Why are these things American Christmas symbols?

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  • Опубліковано 10 січ 2025

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  • @Adrian-Sko
    @Adrian-Sko 18 днів тому +428

    I'm always astounded by how many obscure and ultra specific books does JJ own in physical copies. A 600 page, 1997 book on fricking Hollies? That's actually commendable.

    • @gerardacronin334
      @gerardacronin334 18 днів тому +35

      I have often wondered whether JJ’s apartment is cluttered throughout, or whether he rents a storage locker for all his stuff.

    • @JamesOKeefe-US
      @JamesOKeefe-US 18 днів тому +2

      Truth 😅

    • @TheBranchan
      @TheBranchan 18 днів тому +34

      Someone made a UA-cam short about this once, JJ's house is filled to the brim with these obscure books in every possible place. Man loves his books

    • @ashkitt7719
      @ashkitt7719 18 днів тому +6

      @@gerardacronin334 Literally my dad. His entire house was covered wall to wall in books from every author from Aristotle to Albert Camus.

    • @torstenwehnert8549
      @torstenwehnert8549 18 днів тому +40

      J.J. stated once, that he is a big fan of his local library.

  • @rkt7414
    @rkt7414 18 днів тому +246

    I'm heading home for the holidays with my gf from my life abroad in Korea and she has checked with me probably 6 times to make sure that we can make a gingerbread house when we get there. It's fun to see these very normal and mundane aspect of the holidays in my own culture through the eyes of a non-American who sees it as much more exotic and quaint.

    • @JJMcCullough
      @JJMcCullough  18 днів тому +43

      Did you ever actually make one or have you ever seen them?

    • @merpius
      @merpius 18 днів тому +16

      @@JJMcCullough I think it's his gf who is from Korea, and he's seeing this anew through her eyes.

    • @SassyyjuicyMaria
      @SassyyjuicyMaria 15 днів тому

      Especially if you celebrate
      Xmas in the summer like
      we do over here

    • @TheRealBatCave
      @TheRealBatCave 14 днів тому +1

      ​@JJMcCullough honest question brother, why are many comments being deleted, ive been a long time fan and subscriber, for some reason my comments get removed, and I don't think even say anything wrong or rude, it's very odd, not sure if it just YT or your moderator? Anyway another award winning video

    • @samanteater
      @samanteater 7 днів тому

      ​@@TheRealBatCaveUA-cam uses an AI to moderate comments, and as all AIs are, it's very finnicky.

  • @davidmehling4310
    @davidmehling4310 18 днів тому +206

    I was in a tobacco store recently and was surprised to see corncob pipes for sale. The sales clerk said they were mostly bought for use in snowmen

    • @RandomDudeOne
      @RandomDudeOne 18 днів тому +13

      General Douglas MacArthur's favorite pipe.

    • @anthonymartire2036
      @anthonymartire2036 18 днів тому +10

      They are extremely cheap, disposable, and are nice to smoke out of. I have an one myself. People definitely use em.

    • @mattkotlan1466
      @mattkotlan1466 18 днів тому +2

      college times had me looking for anything cheap to smoke out of, I had about a dozen saved up but tossed em when i graduated, shoulda saved em for those snowmen ):

    • @nanoglitch6693
      @nanoglitch6693 18 днів тому +1

      That's awesome lol 😅

    • @Forester-
      @Forester- 17 днів тому +1

      I have one for smoking tobacco, Missouri Meerschaum.

  • @prkp7248
    @prkp7248 18 днів тому +196

    In Poland snowman depictions have almost always different types of old pots (those stolen from mums kitchen) on his head as a hat. Also a lot of times we used beer or vodka bottles and gave them to snowman, because old women were always so shocked about it :D

    • @Eric_Hunt194
      @Eric_Hunt194 18 днів тому +28

      In northern England, as a teen if we saw a snowman someone had built which had a carrot nose, we'd remove the carrot from the face and put it *somewhere else* on the snowman. Simple times!

    • @JamesOKeefe-US
      @JamesOKeefe-US 18 днів тому +3

      Aww, I called my mom Mum in the US. She was born in England. ❤ Thank you for sharing :)

    • @luke_cohen1
      @luke_cohen1 18 днів тому +6

      That….might be the most Polish thing I’ve ever read culturally speaking. Sort of a "Polish people drink so much that even their snowman carry bottles of vodka" kind of thing that I can definitely see being used in an intro to a Ken Burns documentary on PBS.

