A Scottish Christmas
by Sky Purrington
Hi Everyone! I’m thrilled to be visiting ElizaKnight’s, History Undressed blog. Ihope that everyone is enjoying their holiday season so far. It’s hard tobelieve that Santa will be coming down the ol’ chimney in a few short days.
For those of you unfamiliar, I write a cross genreof paranormal and fantasy romance. While I have titles covering everything fromvampires to ghost hunters, by far my favorite works include those written abouttime-traveling Highlanders. Like Eliza, I’m crazy about history, especiallyScottish history. I suppose that’s why I can’t sit still in one time period.
Before I go any further I’d like to host a Christmascontest. One lucky commenter will win an E-bundle of my ‘The MacLomain Series’ This includes one short story and three fullnovels. Prize will be either offered in E-book fashion or can be ‘gifted’straight to your Amazon Kindle.
I thought for this visit to keep in Yuletide formand share some age old Scottish Christmas history and traditions. When I did alittle extra research for this blog post I discovered something interesting,and a little sad.
Christmas was banned in Scotland for FOUR HUNDREDyears!
Accordingto Rampant Scotland.com , “After the Church Reformation in the 16th century,the celebration of Christmas was frowned on by the Kirk, which regarded it as a"Popish festival". Mass was banned in Scotland at that time and"Christmas" or "Christ's Mass" was included in that. Thereare records of charges being brought against people for keeping"Yule" as it was called in Scotland. Amazingly, this dour,joy-crushing attitude lasted for 400 years. Until the 1960s, Christmas Day wasa normal working day for most people in Scotland.”
Oh,religion does have a way of changing the rules on occasion, doesn’t it? In theMacLomain Series, my Highlanders accept both the old pagan ways as well asembrace the new God so there’s no stress in my medieval clan! Then again,they’re wizards. I suppose magic helps smooth things out. *winks*
Solet’s talk first about pre-400 years of no Christmas. Those were theglorious days when the Yuletide celebrations lasted from December 25thto January 6th. The Scots word "Yule" comes from the OldNorse "jól, which was a midwinter pagan celebration of the winter solstice.
Believe it or not, the celebrations are thedirect results of the Vikings when they first came to Scotland. They were allabout celebrating conquest and plunder. However, their original version of thismid-winter festival lasted a whopping twenty-four days. Yep, those boys knewhow to party! Naturally, the overindulgence launched a mammoth feast on the eveof Yule.
According to Friends of Scotland.gov.uk, “TheVikings stuffed their faces with vast quantities of food and drink after whichthey stumbled off into the winter night to light a huge bonfire in the goddess’honour. Today, fire and light plays a major part in Yule celebrations in manyareas of Scotland from Biggar to Shetland.
When William of Normandy conquered England in 1066 the English PrincessMargaret fled north and was shipwrecked on the Scottish coast. Her Christianinfluence helped turn the previously pagan Yuletide season into a celebrationof the birth of Jesus Christ.”
Some fun facts…
~Many ancient superstitions and rites heldsignificance for Scots during the Middle Ages. For example, decorating houseswith evergreen trees and mistletoe. Our modern trees are newer versions of thisancient pagan idea that the evergreen tree represented a celebration of therenewal of life, while Celtic peoples long considered mistletoe to have magicpowers. It was said to have the ability to heal wounds and increase fertility. ~InScotland a sprig of mistletoe continues to be hung from ceilings and in doorwaysto bring luck and ward off evil spirits. Kisses are welcome too!
~Christmascards are said to have been invented in Edinburgh, Scotland in themid-nineteenth century.
Thehistory of Christmas in Scotland is rich and closely tied with many of the traditionsof England, especially in more modern times. But some are unique to Scotland.Many households decorate their evergreen (particularly holly) with strips oftheir tartan. Also, it’s a ‘must’ to have a short bread on your holiday table,whether it be Scottish Black Pun, Dundee Cake, Scottish Shortbread (bannock) orMaisie Magennis Dumpling.
Ihope you enjoyed learning more about Scotland at Christmas, HistoryUndressed. Though Christmas wasn’t directly at the heart of it, I spentseveral years researching and writing about Scotland. To this day, no countryhas touched my heart like she has. If you enjoy Scottish time-travel, my ‘TheMacLomain Series’ is currently being offered at .99 CENTS PER NOVEL for alimited time. Though The King’s Druidess (shorter tale) leads out thepack, I thought to share the blurb from Fate’s Monolith (The MacLomainSeries- Book 1).
Wishingyou all a very Happy Holiday Season!
BestRegards,
Sky
Abit about Fate’s Monolith…
AriannaBroun, a Scottish born colonial American has been haunted by the reoccurringdream of a phantom Scottish warrior. Her infatuation with the dream intensifiesuntil All Hallows' Eve, when the veil between the worlds is at its thinnest.After several bizarre encounters she runs to her safe haven deep in the woods.When dawn comes too early, Arianna is eager to go home. But fate has otherplans.
LairdIain MacLomain has long awaited the arrival of his promised bride. She claimsto not be the woman intended for him but she fits the description given him ofher, all fire and defiance. That defiance will end up costing them everythingand rips them apart. However, a Scottish Chieftain with magic at his disposalis capable of most anything. Will he hold Arianna in his arms again or is shelost to him forever? Only time will tell.
TheMacLomain Series is available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Learnmore about Sky Purington at her Website
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