21 Holiday Traditions With Shockingly Bizarre Origins

Holiday traditions don't actually originate from elves and Krampus.
21 Holiday Traditions With Shockingly Bizarre Origins

We've got some sour news for a few of you out there: elves don't make toys and Krampus doesn't run around axing people on the naughty list. But, of course, where mythological tradition began there is some factual history behind it.

Which makes us fear Krampus even more.

Ever wonder why stockings are used as receptacles for Christmas gifts? It's because Saint Nicholas had a better throw than Michael Jordan. It originat
CRACKEDCONT AEG Letters to Santa The Christmas tradition of children writing letters to Santa began in the 1800s and actually involved Santa (parents)
In Germany, .there is the story of the Christmas Spider whose webs on the Christmas tree were turned by Santa or Jesus (depending on the version) in't
Caroling might seem like the epitome of good Christian fun, but one of the main reasons it is done outside is that many of the carols were based on pa
Charles, Duke of Orleans wrote the first Valentine's letter in 1417 while under a 25 year imprisonment. He wrote to his wife: I am already sick of lo
CRACKEDCON WHY DO WE GET ORANGES IN OUR CHRISTMAS STOCKINGS? lt's probably because the legend says that the first time St. Nicholas gave a gift, he le
CRACKED COM Queen Elizabeth I of England created the first gingerbread men. They served only were to important guests & molded to look like them. were
Hatoween costumES were meant o be scary enough to frighten ghosts. In the ancient Celtic precursor of modern Halloween, people dressed as witches, gho
Black Friday originated in 1951, but its definition and practice were different. It used to mean that the day after Thanksgiving was the day workers c
During Mexico's Day of the Dead, women often dress up as a sheletal figure dressed in Western attire. It is known as 'La Catrina', and it originated f
Easter eggs come from egg surpluses. Christians abstained from eggs during Lent in medieval times. By the time the fast ended on Easter, villages woun
CRACKEDCON St. Patricks color is blue ASGYIY So why do we wear green? The color became a national symbol during the 1798 lrish Rebellion, 200 years af
Bobbing for apples during Halloween was originally about romance. It was believed that the first person to bite an apple without using their hands wou
CRACKED.COM TTHE FIRST TREE ON ROCKEFELLERE PLAZA WAS AOTUYALLY A CELEBRATION OF PAYDAY. During the Great Depression, on Christmas Eve 1931, workers o
AULD LANG SYNE BECAME THE HAPPY NEW YEAR SONG THANKS TO GUY LOMBARDO AND HIS BAND, THE ROYAL CANADIANS. LOMBARDO, MR. NEW YEAR'S EVE, PLAYED THE S
Playing Dreidel on Hanukkah might seem like a lot of fun, but the origin of the game is really dark. s J When Greeks ruled Syria, they outlawed the st
CRACKED COM Traditional Irish jack o' lanterns were meant to ward off a folk spirit named Jack, who wanders by the light of an ember given to him by t
New Year's resolutions today are a mostly secular practice, but about 4.000 years ago, people were doing it for religious reasons. The ancient Babylon
The President's annual turkey pardon has its roots in the coverage of the Iran-Contra scandal. President Reagan started talking about pardoning turkey
Baby New Year originated from the Greek god of fertility NEW and wine Dionysus, who was YEAR believed to be reborn each year.
The Chiistias Tiee The traditional Christmas tree, the evergreen fir, has actually been used for winter festivals for thousands of years. The first ti

Tags:

Aside from our photoplasties ($100 per contest), we are paying out 10 winners for our macro contests. And YES, you can win all 10 spots ($350 payout) if you've got the skills to blow our minds that many times.

Scroll down for the next article

Must Read

VIRAL ON CRACKED

A WEEKLY
NEWSLETTER OF
JOKES + TRIVIA

Forgot Password?