Christmas celebrations look different all around the Globe. From Iceland to Australia to America, some people experience a white Christmas filled with fresh snowfalls and thick winter parkas, while others associate the Christmas season with warm, balmy weather.
For Americans, there are several popular Christmas activities synonymous with the holidays across the country. Many traditions were brought over as immigrants flocked to the U.S. in search of a better life, while others began as part of a cultural phenomenon or out of necessity.
Tradition makes the holidays exciting, nostalgic, and helps us build strong connections with family and friends. Here are the top ten American Christmas traditions to add to your list this year.
Contents
- 1. Pick Out a Christmas Tree
- 2. Watch a Tree Lighting Ceremony
- 3. Decorate Your House and Yard With Christmas Lights
- 4. Secret Santa
- 5. Build a Gingerbread House
- 6. Countdown to Christmas with an Advent Calendar
- 7. Mailing Holiday Cards
- 8. Watching Home Alone
- 9. Hanging the Christmas Pickle
- 10. Yule Logs
- Holiday Cheer is in the Tradition
1 Pick Out a Christmas Tree
A classic American Christmas tradition is the trip to the tree lot to select your family Christmas tree. Typically, a family affair, this outing is an exciting event that precedes the holidays each year for many American households.
The process involves walking amongst rows upon rows of aromatic, deciduous pine trees, selecting the one with the best aesthetic that looks full and healthy. Then, once you pay, the family carries the tree over their shoulders and straps it onto the roof of the car for the drive home.
2 Watch a Tree Lighting Ceremony
This American holiday tradition dates back to 1923 when President Calvin Coolidge held the first National Tree Lighting Ceremony. This event has become an essential part of White House history and is now an annual tradition.
Today, tree lighting ceremonies are hosted worldwide, with one of the most notable being the annual tree lighting at Rockefeller Center. Whether you attend in person or gather round a televised broadcast of the event with friends and family, don’t forget to grab a cup of hot cocoa to keep you warm and your spirits bright.
3 Decorate Your House and Yard With Christmas Lights
Decorating houses and trees with lights dates back to when candles provided light for Christmas trees and shined on mantles for symbolic religious reasons. With the invention of electricity came modern miniature bulbs and the twinkling of a hundred lights reminds all Americans of cozy Christmas nights.
In the United States, yard decorations have become extremely popular with Santa’s sleigh, light-up reindeer, and inflatable snowmen, all making appearances on lawns throughout the nation in December. Some counties even turn the affair into a competition, encouraging residents to “deck-the-yard.”
House Decorated with Christmas Lighting
4 Secret Santa
This holiday gift exchange game might be an American tradition today, but it originated in Scandinavia. Called “Julklapp,” this original version of Secret Santa involves leaving a present outside someone’s house, knocking the door, and running away.
It has evolved to something else in North America and is a popular game amongst friend groups and even in offices during the holidays. Individuals draw the name of someone else from the group, and they purchase a present for this person only, keeping their own name a secret. This game is trendy and heartwarming because everyone involved gets a gift uniquely chosen for them, often from someone they never would’ve expected…
