History of the Christmas tree
The history and tradition of the Christmas tree
The Christmas tree (a spruce, not a pine tree) goes back to a fertility symbol. Sources differ widely on the age of its use as a Christmas tree. The Germans probably already had an evergreen tree in their home or yard around the time of the winter solstice (the Yule festival) before Christianization. Because of these pagan roots, the Roman Catholic Church banned the tree from Christianity for a long time.
At the beginning of the sixteenth century, Luther declared the Christmas tree to be a symbol of the birth of Jesus. At first, the tree was only in churches; at the end of the 19th century, it was brought into the living room, first in Protestant countries.
According to Luther, the Christmas tree reminds Christians of the tree in paradise; the Christmas tree balls of the fruit that Adam and Eve ate. The top of the tree represents the star that showed the Wise Men the way to the birthplace of Jesus; sometimes the top is therefore replaced by a star.
The Catholics previously gave the nativity scene, possibly with green decorations, the place of honor in the house, but it is only since 1982 that there has also been a Christmas tree in the Vatican. Protestants, however, generally rejected the images of the nativity scene, because of their ban on images, which is why the Christmas tree was more successful among them. Incidentally, there was no prehistory or pagan folklore around the evergreen conifer in the warmer, southern Catholic countries, as there was in the Germanic northern countries. The Christmas tree is decorated with candles, garlands, ball chains, angel hair and Christmas balls. In connection with fire prevention, special Christmas tree lighting has also come into use, consisting of small electric lamps in a plastic housing.
The Christmas tree is now also interpreted theologically as a prefiguration of the wood of the cross of Christ's suffering and sacrificial death; in addition, the green wood refers to the manger and the eternal life that was accomplished and earned by Jesus, according to the Christian view.
(source: wikipedia)
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" Since 2023, we have been getting our Christmas tree from christmastree.nl – and by now, that has become a wonderful tradition.
I used to drive past there often when I worked in the neighborhood, but I had never bought a tree there before. Until the morning before Christmas: our tree (bought elsewhere) was shedding its needles en masse, just as we were expecting family. After driving around Amsterdam and the surrounding area, it quickly became apparent that trees were no longer available anywhere. That is why I decided to call christmastree.nl to ask if they might still have something.
Jeroen answered and was incredibly friendly. It turned out they still had a tree, and I was allowed to come by immediately. So I drove from Badhoevedorp to Hoofddorp, and just driving onto the yard was a treat (especially for the children): sheep, cozy fairy lights, a fire pit, and a warehouse with a few trees left.
There were still some beautiful trees among them. I immediately bought a handy wooden stand to go with it, and the tree was already ready to be placed on it, allowing us to decorate the tree right away at home. We enjoyed it immensely for 2.5 weeks; it looked beautiful. It was almost a shame to get rid of it after January 6th.
Since then, we have been coming back every year and really turn it into a family outing: the kids with the sheep, while we pick out trees with hot chocolate and whipped cream or mulled wine. It is an extremely friendly family that gives you plenty of time to calmly choose a beautiful tree and helps you where necessary.
The price-quality ratio is truly amazing. The needles hardly fall out, even when we buy the tree the day after Sinterklaas. It stays beautifully green and smells wonderful, even at our home on the cast floor with underfloor heating.
This year I briefly considered an artificial Christmas tree. After contacting Jeroen by email, an artificial tree was even ready on the day of our visit with an explanation – great service. But to be honest: we went for a real tree again.
I also follow christmastree.nl on Instagram; it is very nice to see how the trees look in Denmark and when they are transported to the Netherlands. In the meantime, our immediate neighbors have also bought their tree here (on our recommendation) — and they are just as enthusiastic.
We have found our place. From now on, we will buy our Christmas tree here and bring the children along for the fun. A tradition to cherish! "
Ester