聖誕節爲什麼要搭聖誕樹,吃柺杖糖,喝蛋酒
Did Coca-Cola invent the modern-day Santa?
可口可樂公司創造了現代的聖誕老人形象？Nope, this one's a myth. Although Coca-Cola started using Santa in their advertising in the 1930s, the company didn't come up with the image of the plump old man in his signature red and white. It just so happened that Santa's red suit and white beard matched the brand's colors.
不，這只是一個誤傳。雖然可口可樂公司在上世紀30年代開始在廣告中使用聖誕老人的形象，但身穿標誌性紅白相間服裝的胖胖的聖誕老人的形象並不是該公司想出的，只不過碰巧聖誕老人的紅衣服和白鬍須顏色和可口可樂品牌外觀設計顏色相同。The modern-day image of Santa has been evolving for centuries. Modeled after Saint Nicholas who had a reputation for secret gift-giving, Santa was eventually shaped into the sleigh-riding, chimney-climbing man we know today, through the work of people like Washington Irving and illustrator Thomas Nast.
現代聖誕老人的形象幾世紀以來不斷演變。聖誕老人以喜歡匿名贈送禮物的聖?尼古拉斯（土耳其歷史上真實存在的一位主教）爲原型，經過作家華盛頓?歐文和漫畫家托馬斯?納斯特的描繪，最終演變成如今這位乘雪橇、爬煙囪的老人形象。
Nast's 1881 "Merry Old Santa Claus" largely formed the basis for today's Santa. In that image, Santa appears in the classic red and white suit with a big belly to boot.
納斯特1881年的作品《聖誕老人快樂》基本奠定了如今聖誕老人形象的基礎。在這幅作品裏，聖誕老人身穿經典的紅白相間的衣服，還挺着大肚腩。Where do candy canes come from?
柺杖糖是怎麼來的？This is one of those traditions that we're not too sure about. One story goes that a German choirmaster in 1670 was worried about children being disruptive during long church services, so he went to a candy maker for sticks of white sugar to keep them quiet. To give the candy an educational slant, the choirmaster asked the candy maker to make the sticks in the shape of a cane so that the kids would remember the story of the shepherds who came to visit baby Jesus. However, all the references to this story are anecdotal and there are no real records to prove it's actually true.
這是一個我們不太確定來源的聖誕習俗。有說法認爲，1670年德國一位唱詩班指揮擔心孩子們在教堂禮拜時惹麻煩，因此讓糖果製造商製作了白糖棒來安撫孩子。爲了讓糖果有教育意義，這位指揮讓糖果製造商把糖棒製成柺杖狀，以便讓孩子們記住來看望小耶穌的“好牧人”的故事。但這只是一則趣聞軼事，沒有真實的記載來證實。What we do know is that in 1919, Bob McCormack started making candy canes in Georgia and eventually became one of the world's leading candy cane producers. Since manually shaping candy canes into their traditional 'J' shape was inefficient and labor-intensive, McCormack's brother-in-law, a Catholic priest named Gregory Keller, invented the Keller Machine to automate the process of shaping straight candy sticks into today's J-shaped candy canes.
我們明確知道的是，在1919年，美國喬治亞州的鮑勃?麥科馬克開始製作柺杖糖，他所經營的公司最終成爲全球最大的柺杖糖生產商之一。由於人工把柺杖糖打造成傳統的J型費時費力，麥科馬克的妹夫、天主教牧師格雷戈裏?凱勒發明了凱勒機器，能夠將直糖果棒自動變成彎曲的柺杖糖。Why do we drink eggnog?
爲什麼聖誕喝蛋酒？Most culinary historians agree that eggnog stems from a medieval British drink called "posset," a thick, boozy, ale-like concoction seasoned with whatever spices were on hand. As the milk, eggs and sherry used to make posset were foods of the rich, the drink was used in toasts to prosperity and good health.