    • @JimmyCarter1976
      @JimmyCarter1976 17 днів тому +1

      Why am I a snowman?
      Because I'm CRAAAAAAAAAAAAZY

    • @joanabug4479
      @joanabug4479 15 днів тому +2

      @@Eric_Hunt194 Oh it was customary to do that here in Eastern Europe too. At this point I wonder if it's something to do with culture or just something to do with human instincts (humans with access to snow, ofc) haha

  • @vonPeterhof
    @vonPeterhof 18 днів тому +164

    Apparently in Japan the traditional snowman design consists of two balls rather than three, which may be connected to the fact that the word for "snowman" in Japanese is "yukidaruma" or "snow daruma", referring to figures portraying the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma, who is usually portrayed as a bit rotund in the Japanese tradition.

    • @JJMcCullough
      @JJMcCullough  18 днів тому +110

      I have asked a lot of Japanese people about this over the years. My favorite explanation was just “ahh, Japanese… maybe shorter??”

    • @redchan_ebooks
      @redchan_ebooks 18 днів тому +2

      I always wondered about that!

    • @pablocasas5906
      @pablocasas5906 18 днів тому +4

      Snowmen in Japanese media and anime always looked kind of weird to me, even if I live in the southern hemisphere in a region where it doesn't snow, but I've seen tons of U.S. movies and shows featuring snowmen. Japanese snowmen have a bucket for a hat, brooms for arms and their faces always seem more serious

    • @merpius
      @merpius 18 днів тому +3

      @@JJMcCullough Godzilla is just a regular lizard. 🤣

    • @pedanticprocrastinator5773
      @pedanticprocrastinator5773 18 днів тому +1

      May be they are just shorties

  • @Miniman-hq1zn
    @Miniman-hq1zn 18 днів тому +175

    In Britain, the "sending the letters to Santa up the chimney" means physically burning the letters in the fireplace, and somehow the words are magically transported through the flames up to the north pole. I always had to give my list to my parents before burning it

    • @TheKingOfBeans
      @TheKingOfBeans 18 днів тому +13

      Not true! i remember my dad sending my letter to father christmas up the chimney, the hot air literally floats it up the chimney and on to the elves/north pole.

    • @poundcakeboi3104
      @poundcakeboi3104 18 днів тому +11

      Sounds like an occult ritual lmao

    • @robrophside3691
      @robrophside3691 18 днів тому +9

      Are your parents Mr. and Mrs. Banks?

    • @ArcturusEmrys
      @ArcturusEmrys 18 днів тому +5

      To be clear, the flames don't transport the words up to the North Pole, burning the letter is just the last step in the summoning ritual.

    • @ishouldhavetried
      @ishouldhavetried 18 днів тому

      ​@@poundcakeboi3104 My thoughts exactly. I'm Pagan, and it's a communication technique that you write your wants and desires on a slip of paper and burn them, so that the universe/gods now know what you truly wish for. My guess is that given that Christmas has pagan roots, that could be where it comes from.

  • @Chance4
    @Chance4 18 днів тому +55

    the "Lore" behind lawn decorations could be an interesting topic for next year. I feel like driving though neighborhoods, looking at everyone elses decorations has been a part of the American Christmas experience for longer than I've been alive.

  • @CostcoBruce
    @CostcoBruce 18 днів тому +95

    I think it pretty natural the fireplace or hearth would have a lot of Christmas significance. If you wanted to stay warm in the winter, where else would you stay? There also a long Western tradition of the hearth being the “heart and soul” of a home, so it might also carry a feeling of family and community

    • @amcalabrese1
      @amcalabrese1 18 днів тому +2

      Even today our home Christmas creche is at the fireplace.

    • @Devlinator61116
      @Devlinator61116 18 днів тому +5

      Even cavemen survived the winter snowstorms by staying near the fire.

    • @zyxw2000
      @zyxw2000 13 днів тому +1

      But the majority of people no longer have a fireplace.

  • @TheKingOfBeans
    @TheKingOfBeans 18 днів тому +31

    I remember my dad "posting" my letter to Santa (father Christmas) up the chimney, using the hot air to make the letter magically float away up the chimney. occasionally in the UK you hear on the news about really old letters being discovered in peoples chimneys.

    • @jasonschuck2096
      @jasonschuck2096 16 днів тому +1

      Did the same thing in 1970s U.S., tho my parents weren't nearly so creative

  • @johnpijano4786
    @johnpijano4786 18 днів тому +396

    Long Hair JJ is peak.

    • @k1zm3t
      @k1zm3t 18 днів тому +6

      real

    • @PortugueseKeto
      @PortugueseKeto 18 днів тому +21

      He’s like an 80s MTV VJ: Nina Blackwood in hair, JJ Jackson in name

    • @va3svd
      @va3svd 18 днів тому +5

      He was barely around in the 80s but when I see him like this I keep thinking I’m in grade 4 again.

