IStock Photo 10964034 © Dieter Spears

1. In what century was December 25th first celebrated by the Christian Church?

1st century

4th century

9th century

15th century

ANSWER: The 4th century, in 337 A.D. It was then that a church council determined to take the date of the pagan Winter Solstice to celebrate the birth of Jesus.

2. Which country outlawed Christmas in 1647?

Russia

England

Japan

Syria

ANSWER: Christmas was outlawed in 1647 by the Puritan government of England. The New England colonies followed, and from 1659-1681, it was illegal in Massachusetts to celebrate Christmas. This was not only because December 25th was associated with a pagan holiday, but also because the celebration often encouraged drunkenness and other misbehavior. As Puritan minister Cotton Mather said in 1712 (when Christmas had been reinstated) “The Feast of Christ’s Nativity” is spent “by Mad Mirth, by long Eating, by hard Drinking, by lewd Gaming, by rude Reveling.”

3. All children know that Santa gets back up the chimney by “laying his finger beside his nose.” Which author first revealed this crucial information?

Clement Clark Moore, author of The Night Before Christmas.

Washington Irving, author of Knickerbocker’s History of New York.

Charles Dickens, author of A Christmas Story.

Dylan Thomas, author of A Child’s Christmas in Wales.

ANSWER: Washington Irving originated the phrase in 1809 when he wrote about the Dutch Sinterklaas, who served as an early model for Santa Claus. Sinterklaas was a round little man in knee-britches who flew around in a horse-drawn wagon “dropping gifts down the chimney of his favorites.” The phrase became famous with the 1823 publication of Clement Clarke Moore’s poem The Night Before Christmas. Saint Nicholas, having filled all the stockings:

Then turned with a jerk,

And laying his finder aside of his nose;

And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose.

4. The poinsettia originally came from what country?

Brazil

China

Mexico

France

ANSWER: The poinsettia was brought to the United States from Mexico by Joel Poinsett, the American ambassador, in 1825. He had seen the plant at a Christmas Eve service and brought seeds home to Charleston to cultivate. In Mexico it is called “the flower of the blessed night” because of its resemblance to the Star of Bethlehem.

5. What is the best selling Christmas song of all time?

"Santa Claus is Coming to Town"

"Jingle Bells"

"Silent Night"

"White Christmas"

ANSWER: According to the Guinness Book of World Records, that distinction belongs to "White Christmas," the 1941 song by Bing Crosby. It was written by Irving Berlin, who wrote about a snowy scene of Christmas nostalgia while sitting in shorts by his swimming pool in Los Angeles. It was included in the film Holiday Inn, starring Crosby, Fred Astaire, and Marjorie Reynolds. It remained the best selling single of all time until Elton John’s tribute to Princess Diana, a remake of "Candle in the Wind," overtook it in 1998.

6. Which government agency tracks the progress of Santa Claus around the world on Christmas Eve?

NORAD

FBI

CIA

Homeland Security

ANSWER: The North American Defense Command (NORAD) began tracking Santa in 1955 when a Sears store in Colorado Springs accidentally handed out their number to children hoping to talk to Santa Claus. The commander, Colonel Harry Shoup, was good natured enough to tell the phone operators to begin handing out coordinates of Santa’s location, and a tradition was born. In 2006, NORAD’s Santa Tracker received more than a billion hits from 210 countries. If you want to track Santa yourself, you can visit the Official Norad Tracker Site beginning December 1st. It is now done with Google Maps™.

7. The printed Christmas card originated in what country?

England

The United States

Germany

Italy

ANSWER: England. In 1843, Sir Henry Cole, the man responsible for modernizing the British postal system, commissioned a Christmas card to send to friends and family. One thousand cards bearing the inscription: “Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You” were printed; 12 still exist and are in the hands of collectors.

8. What department store created Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer?

Macy's

Woolworth Five and Dime

Montgomery Ward

Sears

ANSWER: In 1939, Montgomery Ward in Chicago created Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. A man who worked in advertising for the store named Robert May suggested an illustrated poem about a shiny reindeer and had a friend of his illustrate “Rollo”—the first name proposed. May’s 4-year-old daughter was polled for her opinion and preferred “Rudolph,” and so it has been ever since.