大多數美食歷史學家都認爲蛋酒來自英國中世紀一種名爲“牛奶甜酒”的飲品，這種甜酒味道醇厚，酒香濃郁，是一種類似於麥芽酒的調製飲品，可以按自己的需求添加多種調味料。用於製作牛奶甜酒的牛奶、雞蛋和雪利酒在當時只有有錢人才買得起，因此牛奶甜酒用來祝願人們富足健康。Eggnog became a holiday tradition when it was brought over to the American colonies, where cows, chickens and rum were much more accessible. As for the name? The term "nog" referred to a certain type of strong, English beer, while a "noggin" was a small cup intended for brewing nog.
蛋酒被帶到美洲殖民地之後，成爲一種假日習俗。在美洲，奶牛、雞和朗姆酒更加普遍。至於名字？“nog”指的是一種強勁的英國啤酒，而“noggin”指的是用於釀造nog的小杯子。Why do we put up Christmas trees?
爲什麼要搭聖誕樹？There are a few different stories behind the origin of the modern-day Christmas tree, although not all are rooted in fact. Evergreen trees were actually used by pagans in winter festivals for thousands of years. During the winter solstice, evergreens signified the coming of spring. As Christianity spread throughout Europe, the trees began to be used as a symbol for Christmas. In mystery plays in Germany, they were often used as props, garnished with apples to represent the Garden of Eden.
現今聖誕樹的起源有多個版本，但並非都有事實依據。其實異教徒在冬季的節日中使用常青樹已經有幾千年歷史了。在冬至，常青樹象徵着春季的來臨。由於基督教傳遍歐洲，常青樹開始象徵聖誕節。在德國的神祕劇中，常青樹經常用作小道具，裝飾着代表伊甸園的蘋果。One legend credits 16th century Protestant reformer Martin Luther for bringing the Christmas tree into homes. Luther was supposedly walking through the forest on the night before Christmas when he looked up to see stars shining through the tree branches. He was so dazzled by the sight that he told his children it reminded him of Jesus and then erected a tree in his own home.
有傳說認爲，16世紀的新教改革者馬丁?路德把聖誕樹傳統帶入衆多家庭。據說聖誕節前夜他穿過森林，擡頭看見星光穿過樹枝。他被這一美景震撼，告訴孩子們這讓他想起了耶穌，於是在自己家搭了一棵聖誕樹。But it wasn't until the mid-19th century that the Christmas tree as we now know it became custom. England's Queen Victoria encouraged her husband Prince Albert to decorate a tree as he had back at home in what is now Germany. When a drawing of the royal family with their exquisite Christmas tree appeared in a London newspaper, the tradition became popular throughout the UK and US.
但直到19世紀中期，搭聖誕樹才成爲一種習俗。英國維多利亞女王鼓勵丈夫阿爾伯特按照他原來家中（今德國境內）的樣子裝飾了一棵聖誕樹。一家倫敦報紙刊登了英國王室與裝飾精美的聖誕樹在一起的畫像之後，這一習俗在英國和美國流行起來。
Why do we hang wreaths on our doors?
爲什麼在門上掛聖誕花環？In ancient Rome, people would exchange evergreen branches during New Year's celebrations to wish each other good health. The Romans eventually began bending these branches into a ring and displaying them on doorways, which symbolized both victory and eternal life.
在古羅馬，人們在新年慶祝時交換常青樹樹枝，互祝健康。後來羅馬人把樹枝編成花環掛在門口，象徵勝利和永生。The wreath later became a Christian symbol for the body of Christ. In holly wreaths, the sharp, pointed leaves represented the crown of thorns worn by Jesus on the cross and the small, red berries symbolized drops of blood. Evergreen wreaths embodied eternal life. For some Christians, hanging a wreath in the doorway has been an invitation for Christ to enter one's home. But today, people mostly hang wreaths on their doors because they're festive, pretty and well, because it's tradition.
之後，花環成爲基督教會的象徵。冬青花環上的尖樹葉代表耶穌臨刑前佩戴的荊棘王冠，而小小的紅漿果象徵血滴。常青花環象徵永生。對一些基督教徒來說，在門口掛花環意思是邀請基督登門造訪。但如今，人們在門上掛花環大多是因爲花環很喜慶很漂亮，因爲這已經成爲聖誕傳統。