    • @va3svd
      @va3svd 18 днів тому +2

      @@PortugueseKeto See, us Canadians are going to miss this reference. We had MuchMusic, not MTV.

    • @PortugueseKeto
      @PortugueseKeto 18 днів тому

      @@va3svdugh that realization was not lost upon me when I posted it

  • @adigl9303
    @adigl9303 18 днів тому +57

    In Poland, on the 6th of December - feast day of St Nicholas - parents leave small presents in the shoes of kids. Felt like maybe someone might enjoy this extra information regarding the stocking segment

    • @Ignik208
      @Ignik208 18 днів тому +6

      Yeah, parents would always tell us to clean/polish a pair our shoes and then put them on the window sill, before going to bed, so we could find treats inside them first thing in the morning.
      On the topic of gifts, Christmas Eve supper on the 24th is a big deal in these parts and pretty much is the main event of the holidays, it's also when we exchange presents (not the morning of the 25th) and break Christmas Wafers individually with everyone, while wishing each other well.

    • @yuo1322
      @yuo1322 18 днів тому +3

      I thought 6 of December was only in Germany a thing and we doing the same thing.

    • @71lizgoeshardt
      @71lizgoeshardt 18 днів тому +2

      American here. My parents combined their Catholic nerdy tendencies with a desire to connect with my dad's distant Dutch heritage and I grew up putting shoes/boots outside my door for small presents and chocolate on Dec 6, long live St. Nicholas.
      But we were 100% the odd ones to do so.

    • @fallenkingdom-zd8xh
      @fallenkingdom-zd8xh 18 днів тому +1

      As an American Catholic, I might want to do this with my future children.

    • @oanaomg7298
      @oanaomg7298 18 днів тому +2

      We have the same tradition in Romania. We used to clean and polish our shoes and leave them close to the door on the night of the 5th so that Moș Nicolae (old man Nicholas) would know where to find the good-behaving kids

  • @corbingarrett1206
    @corbingarrett1206 18 днів тому +17

    I grew up in the American southwest so we didn't have snow or a fireplace/chimney but my parents wanted us to enjoy doing fireplace Christmas stuff anyway so they built a collapsible cardboard fireplace that they painted expertly to look pretty dang realistic and every year we'd get it out of storage and tape it to the wall

  • @pookey6905
    @pookey6905 18 днів тому +46

    You should do a video about the movie “Christmas Vacation”. I think there is a lot you could say about the middle class position and how the movie portrays middle class self-consciousness, disgust for lower class, and hatred for the upper class!

    • @JJMcCullough
      @JJMcCullough  18 днів тому +28

      That’s a good idea. This is one of my father’s favorite movies.

    • @BalmBeach
      @BalmBeach 18 днів тому +2

      My family has a tradition of watching it every year!

    • @ravhannachrisco7137
      @ravhannachrisco7137 17 днів тому +1

      I'm watching that movie while I watch this video 😂

    • @lexa_power
      @lexa_power 17 днів тому

      I never really interpreted the movie that way even though I’m an anti capitalist and it’s one of my favorite movies. I think i always just saw it as the only movie that felt like it really captured Christmas in adulthood when you have to work and don’t have enough money to do everything you want to do. But i agree that’s an interesting take on it. There’s a lot to enjoy in that movie and reflect on.

  • @TheJeffLerner
    @TheJeffLerner 18 днів тому +139

    Today's kids are too good for peppermint

    • @Kasfas
      @Kasfas 18 днів тому +9

      Saltmint for the lot of them!

    • @tomrogue13
      @tomrogue13 18 днів тому +1

      I like peppermint. I'm almost 30 tho so hardly a kid lol

    • @Joshua-w5hJ77
      @Joshua-w5hJ77 18 днів тому

      I like the chalky peppermint things

    • @jermaine19
      @jermaine19 17 днів тому +1

      I’m 19 and ur absolutely right, i absolutely despise anything and everything that’s peppermint flavoured😂😂😂 ever since i was a kid i hated the flavour, i always eat the normal sweet ones instead

    • @JaKingScomez
      @JaKingScomez 17 днів тому

      @@jermaine19same

  • @WaldoHandFord
    @WaldoHandFord 18 днів тому +30

    I’m really enjoying the PS1/N64-style graphics for the cultural canon videos, especially for this and the three C’s video.

  • @rachel_sj
    @rachel_sj 18 днів тому +45

    A JJ McCullough episode uploaded on December 23rd?! It’s a Festivus Miracle!!

