trivia thursday: christmas songs edition

i have always wondered about the 12 days of christmas. here is what i found:

One of the holiday's best-loved songs, "The Twelve Days of Christmas," marks the longest holiday in the Christian calendar -- the time between Christmas Day and Epiphany, celebrated on January 6.

The song's origin is unknown, but some believe the song was written to help Catholic children remember various articles of faith. These are:

True love
God

A partridge in a pear tree
Jesus

Two turtle doves
Old and New Testaments

Three French hens
Faith, Hope, and Charity

Four calling birds
Four Gospels

Five golden rings
The first five books of the Old Testament, the Pentateuch, which records the history and laws of ancient Israel

Six geese a-laying
Six days of Creation

Seven swans a-swimming
Seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, or the Seven Sacraments

Eight maids a-milking
Eight beatitudes

Nine ladies dancing
Nine fruits of the Holy Spirit

Ten lords a-leaping
Ten Commandments

Eleven pipers piping
Eleven faithful disciples

Twelve drummers drumming
Twelve points of doctrine in the Apostles' Creed

[source: http://christmas.howstuffworks.com/christmas-trivia2.htm]

trivia thursday: the santa edition

just about 200 days left until christmas... a little santa trivia for you on this friday eve.

• Santa Claus began life as a sort of Christian version of Poseidon, Greed god of the sea and all waters. Poseidon became known as the giver of all good things and festivals were held to celebrate his existence in December in the third century B.C., the event officially becoming known as the feast day of St. Nicholas in the fourth century B.C. Later Christian in Rome gave him the name of Nicholas and claimed he was a bishop who gave anonymous gifts by night.
• St. Nicholas is also the patron saint of pawnbrokers.
• Our current vision of Santa Claus came from an illustration by Thomas Nast in 1863 made for Dr. Clement Moore’s tale A Visit from St. Nicholas

trivia thursday

in the Charlie Brown Christmas special, just before her remarks about Christmas being a big commercial racket, Lucy refers to Charlie Brown simply as Charlie. This is the only time she does this in any of the TV specials: every other time it's Charlie Brown.

trivia thursday

here are some fun reindeer facts for trivia thursday...

• Reindeer are one of several subspecies of caribou found around the world.
• Reindeer are herbivores, which means they eat vegetation. In the summer, they eat leaves and herbs. In the winter, they eat lichen and moss.
• Reindeer generally don't run very fast. In fact, a white-tailed deer could outrun a reindeer.
• Reindeer use their antlers like a shovel to break through the crust of snow to reach the vegetation underneath.

[source:http://christmas.howstuffworks.com/christmas-trivia4.htm]

trivia thursday

for "a charlie brown christmas", the actors (all children) learned their lines phonetically, often not knowing what they meant, which led to the now familiar peanuts delivery-style.

trivia thursday

a Charlie Brown Christmas is the longest-running cartoon special in history, airing every year since its debut in 1965.