Come with us on a holly jolly holiday episode on debunking 10 Christmas traditions and their origins. This episode is a little different, though -- you'll be in charge of guessing if each of the 20 traditions is "Real or Reddit." That's right, Kendyl did her trademark Reddit deep-dive to find 10 family traditions that'll keep you guessing if the origin is Pagan, Nordic, Victorian, or some plain and simple family creativity.

We break down the origins of the Christmas Tree, Santa's appearance, why reindeer fly, Christmas cards, and more!

Sources:

Chastagner, Gary A., and D. Michael Benson. “The Christmas Tree: Traditions, Production, and Diseases.” Plant Health Progress, October 13, 2000.

https://doi.org/10.1094/PHP-2000-1013-01-RV . Eldridge, Adam, and Ilaria Pappalepore.

“Festive Space and Dream Worlds: Christmas in London.” In Destination London, 183–204. 2019. http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctvhrd0t9.12 . HISTORY.com Editors.

“History of Christmas Trees.” History.com, November 28, 2023 (updated December 19, 2025). https://www.history.com/articles/history-of-christmas-trees . Miller, Daniel. \

“Christmas: An Anthropological Lens.” Hau 7, no. 3 (2017): 409–442. https://doi.org/10.14318/hau7.3.027 . Salazar-Porzio, Margaret. “Who Arrives on the

12th Day of Christmas? Three Wise Men, of Course.” National Museum of American History, January 6, 2014.

https://americanhistory.si.edu/explore/stories/who-arrives-12th-day-christmas-three-wise-men-course . Wachelder, Joseph. “Toys, Christmas Gifts and Consumption Culture in

London’s Morning Chronicle, 1800–1827.” Icon 19 (2013): 13–32. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23788118 .

https://www.ffungi.org/blog/the-influence-of-hallucinogenic-mushrooms-on-christmas V&A. “Victorian Christmas Traditions.”

https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/victorian-christmas-traditions History.com Saturnalia:

https://www.history.com/articles/saturnalia Britannica Christmas:

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Christmas Massachusetts law banning Christmas:

https://www.mass.gov/news/massachusetts-law-banning-christmas Smithsonian mistletoe:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/mistletoe-the-evolution-of-a-christmas-tradition-10814188/ Pagan origins overview:

https://historycooperative.org/pagan-origins-of-christmas/ BBC Newsround:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/59905614 PBS fruitcake:

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/the-misunderstood-fruitcake-has-a-magnificent-shelf-life-and-history

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.