    • @rachel_sj
      @rachel_sj 18 днів тому

      I’ve been a big fan of Archie McPhee’s since I was a teen and got their catalogs a few times a year.
      I almost died of joy when my spouse and I randomly discovered where their HQ was in Seattle while trying to find a small restaurant to enjoy a meal at after getting off a two day Amtrak journey. Of course we had to visit the store a few times and it was my version of visiting Graceland.
      I hope they never stop making those zany varieties of Candy Canes!

  • @ADour1996
    @ADour1996 18 днів тому +15

    The origin of the stocking tradition is pretty interesting because shoes are still used to place gifts for kids in celebration of Epiphany (January 6) in Spain and some Hispanic countries where the Three Wise Men are treated as Santa-like gift-bearing figures.

    • @harryjbingham7216
      @harryjbingham7216 18 днів тому +1

      3 kings day. I celebrated as a child in Rota Andalucia

    • @cesaralvarez7032
      @cesaralvarez7032 18 днів тому

      In Spain shoes are often the place where the Kings leave their coal to naughty kids (usually a sweet with the shape of coal stones)

  • @OriSnori
    @OriSnori 18 днів тому +18

    Just watched a tasting history video that mentioned "shortbread" was initially made without butter and when it was added, bakers kept the name because breads were taxed at a lower rate than desserts.

  • @sundaydriver-z6p
    @sundaydriver-z6p 18 днів тому +11

    Growing up in Australia, it always confused me as a kid why movies and books always spoke about Santa coming down the chimney, the fireplace being lit and it snowing when we never had a fireplace and the weather was hot.

    • @kathleenking47
      @kathleenking47 16 днів тому +2

      Australia is upside down😂
      1:37
      Things changed in 1990
      At least, I'm not weird, seeing others noticing
      I'm 66

  • @brayanargandonaflorentino548
    @brayanargandonaflorentino548 18 днів тому +17

    Living in a Mexican American family, we celebrate Christmas by serving Tamales which is considered to be traditional.

    • @glenmorrison8080
      @glenmorrison8080 17 днів тому +1

      Just spent like 6 hours spreading masa... :)

    • @benjaminwatt2436
      @benjaminwatt2436 3 дні тому

      making Tamales for Christmas is a very regional tradition. most Mexicans i know who make tamales for Christmas are either in America or from the northern border states of Mexico. My wife who is Mexican had never heard of eating Tamales for Christmas, becuese she is from Mexico city and its not a tradition there.

  • @JeffKing310
    @JeffKing310 18 днів тому +10

    Definitely award worthy - congratulations on another successful video JJ.

  • @gabrielferreira6427
    @gabrielferreira6427 18 днів тому +22

    I still find it funny how Christmas relates to fireplaces, especially in places where a fireplace is something exotic. In Latin America, it's really weird. Where I live, we usually make jokes about it."Here Santa Claus doesn't come down the chimney, he jumps over the wall and enters through the window"

    • @MatthewTheWanderer
      @MatthewTheWanderer 16 днів тому +4

      And yet, most Americans don't have fireplaces or chimneys at all anymore, not even up north.

    • @pablocasas5906
      @pablocasas5906 14 днів тому +1

      I live in Latin America, in Argentina to be precise, and there aren't many houses that still have functioning chmneys, though in some very old houses you could still find some chimneys, though I doubt the people living there use it in the Winter. Weirdly enough, there's a house just a few blocks near that has a chimney and they put a Santa decorations, but the funny thing is that it's only his legs, like he's trying to go down the chimney and got stuck😆
      Also, I imagine that the concept of celebrating Christmas in the beginning of Summer would be weird for most people in the Northern hemisphere, either way we still decorate Christmas trees and eat traditional Christmas food, because of the influence of Italian, Spanish and German immigrants

    • @kite2036
      @kite2036 5 днів тому

      Man, I guess Santa's pretty done by the time he gets to you. In the States, if you don't have a chimney, he goes through your door lock!

  • @hrolfthestrange
    @hrolfthestrange 18 днів тому +51

    I remember some religious person when I was a kid told me that candy canes are associated with Christmas because they are a J for Jesus and that they were invented as like a coded sign of faith during the Roman times since Christians were cracked down on. I don't remember ever believing it really, but I always thought it was an odd thing to say given I thought they were more inspired by a shepherds crook(which is sometimes called a cane) and shepherd stuff is super represented in the Bible. Like if you are gonna make up a fake retro explanation, I don't know why you wouldn't go with the more obvious one.

    • @Eric_Hunt194
      @Eric_Hunt194 18 днів тому +5

      Even the stuff that's "canon" is a bit vague, so you can't really expect them to be consistent with the bits around the periphery!

