ANSWERS: 10
  • Possibly because the plant life that still has leaves and berries displays those colors, making them easy to gather for decoration at that time of year in the Northern Hemisphere where the holiday originated with pagan mid-winter celebrations.
  • I do like saturnmoon's answer, and there is probably some element of truth to that. But I like to think that its red because Coca cola put st nicholas in what we now see at traditional santa clothing - red with a white trim. Before that St Nicholas traditionally was put in green clothing.
  • The Holly and the Ivy. Green for the holly leaves, the red for the holly berry.
  • Red for the blood of Jesus and green to symbolize eternal life(i.e. the Evergreen tree or "Christmas Tree" is eternally green)
  • Black and orange were already taken (by Halloween)?! ;-)
  • It probably has to do with the plants that are alive in the cold weather, like the poinsettia, which are green with red leaves.
  • 1) "The idea of a Paradise Tree takes us back to the 1300s, at which time Adam and Eve’s Day was celebrated on December 24th each year. Due to the explosive number of people who were illiterate, local churches often presented plays, which they utilized as a learning tool for the general populace. These were labeled, “Miracle Plays,” since they touched on issues of religious importance. The Paradise Play, which was presented on December 24th, related the story of Adam and Eve, and their plight in the Garden of Eden. Of course, props were needed and, since there was no way to provide an apple tree in the middle of winter, it was decided that a pine tree with apples tied to its branches would have to serve as the Tree of Good and Evil, in the center of the garden. Since this idea worked so well, it became a popular prop for local churches, and the idea spread, until this version of the Tree of Good and Evil was the commonly accepted prop whenever the play was performed. Soon, churches everywhere had adopted this tradition and included it in their celebration each year. The Paradise Tree was so popular in Germany, that private citizens began to erect pine trees in their homes during the holiday, decorating them with red apples, as the church folks had done for their Miracle Play. Before long, the tradition was so widespread, that the modern-day Christmas tree tradition was born, and the official colors of the Christmas season became green and red – green for the pine tree and red for the apples – the combination of which represented the Paradise Tree, which made its debut in the 14th century. Eventually, the Paradise Tree was also decorated with small white wafers – symbolizing the Holy Eucharist – to remind people that, while Adam and Eve were responsible for the fall of mankind, the birth of the Christ Child would – in effect – reverse the final result of the fall through the eventual suffering and death of Jesus. The second tale offers a far different explanation of the history of the seasonal colors. There’s no factual evidence that can be found for it, as opposed to the story of the Paradise Tree, but appears, rather, to be a school of thought or philosophy that has been adopted by some over the years. HOPE AND BLOOD In this scenario, the color of green is said to symbolize the hope that was given to us through the sacrifices of Jesus, and is exemplified by the color of the evergreen trees, which remain alive and green throughout the year. Red, on the other hand, is believed to represent the blood of Christ, which was shed for all humans in order that they might be saved. When combined with the color green, this duo is said to express the hope of being redeemed through the sacrifices of Christ." Source and further information: http://www.essortment.com/family/christmascolor_sccl.htm 2) "Traditional Christmas flora are Poinsettia and Holly, both are green plants with red flowers and berries respectively. In 1931 when Coca Cola hired artist Haddon Sundblom to promote their soft drink, Sunblom's color palate for the series of ads were based around Poinsettia and Holly, evergreen trees and the red velvet costume of his now iconic image of Santa Claus." Source and further information: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_are_red_and_green_Christmas_colors Further information: http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/11783 3) "Green is one of the Christmas colors as well, possibly dating back to pre-Christian times, when evergreens were worshipped for their ability to maintain their color through the winter season. Romans used green holly and evergreen as decorations for their winter solstice celebration called Saturnalia, which eventually evolved into a Christmas celebration." Source and further information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green "There are many stories and legends about pagan winter festivals which include a ‘Father Christmas’ type figure, all of which have become part of the modern version. It’s likely he represented the coming of spring and wore a long green hooded cloak and a wreath of holly, ivy or mistletoe and had the ability to make people happier during the long winter months." Source and further information: http://www.bbc.co.uk/northyorkshire/content/articles/2007/11/26/green_father_christmas_feature.shtml "In the United Kingdom, Santa -- or Father Christmas -- was historically depicted wearing a green cloak. More recently, that has been changed to the more commonly known red suit. One school in the seaside town of Brighton banned the use of a red suit for erroneously believing it was only indicative of the Coca-Cola advertising campaign. School spokesman Sarah James said: "The red-suited Santa was created as a marketing tool by Coca-Cola, it is a symbol of commercialism." In reality, the red-suited Santa was created by Thomas Nast." Source and further information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Claus
  • Green for the Xmas tree, red for the blood spilled when all your relatives get together. :(
  • To piss off the colorblind.
  • Holly is red and green. And green for the tree and red for Santa! I love Christmas!

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