Christmas season, for many the best holiday of the year. Who doesn't like the celebrations, family gatherings, food, gifts and merriment of the season? Of course, all that merriment is the result of a lot of work on the part of some dear one who enjoys sharing the season as a holiday host. Is that you? Are you hosting a holiday party or planning the office Christmas party this year? Add some Christmas cheer to your holiday party with Christmas party games for the whole gang!
Christmas party games will get your gang talking, laughing and add fun to your next holiday celebration. Printable games will make your party planning easier, just print it and forget it. Choose it, print it, done! A quick and easy way to make sure your guest will have a great time at your Christmas gathering!
Hosting the holiday family get together this year? How about an assortment of children's Christmas party games to keep them busy (and out of your hair!)? Kid's Christmas party games like: - Pin the Star on the Tree. The Christmas version of the all time favorite kids' game! - Christmas Lost & Found! The perfect game for kids who can't read & those who can! Children match a game card to the matching picture on the "lost" items sheet. A Christmas game for kids of all ages! - Kids Christmas Trivia. Just for the kids! Players will have fun trying to answer questions about Santa's reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, the Grinch and other children's favorite holiday interests. A fun kids Christmas game sure to produce giggles!
For the young-at-heart, try these fun adult Christmas games: - Name that Christmas Tune. You can sing the lyrics but can you name that tune? - Christmas Pictionary & Charades! Two all time favorites designed just for Christmas fun! - Famous Christmas Birthdays. We all know one historical person who was born on December 25th but there are lots of other famous people also born on Christmas Day! Given clues, who can name them all!
Hosting an all adult Christmas party? Spice it up with some adult Christmas party games! Some are naughty, some are nice and all will get your guests talking, laughing and in a festive mood: - The Night before Christmas Game. An old story with a spicey twist! Who was doing what with whom on that certain night? Players are asked to answer a variety of questions. Little do they know their answers will become new words to this famous poem! The questions can be nice or naughty! A hilarious adult Christmas party game your guests will want to play every year!
Planning the office Christmas party? Need to entertain a wide age group with varied interest -- no problem! These Office Christmas party games will keep everyone - Christmas at the Movies! How many Christmas-themed movie's can you name? A great game for playful competition! - Date that Toy. Players try and match classic toys with the year it was introduced. You'd be surprised how many toys you'll remember! - Christmas Calculations. For the brainiacs in the bunch. Played in small groups who calculate these crazy holiday problems! A great game for teams. Which department will solve this Christmas riddle first? - Ho, Ho, Ho, Who Do You Know? A great holiday party ice breaker! Each player is given a sheet with a list of holiday items such as 'Has ridden in a horse drawn sleigh' and 'Born in December' Players then go around the room trying to find a player to sign each item. A great way to get the group talking!
Organizing the school Christmas party for the kids? These Kids Christmas party games will keep the kiddies playing and laughing! - Reindeer Mix Up. Santa has his reindeer's names all mixed up! Who can un-mix this jumble of letters to come up with all the reindeer names A certain reindeer song will help the kids with this Christmas game! - Santa's Nose & Toes. Great for the littlest ones. Given these fun little word clues, who can figure out the names of these common parts of Santa Clause! Kids love this Christmas game!
Need a Christmas fund raiser for your civic group or organization? How about a Christmas raffle? Everyone loves the chance to win a raffle. Designate one or more prize winners per raffle and choose a charity for the proceeds.
No matter what Christmas party or holiday gathering you're planning, Christmas party games will involve, entertain and add to the merriment of the celebration. Choose it, print it, done! Printable Christmas party games are your ticket to an easy and festive party!
Like many American traditions, the Christmas holiday can be traced back to Europe. During the fourth century, Romans celebrated a "Feast of the Nativity" held on December 17th. This celebration was based on the Christian observance of the birth of Jesus. Pagan feasts and rituals were also popular during this time period. Many Romans paid homage to their deities during a week's long celebration held from December 17 through January 1st.