    • @candicraveingcloude2822
      @candicraveingcloude2822 18 днів тому +3

      He could have just said something like "the reason candy canes are shaped that way is one that nobody knows but here are a bunch of guesses."

    • @JJMcCullough
      @JJMcCullough  18 днів тому +34

      @@candicraveingcloude2822 the idea that people in ancient Roman times were eating hard candies is absurd.

    • @hrolfthestrange
      @hrolfthestrange 18 днів тому +2

      ​​@@candicraveingcloude2822 wait did you think I meant JJ making up a retro explanation? I meant the person who told me this as a kid. JJ didn't really explain the reason beside hanging it which I'd believe is correct if that's what he found, the reason I thought about this was just because he mentioned the religious post hoc holly explanation right before the candy cane transition, and I thought he might hit on either the one told to me or the one I thought up, but tbh idk if either are commonly asserted at all or it might have just been some random thing a CCD teacher made up on the spot and a random(and Id say better) explanation I came up with as a kid.

    • @hrolfthestrange
      @hrolfthestrange 18 днів тому +9

      ​​@@JJMcCulloughlol true AND not only that but J wasn't even a Roman alphabet letter(which I just realized while thinking about this for the first time in years)

  • @JAGzilla-ur3lh
    @JAGzilla-ur3lh 18 днів тому +5

    JJ checked that gigantic hardcover tome on holly out weeks ago for a bit of light reading.
    Next week should be fun. Honestly, I look forward to these year-end videos all year. Anytime something notable happens, I wonder if it's going to make JJ's "what this year added to American culture" video, or at least one of those news channel videos that compile the highlights of the year.

  • @albertmiller2electricbooga897
    @albertmiller2electricbooga897 18 днів тому +12

    Here in Aus we feel the need to make Aussie versions of some of these to fit in with southern hemisphere summer weather, depicting Santa wearing thongs or sitting on the beach is part of it, and I see the Maori version (Meri Kirihimati) in Kiwi owned places a bunch. Santa being pulled by 'Six White Boomers' is something you'd see more back in the day

    • @kathleenking47
      @kathleenking47 16 днів тому +3

      I've seen some
      In CVS stickers
      Penguins in inner tube floats
      Santa in summer clothing

    • @katecoffee4744
      @katecoffee4744 12 днів тому +1

      Boomers and thongs must mean something else in Australia. I take it thongs are footwear (Americans used to call these beach sandals thongs, too, prior to the uncomfortable underwear that now bears that name) which we Americans now refer to as flip-flops. I’m a 66-year-old Boomer and can’t see me pulling Santa anywhere 😄

    • @albertmiller2electricbooga897
      @albertmiller2electricbooga897 12 днів тому

      @ kangaroos haha

  • @spookylilghost
    @spookylilghost 18 днів тому +11

    The idea of Santa stuffing presents in your pants seems interconnected with him stuffing presents in your socks when they were drying. By that I mean it seems like people would hang up their clothes and (lore-wise) Santa would find those convenient places to put presents.

  • @benjouras2498
    @benjouras2498 18 днів тому +6

    On stockings, as far as I know the modern tradition was "canonized" by a story involving the historical St Nicholas. In the story 3 young women are about to be sold into slavery because they don't have enough money for marriage dowries, so St Nicholas snuck by their home one night and left them each a sack of gold coins in their stockings drying by the fireplace/window

    • @JJMcCullough
      @JJMcCullough  17 днів тому +1

      This is a myth

    • @benjouras2498
      @benjouras2498 17 днів тому +1

      @JJMcCullough well, yes. I just mean that this story is how tradition is commonly "baptized" into modern day St Nicholas Day, Christmas, & Epiphany celebrations. Similar to how you mentioned post-hawk Christian explanations for holly at Christmas

    • @quentingilanian8045
      @quentingilanian8045 16 днів тому +2

      That tale is apocryphal (mythical), but it wasn't made up recently to Christianize a pagan tradition (giftgiving). It either led to the tradition, or stems from it.

    • @benjouras2498
      @benjouras2498 16 днів тому

      @@quentingilanian8045 that's fair, more like they're both stemming from a common source. It's not like gifting is so specific as to only emerge from one tradition

    • @JJMcCullough
      @JJMcCullough  16 днів тому +1

      @ it didn’t lead to the tradition. It came after the practice already existed. As I say in the video, the presents in shoes thing was considered paganistic by many Christian leaders centuries ago.

