The Real Stories Behind Christmas Traditions and Songs - Holiday Bonus Episode
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Today on Something You Should Know, another Christmas bonus episode about holiday traditions. Have you ever stopped to wonder where these traditions came from? Some traditions didn't start out having much to do with Christmas at all.
I think the mistletoe tradition is fascinating because it really goes back to over a thousand years when the early missionaries were going to reach the Vikings, and the Vikings looked upon the mistletoe plant as this incredible plant. When these people converted to Christianity, what they did was they brought the mistletoe plant with them and put it over babies' cribs and other things to represent their faith. They also wanted their bride and groom to be married under a symbol of faith, and so they were married underneath a mistletoe plant.
Today, we're going to explore the stories behind some of the most familiar Christmas traditions. And once you hear them, you may never look at these traditions the same way again. On this bonus holiday episode of Something You Should Know.
Ah, the Regency era. You might know it as the time when Bridgerton takes place, or as the time when Jane Austen wrote her books. The Regency era was also an explosive time of social change, sex scandals, and maybe the worst king in British history.
What is the origin of the NORAD Santa Tracker?
Vulgar History's new season is all about the Regency era, the balls, the gowns, and all the scandal. Listen to Vulgar History, Regency era, wherever you get podcasts. Something you should know. Fascinating intel. The world's top experts. And practical advice you can use in your life. Today, Something You Should Know with Mike Carruthers.
Hi and welcome to our final holiday bonus episode of Something You Should Know This Year. These are so much fun to do. I love putting these episodes together. And I want to start with a question. Have you, or maybe it's your kids, ever tracked Santa on the NORAD Santa Tracker? Every Christmas Eve, millions of people all over the world check the NORAD Santa Tracker to see where Santa is at that moment. And it all started with a typo. Back in 1955, a Sears department store ran a newspaper ad telling kids to call Santa directly. But the phone number was printed incorrectly. Instead of reaching Santa, kids were calling the Continental Air Defense Command. That was the Cold War military operation that later became known as NORAD.
Well, rather than hanging up on disappointed children, the officer who was taking the calls answered the phone and played along, telling them that Santa was already on his way. Well, the idea caught on and the military began officially tracking Santa using radar and satellites. So what began as a Cold War accident has turned into a beloved annual tradition that's been running for nearly 70 years. And that is something you should know. Every year around this time, people in the U.S., as well as people all over the world, engage in their favorite holiday traditions. The same ones their parents engaged in, as did their grandparents, and on and on. We also listen to and sing the same Christmas songs every year, over and over again.
So where did these songs and traditions come from? In many cases, the backstories are really interesting, and someone who's researched and written about them is Ace Collins. Ace is the author of many books, including Stories Behind the Great Traditions of Christmas and Stories Behind the Best Loved Songs of Christmas. Hi, Ace. Welcome. So let's dive in here because there's a lot to cover. Let's start with the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe. Where did that come from?
Well, I think the mistletoe tradition is fascinating because why do we have this plant during Christmas that's essentially a makeout plant? I mean, you know, why do you have that? And it really goes back to over a thousand years when the early missionaries were going to reach the Vikings and The Vikings looked upon the mistletoe plant as this incredible plant. It was able to grow out of dead wood in the wintertime, because they believed trees died in the wintertime and spring back to life.
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