According to an author of an article "Christmas", Christmas is an annual Christian holiday commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ. Christians traditionally regard Jesus as the incarnate Son of God, and as having been divinely conceived by Mary, the wife of Joseph, a carpenter of Nazareth. The name Jesus is derived from the Greek rendering of the Hebrew name Joshue while the title Christ is derived from the Greek christos which means Messiah.

Most members of the Roman Catholic Church and followers of Protestantism as well as members of most Orthodox Churches around the world also celebrate the holiday on December 25. The official Christmas season, popularly known as either Christmastide or the Twelve Days of Christmas, extends from the anniversary of Christ's birth on December 25 to the feast of Epiphany (Baptism of Christ) on January 6.

Christmas is based on the story of Jesus' birth as described in the gospel according to Matthew and the Gospel according to Luke. Roman Catholics first celebrated Christmas as early as AD 336. The word Christmas entered the English language sometime around 1050 as the Old English phrase christes maesse, meaning "festival of Christ." Scholars believe the frequently used shortened form of Christmas- Xmas, may have come into use in the 13th century. The X stands for the Greek letter chi, an abbreviation of Khristos (Christ) and also represents the cross on which Jesus was crucified.

Rise of the Modern American Christmas

Santa Claus. The legend of Santa Claus had origins in Europe and was brought by Dutch settlers to New York in the early 18th century. Santa Claus us the legendary bringer of gifts at Christmas. According to an article "Santa Claus" He is generally depicted as a jolly, fat man with a white beard, dressed in a red suit trimmed with white; and driving a sleigh full of toys drawn through the air by eight reindeer. Santa is said to visit on Christmas eve, entering houses through the chimney to leave presents under the Christmas tree and in the stockings of all good children.
The Christmas Tree. According to legend, the Christmas tree tradition began with the founder of German Protestantism, Martin Luther. While walking through the forest on Christmas Eve, Luther was so moved by the beauty of the starlit fir trees that he brought one indoors and decorated it with candles to remind his children of God's creation. In 1841 Prince Albert of Germany gave his wife, Queen Victoria of England, a gift of a Christmas tree. This was reputedly the first Christmas tree in England, but the custom spread quickly. German immigrants took the Christmas tree to other parts of Europe and to the United States and Canada, where it soon become a popular tradition.
Christmas card. In 1843 English illustrator John Callcoll Horsley created the first modern Christmas card. The card depicted a family celebration and its caption read, "A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You." In the United States, a German-born printer Louis Prang made advances in color lithography that enabled him to mass-produce a colorful Christmas card in 1875. The Christmas card sold extremely well, and soon the custom of exchanging Christmas cards spread throughout the country.

Santa Claus

Christmas Tree

Christmas card

Resource:

Restad, Penne. "Christmas." Microsoft Encarta 2009 (DVD). Redmond, WA. Microsoft Corporation, 2008.