  • @mwilkins1644
    @mwilkins1644 18 днів тому +9

    It's crazy how much Christmas aesthetic/canon has to do with the weather of the season. Fireplaces, snow, even food etc. This type of thing would not be the case if Christmas traditions started in places like Australia (where I'm from) South Africa etc. Could not imagine a Christmas with snow and a fireplace in Queensland where it's often 35-40 degrees Celsius (90-100f) 😂

    • @gerardacronin334
      @gerardacronin334 18 днів тому +2

      I was recently on vacation in Mexico and I found it ironic that people were wearing Santa costumes and singing about Frosty the Snowman ☃️ when they have probably never seen snow. Of course they are catering to American and Canadian tourists (who are in Mexico to escape winter).

    • @vincentlevarrick6557
      @vincentlevarrick6557 18 днів тому +3

      Right? So much winter stuff. Watching other UA-camrs who react to a summer Chrissy ask numpty questions like "You dont have Christmas sweaters??? " 😮 Ha-ha, no, it's 35⁰C with 70% humidity. Fuckoff I'm wearing a woolly jumper. 😂
      I also cannot stand seeing fake snow on shit here (also Qld'er). Give me a Xmas by the beach or pool any day.

    • @MatthewTheWanderer
      @MatthewTheWanderer 16 днів тому +1

      @@vincentlevarrick6557 Even in some parts of the US, Christmas isn't always cold. I worked at Walt Disney World on Christmas Day a couple years ago and it was sunny and warm. Even in Oklahoma where I live now, it almost never snows on Christmas anymore, and today it has been 47F all day.

    • @pablocasas5906
      @pablocasas5906 14 днів тому

      @@gerardacronin334 it's seems there're some regions in México where it snows. But you should see how, despite being in the beginning of Summer, Christmas in South America still has the traditional stuff like trees (though artificial ones), high calorie food, people watching movies like Home Alone, Jingle All the Way and the 2000 version of The Grinch
      The only the only major difference is that people get together to eat dinner at Christmas Eve and celebrate once the clock strikes 12 by lighting fireworks, a tradition that thankfully is dying out due to safety concerns and to protect animals and people sensite to loud noises

  • @elijahsiddan1099
    @elijahsiddan1099 18 днів тому +4

    Indian Protestant here! Thanks for the awesome video ! Sounds very familiar!

  • @MegaGABSAM
    @MegaGABSAM 18 днів тому +4

    12:54 ik you're talking about Europe, but I also remember being in Mexico and my parents told me put out my shoe so I can get presents in the morning. Not Christmas, but the days after when the wise men were apparently to have shown up

  • @BS-vx8dg
    @BS-vx8dg 18 днів тому +5

    Often J.J.'s videos cover topics I "know" but give details I was never expecting. This Boomer was shocked to see the "Walking Chairs" featured in the Victorian era, but I would have sworn they were a post-WW II (Showa) development.

  • @BOO88877
    @BOO88877 18 днів тому +5

    14:01 Yes! I mean, I did, anyway. When I was younger I would always burn my letters in the fireplace, and I remember being really confused as to why the little girl in Arthur Christmas sent her letter through the post, when *obviously* you send your letter to Santa through the chimney!

    • @anonymousfromgrimsby9719
      @anonymousfromgrimsby9719 16 днів тому +1

      Yes, British children still do this, though maybe the practice isn’t as universal now. I’m 20 and have fond memories of writing letters to Father Christmas and posting it up the Chimney.

  • @jgreenie3778
    @jgreenie3778 18 днів тому +6

    I was always taught the candy cane shape was of some sort of religious significance. My grandmother told us it was shaped like a shepherd's crook because Jesus is the Good Shepherd while some schoolteachers told me it was shaped like a J (for Jesus). Others still told me it was both. I figure this might be a common, if apocryphal story

  • @wspadisaster
    @wspadisaster 18 днів тому +4

    Id be interested to know why red and white are the Christmas colours. I assume white for snow? The north pole often depicted as red and white barbers pole for any particular reason?

  • @godbacchus
    @godbacchus 18 днів тому +3

    Bobs from Albany, GA. End of an era. In 2005, the McCormack family sold Bobs Candies to Farley's & Sathers Candy Company, which later merged with Ferrara Pan to form the Ferrara Candy Company. Following the acquisition, Bobs Candies' Albany operations were closed, and production was relocated to facilities in Mexico.

  • @buttershy_
    @buttershy_ 18 днів тому +3

    with all the props you get for your videos, your apartment is basically a museum of culture.
    also, as a brit born in '03, i have never heard of putting letters to santa up the chimney. then again, we didn't have a working fireplace, nor did we know anyone with one

  • @CoffeeBean-h4h
    @CoffeeBean-h4h 18 днів тому +4

    I love the little snowman on his desk. It's so cute! ⛄️

  • @Heliogabalos
    @Heliogabalos 18 днів тому +3

    I think the most banal objects, things like Bows and Bells and Candles, the more basic ‘decor’ would be fun to see in a video.

