Norse Christmas celebration

Christmas celebrations in Norway started a long time before Jesus was born. Historians and researchers are notsure exactly when Christmas celebrations started, but we do know that celebrations took place between November and mid-January. The Norse Christmas was called jól or jólablót. The celebrations were also called mid-winterfest.

For the Vikings, jólablót was a celebration they really looked forward to. Hard physical work, cold and windy houses and dark evenings were finally rewarded with a celebration. For most people, this meant getting together with families and neighbours, and everyone contributed with food and beer.

⬅ Håkon den Gode i juleblótet på Mære (Haakon the Good at the juleblót in Mære), painted by Peter-Nicolai Arbo.

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Håkon den Gode i juleblótet på Mære, malt av Peter-Nicolai Arbo
Håkon den Gode i juleblótet på Mære, malt av Peter-Nicolai Arbo

Freyr’s sacred animals are sacrificed

Jólablót means sacrifice. Sacrifices were made to the gods Odin, Thor and Freyr. The god Njord was also often celebrated. One of the traditional rituals was to sacrifice animals in honor of the gods. Statues of the gods were smeared in animal blood and the meat was eaten. Before anyone started to eat the food, it had to be blessed. One of the common animals to be slaughtered was the pig, which was the sacred animal of Freyr.

Illustrasjon av ofring

Not brewing beer for Christmas was a criminal offence

Another ritual was to honour and calm the gods by drinking beer, which was considered to be a sacred drink. In ‘Haraldskvadet’ from around the year 900: “Out (at sea) he (the king) wanted to drink Christmas.” To drink Christmas means to celebrate Christmas. This was so important that the law stated that it was obligatory for beer to be brewed for Christmas. If you were to break the law many times, your farm could be taken and given to the king, and the farmer himself could be sent away. 

By making sacrifices and drinking to the gods, people were hoping for fertile land, good crops and peace.

Oppbevaring av drikke i tretønner stablet opp på hverandre
Oppbevaring av drikke i tretønner stablet opp på hverandre

Solstice and ancestors

There is also reason to believe that the Vikings celebrated the turning of the sun, often referred to as the winter solstice. This Viking celebration was called “Yule” which is similar to the Norwegian word for Christmas today . It was a form of light festival, similar to those found in many other cultures.

People were worried about the spirits, which they believed came out during the darkest time. The dead would return to our world, where they once lived. To avoid this, candles had to be lit on Christmas Eve, a tradition that many people still have today.

Beds were made for the dead and food was laid out. Some would say that Christmas was also a celebration of the forefathers. But the dead could bring dangerous companions that could destroy houses, eat the Christmas food and drink all the beer. So this celebration was not without danger.

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Illustrasjon av solverv 1881
Illustrasjon av solverv 1881

The Roman sun God

The Roman Empire had long known about Christianity when the Roman emperor Aurelian introduced the cult of Sol Invictus as a state religion in the year 274. Emperor Aurelian, who was not a Christian, introduced the cult of the sun to strengthen his power after a series of crises. The emperor became the messenger or holy representative of god. Any attempt to deny him power would be an insult to god. Most cultures have a sun god, and the origins of the Roman one lie in ancient Greece and Persia.

⬅ In some places this god was named Mitra.

Romerrikets solgud, Mitra
Romerrikets solgud, Mitra

Winter solstice and birthday celebrations

Sol Invictus didn’t only rule over the humans, but also over all other gods. There was a lot of excitement when Sunday was introduced as a public holiday for Sol.

Every year, the birthday of Sol Invictus, Dies Natalis Solis Invicti, was celebrated on December 25th. It was said that the sun turned this day, and it is also known as the winter solstice. This date was celebrated by the Romans giving each other gifts and kissing under the mistletoe.

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Illustrasjon av Vintersolverv
Illustrasjon av Vintersolverv

Christianity becomes the state religion

In the first centuries, a small group of Christians lived alongside the Sol cult in Rome. Emperors became interested in Chritianity from the early fourth century, and in 380 Christianity became the state religion of the Roman Empire. At this point, other religions were banned.

Illustrasjon av Julekrybben
Illustrasjon av Julekrybben

The three wise men

For Christians, the rebirth of Jesus at Easter was the most important holiday. The birth of Jesus was not really celebrated, but the three wise men who brought gifts for baby Jesus were celebrated on January 6th.

Illustrasjon av De tre vise menn
Illustrasjon av De tre vise menn

When was Jesus born?

As Christianity became more widespread, the church decided that the birth of Jesus should also become a holiday. The birth of Jesus was to be celebrated. But, there was a slight problem – the Bible doesn’t actually tell us when Jesus was born.

Some theologists believed it to be springtime, that is, March, April or May. They believed this to be the right time because the Christmas texts tell the tale of shepherds in the fields and lambs. Lambing tends to happen in the spring, and shepherds don’t sleep outside in December, do they? September could also be a more accurate time, while others believed that it would be most accurate to start from Mary’s day of announcement. This is the day when the archangel Gabriel came to tell the Virgin Mary that she was with child. This is assumed to be March 25th, and March 25th to December 25th is nine months.

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Illustrasjon av Den hellige familien i stall
Illustrasjon av Den hellige familien i stall

December 25th becomes the Christian holiday

Around the year 350, Pope Julius I decided that December 25th should be celebrated as the birthday of Jesus. This was the same date as the previously popular sun god was celebrated. This is how Christian content was added to an old holiday. 

Several hundred years would pass from the start of the Roman Empire celebrating Christmas before this tradition would reach Norway and the Nordic countries. You can read more about this in the article ‘Christmas comes to Norway’

Bilde av figurer som skal forestille Julekrybben
Bilde av figurer som skal forestille Julekrybben

The origin of Christmas – a cartoon

 

Sources:

  • Historien om Jesus og hans samtid (2020)
    Orage Forlag AS

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