roving bands of wassailers strolled the streets caroling, collecting wassail from the rich and bringing it to the poor.

'Twas the Night Before Christmas

The children were nestled all snug in their beds, While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads; And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap, Had just settled down for a long winter's nap.

Sugar plums may have been a favorite of King Ferdinand, Queen Isabella and Benjamin Franklin, but with today's glut of Snickers bars and peanut butter cups, who knows what a sugar plum is - or would eat one? Sugar plums were popular before refined sugar and chocolate came on the scene and were made from a combination of fruits (like plums, hence the name) and nuts and honey.

We Wish You a Merry Christmas Oh, bring us a figgy pudding;

Oh, bring us a figgy pudding;

Oh, bring us a figgy pudding and a cup of good cheer

So if they won't go until they get some, this figgy pudding must be awesome. But what is it? It's actually more of a cake and it involves three to four hours of steaming. While there are various recipes, most call for figs, dates, fruits and spices. And it's not healthy. The average serving contains 375 calories and nearly 10 grams of fat.

Mistletoe and Holly Oh, by gosh, by golly It's time for mistletoe and holly Tasty pheasants, Christmas presents Countrysides covered with snow

The literal meaning of mistletoe is "dung on a twig." So how did dung on a twig become the kissing plant for Christmas? Mistletoe was viewed as a magical plant in European folklore. The Celts once believed that mistletoe was a powerful charm against lightning, thunder and other scary things. The Norse thought the plant was a symbol of peace. Warriors who met under the green leaves would not fight, and warring couples would "kiss and make up." Other European cultures believed that mistletoe aided in fertility and was an aphrodisiac -- which explains why peeps become so smitten underneath it! By the way, mistletoe is rarely used in churches because it was used in ancient Druid ceremonies to celebrate the winter solstice. The pagan tradition involved a girl standing under mistletoe. Boys would walk up, pick a berry and kiss her -- until all the berries ran out.

Traditions

Yule log: Burning the yule log is one of the holiday traditions that predates Christianity. Peasants used to burn yule logs to celebrate the winter solstice to keep evil spirits away. The tradition became part of Christianity during the 1700s but hasn't really caught on in the U.S. If you do want the luck of a yule log, here's what you need to know: It should be cut from red oak trees and burned Christmas Eve and into Christmas Day. You should light this year's log with a piece left over from last year's, which you've stored under your bed to protect your home from lightning and fire. Also, don't buy your own - the luckiest ones come from your neighbor's woodpile.

Christmas cards: The card-giving tradition started in England more than 150 years ago. Sir Henry Cole, the founder of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, found it too laborious to send handwritten greetings, and requests for funds, to all his friends so he commissioned an artist to paint a card in 1843. The tradition took off. By 1846, 1,000 cards were sold at 1 shilling each. In the U.S., a German printer named Louis Prang started designing and selling cards in 1874. Ten years later his shop was selling more than 5 million cards a year.

Eggnog: Did you know eggnog once was made with beer? In the 17th century a strong ale called "nog" was popular in Britain around the holidays. It was made from beer, sugar, egg yolks, lemon rinds and cinnamon. Later in the 19th century North Americans took the French version of the drink called "Lait de Poule," made from milk, sugar and egg yolks, and added spirits. With the addition of brandy, rum or sherry, we have our own modern day eggnog. We now cook the drink to remove the threat of salmonella, but the recipe has been the same for over 150 years.

Stockings: There are many legends about how Christmas stockings became a popular tradition. Some historians say it evolved from the tradition Dutch children had of leaving straw in their clogs for reindeer. Another legend says a poor widower with three daughters had no money, and one night they washed their stockings and hung by the chimney to dry. St. Nicholas, knowing their despair, took three small bags of gold coins from his pouch and threw them one by one down the chimney, and they landed in the stockings.

Electric Christmas lights: In 1882 in New York City, Edward Johnson, who was vice president of the Edison Electric Light Co., was said to be the first person to put electric lights on a tree. Before that, candles were attached with pins or glue to tree branches.

Christmas tree: It seems that most accounts name Martin Luther as the father of the Christmas tree. It has been said that when he was walking through a forest gazing at the stars he was so struck by the beauty of the scene that he wanted to bring it indoors and share it with his family. He then brought a tree into his home and decorated it with candles.

Poinsettias: One beautiful tale places the origin of the use of poinsettias in the 1600s. A boy in Mexico was planning a visit to a Nativity scene and wanted to bring a gift to Jesus. He found green branches along the roadside and brought them to the crib. Some of the leaves on the branches were blooming a beautiful red and were arranged in a star shape. Poinsettias were named after Joel R. Poinsett, U.S. ambassador to Mexico, who brought the plant to America in 1828. Poinsettias were likely used by Mexican Franciscans in their 17th century Christmas celebrations.

Candy canes: Tradition holds that in about 1670, the choirmaster at Cologne Cathedral was frustrated by fidgety kids at the living Nativity. He had some white, sugar-candy sticks made to keep the youngsters quiet. The sticks were curved like shepherds' staffs in honor of the shepherds at the stable. The idea caught on, and candy sticks became common all over Europe. It wasn't until the late 1800s, though, that candy canes sported stripes - the result of candy-makers adding peppermint and wintergreen flavors.

Red and green: Pumpkin orange makes sense as the color of Halloween, as does red, white and blue for the Fourth of July, but how did Christmas become all about the red and green? If you're thinking it's because of holly berries or ivy, you may be wrong. As with many traditions, the facts seem to blur as centuries go by. While some experts point to trees and holly berries, others say the colors came from "miracle" or "paradise" plays traditionally performed on Dec. 24 during the Middle Ages. The plays were to teach children the biblical story about the Adam and Even in the Garden of Eden, and evergreens were decorated with red apples to represent the forbidden fruit. Bonus fact, if you believe some historians: This is also how Christmas Eve got its Eve name. A more religious take is that the red represents the blood of Christ and the green represents eternal life.

Compiled by Daily Herald staff writers Michelle Brandon, Georgia Garvey, Jana Ronayne and Teresa Schmedding.