  • @benjaminwilson2945
    @benjaminwilson2945 18 днів тому +13

    17:23 I can't believe some people have never tried a Christmas pudding before.

    • @Eric_Hunt194
      @Eric_Hunt194 18 днів тому +2

      I can't believe some people have tried a Christmas pudding more than once... 🤮

    • @benjaminwilson2945
      @benjaminwilson2945 18 днів тому

      @@Eric_Hunt194 I like mine with a bit of cream on the top.

    • @yourfavoritedegenerate375
      @yourfavoritedegenerate375 18 днів тому +1

      I haven’t! How does it taste?

    • @benjaminwilson2945
      @benjaminwilson2945 18 днів тому

      @yourfavoritedegenerate375 It is essentially dried fruit in a dense dry dough, with a hint of alcohol from the brandy used to set it on fire.

    • @benjaminwilson2945
      @benjaminwilson2945 18 днів тому

      ​@yourfavoritedegenerate375 I apologise if my first reply is repeated but it has disappeared on my end. It is essentially dried currants in a firm but soft cake-like mixture with a hint of alcohol from when it is set on fire with a spirit.

  • @StephanieJeanne
    @StephanieJeanne 18 днів тому +7

    Cool video! I always wondered why it became a button nose on Frosty. 😊 My five symbols suggestion for next year: ornaments, wreaths, mistletoe, poinsettias, and fruitcake. Merry Christmas! 🎅🎄

    • @PASH3227
      @PASH3227 15 днів тому +1

      Poinsettias come from south America, not Europe, so I'm SUPER CURIOUS how it came to the US!

  • @somnvm37
    @somnvm37 18 днів тому +6

    here's some post soviet traditions:
    0. after 111:58 or so, [read the * at the bottom!] people watch the congradulations from the president. It's an annual tradition, usually the president talks about the previous year, wishes ppl nice things and so on. Last year russias president had soldiers behind him and he talked about war, basically this is the first congrad' like that.
    1. people eat tangerines on xmas (in fact, tangerines are more popular than oranges), that was becasue those were expensive, and families in the ussr could only buy them at the ny, it also only grew in the caucases afaik.
    2. people eat very spicific foods [the russian salad, which we call olivier salad]
    3. santa could also be blue [apparently in the us he's only red because of cola comertials]
    *instead of celebrating christmas on 7th of jan (orthodox calendar) we do the NY, but! all of the attributes are the same, we do watch american moveis like home alone and so on, but we do also have our own film "s legkim parom"

  • @JamieHaDov
    @JamieHaDov 18 днів тому +4

    I wonder if the Button nose instead of a carrot nose was a holdover from the wartime rationing that had just recently ended. Don’t waste food by just shoving it into a snowman

  • @nateofthesouth
    @nateofthesouth 18 днів тому +1

    I will never get tired of your factory/industrial music! So good!

    • @JustMe-dc6ks
      @JustMe-dc6ks 18 днів тому +1

      I think he snuck in a snippet from A Charlie Brown Christmas during the part about making it centered on children’s joy.

  • @benjaminwilson2945
    @benjaminwilson2945 18 днів тому +4

    7:38 The term button nose is not necessarily literal. It is often used to refer to small or round noses.

  • @Draca151
    @Draca151 17 днів тому +2

    This was super fun. I'd love to see it as an annual video. It would be fun to see your take on warm weather Santas, or trees, or Christmas meals like Christmas breakfast, but those could be single topic videos.

  • @StevieQ
    @StevieQ 18 днів тому +2

    I love the manufactured broom detail here, because I always understood that to be the default broom type until I visited China and was shocked to see people hand sweeping streets and walk ways with what looked like rough bundles of sticks.

  • @BlakeJonesyREAL
    @BlakeJonesyREAL 11 днів тому

    Just gotta say your videos rock. I’ve lived in the USA my entire life so I figured I would know half of the stuff you talk about but I always seem to learn so much new stuff when I watch these.
    Plus the way you deliver your script is very professional and enjoyful
    Awesome work! Keep up the good work 🤝🏼

  • @michaelmuller8375
    @michaelmuller8375 18 днів тому +6

    Merry Christmas JJ!

  • @kevincronk7981
    @kevincronk7981 18 днів тому +6

    I love vietnamese pho, it is quite possibly my single favorite food in the world. But having it be the flavor of a peppermint just sounds disgusting.