Concerned by the increasing popularity of pagan worship and the annual pagan festival, the Roman Church changed the official date of the Nativity Feast to December 25th in an effort to curtail rampant pagan celebrations.
Over the next thousand years, the observance of Christmas followed the expanding community of Christianity. The spreading Christian community took the holiday far Northward into England. From the 13th century on, nearly all of Europe observed Christmas.
These Christmas celebrations involved heathen indulgences that were discouraged the rest of the year. The annual celebration included over-eating, dancing, singing, card playing and gambling; pleasures which escalated to magnificent proportions over the years.
In 1607, King James I insisted that a play be acted on Christmas night along with the playing of Christmas games. In another account of the secular nature of the holiday a feast noted 16 different dishes for the first course. In 1626, the Duke of Buckingham charged the entire crew of three ships, including the ship's captains, with abandoning their service in favor of Christmas revels, leaving their vessels preys to any enemy.
As the magnitude of the Christmas celebration grew, religious institutions of the day struggled to gain control of the holiday. However, it continued to be a religious event celebrated through the pleasures and indulgences that went against the holy teachings of the day.
During the 1600 and 1700's Puritan Reformers took aim at changing the lack of religious activities of the Christmas celebration. They declared it a day of mourning rather than a day of rejoicing. This along with the economic and social upheavals of the day began to alter English life and the way Christmas was celebrated. The spread of the Puritan Reformers movement took hold and its policies continued to chip away at the pagan nature of the celebrations. In 1642, Parliament outlawed seasonal plays and ordered monthly fasts which fell on Christmas day during December. Christmas celebrations were "strongly prohibited" and in 1652 fines were imposed on businesses that decorated or closed in observance of the holiday. There was some resistance to the law but the largess of previous celebrations was drastically reduced to small reverend observances.
It was within this turbulent era that English Christmas customs entered early Virginia and New England. Though most settlers observed the holiday, the types of celebrations varied throughout the regions. Some celebrated it as a feast and some as a purely religious holiday. While most observed Christmas there were some that didn't such as the Puritans of Massachusetts Bay Colony. And in some areas the hardships and challenges of the land did not permit the settler's free time for celebrations of any kind.
The observance of Christmas was recorded in non-English settlements as being more religious in nature. The French settlers of St Croix Island off the coast of Maine held religious observances and spent the remainder of the day playing games.
As the first settlements grew into more established colonies patterns of Christmas observances began to form that were unique to the geographic area. The distance from European homelands, the disparate religious and ethnic groups and the hardship of the new beginnings disrupted old habits and holiday traditions.
Pennsylvania was home to a large group of Quakers who, like the Puritans, were against observance of the holiday. They believed that most Christmas revelers spent the day in riot and drunkenness. Though Quaker areas did not celebrate Christmas, the Moravians, Dutch Reformers and Anglicans all held observances in their own way. By and large, most settlers in the New World welcomed Christmas as a day of respite from the routines of work and hardship that came with establishing new lands.
The disparate Christmas observances continued until the American Revolution. The next hundred years following the Revolution shaped the way Americans celebrated the holiday. During the 1800's as areas grew in population and prosperity Christmas observances began to resemble the Christmas celebrations as we know them.
Today it is observed as a family centered celebration complete with traditional foods, Christmas tree, decorations, parties and gift-giving. Many celebrate by attending religious ceremonies and participating in religious practices. Much like its origins, today's Christmas celebrations remains to be an observance of a religious event with much festivity and merriment. As America's most popular holiday, it is celebrated as a season of joy, peace and hope for humankind.
Terri Hunziker has sinced written about articles on various topics from Family, Bridal Shower and Wedding Bells. Terri Hunziker founded GamesAndLetters.com. Games and Letters provides hundreds of print-and-play games -- , bridal sho. Terri Hunziker's top article generates over 165000 views. to your Favourites.