  • @raphaelcarvalhobezerra6913
    @raphaelcarvalhobezerra6913 18 днів тому +2

    In Brazil we had a custom of putting our shoes in the window, to expect gifts from the Three Magi/Wise Kings. This was the usual christmas custom before the americanization of christmas culture. Nowadays, we have plastic pine trees in our living rooms and expect Santa Claus instead.

  • @chrisr4769
    @chrisr4769 18 днів тому +2

    I'd love to see a video on how the tradition of decorating your house with Christmas lights came to be. 🎄🎅

  • @EmpressMermaid
    @EmpressMermaid 18 днів тому +1

    As a Floridian, I find it funny how we go all in on the winter/snowman/cold weather decor and themes for Christmas even though we are walking around in shorts and running the AC. We associate Christmas with winter even though it's never our experience.

  • @k1zm3t
    @k1zm3t 18 днів тому +33

    0:18 ERASER FROM BFDI

    • @RandomFurryUwU
      @RandomFurryUwU 18 днів тому +6

      BFDI fans when they see anything even remotely related to the show in any context:

    • @hoosiervr
      @hoosiervr 18 днів тому

      OSC ASSEMBLE!

    • @AWandaMain
      @AWandaMain 13 днів тому

      but what *is* the challenge

  • @alexandert.6501
    @alexandert.6501 18 днів тому +2

    9:55 an addendum, not Bavaria at all is the gingerbread region, rather one area in Bavaria called Franconia is THE gingerbread area, Nuremberg gingerbread is one of the most popular, also a giant gingerbread area is the Northern Rhineland, especially the city of Aachen.

  • @Dan-ow1kc
    @Dan-ow1kc 10 днів тому

    Thanks!

  • @Dreamweaver94
    @Dreamweaver94 18 днів тому +3

    The industrial music that JJ plays when anything remotely machine-like cracks me up

    • @stevethepocket
      @stevethepocket 17 днів тому

      I'm betting it's from some early- to mid-90s videogame.

    • @FnrrfYgmSchnish
      @FnrrfYgmSchnish 14 днів тому

      Smithy's Factory from Super Mario RPG, I'm pretty sure?
      EDIT: Whoops, not sure how I got that mixed up but after going back and listening again... it's the Magitek factory song from Final Fantasy 6.

  • @AdamYJ
    @AdamYJ 18 днів тому +2

    Ypou could also do a video of Christmas things that have gone by the wayside. Like roasting chestnuts, telling ghost stories or getting an orange in your stocking.

    • @Ozziecatsmom
      @Ozziecatsmom 18 днів тому +1

      You could say that if you read, watch or listen to A Christmas Carol that you are dealing with a ghost story. People still roast chestnuts, just bought some at Safeway today, this is in Saskatchewan, Canada. A lot of people I know put a Mandarin orange along with candies in their kids Christmas stockings. It depends on your traditions.

    • @stevethepocket
      @stevethepocket 17 днів тому

      The line about "scary ghost stories" has been such a bugbear for me for so long that it totally distracted me from the mention of "marshmallows for toasting" until just this year. Is that a thing people do around Christmas? Where do they do it, their fireplace?
      Also, nominating anything involving sugarplums for this list. Bonus points if he B-rolls in footage of that line from _Deltarune._

  • @sensengine
    @sensengine 18 днів тому +3

    A quibble: coal stoves were mostly long gone by the 1960s--I think you meant the 1940s (when most people had transitioned to gas heating, (which started in the 1920s).

    • @JJMcCullough
      @JJMcCullough  18 днів тому +1

      No they weren’t. Well into the 1950s over 90% of Brits still had a coal fireplace.

    • @sensengine
      @sensengine 18 днів тому

      @@JJMcCullough Wow, it's surprising that the UK was so many decades behind North America with that technology.

    • @Eric_Hunt194
      @Eric_Hunt194 17 днів тому

      @@sensengine we weren't "behind", we just had a lot of coal (and a lot of people employed in mining it). If it ain't broke (or if you don't know that it's broke) you don't fix it!

  • @tdallin1750
    @tdallin1750 18 днів тому +8

    Happy holidays

  • @martinbruhn5274
    @martinbruhn5274 18 днів тому +3

    Here in Germany, children still get candy in their shoes. But that's on december 6th, St Nicolaus day (who is the original Santa). You also don't put the shoes near the fireplace or anything like that, but outside, in front of the door. So, that St. Nicolaus can get there. How else could he even bring his gifts, if the door was closed?

    • @stevethepocket
      @stevethepocket 17 днів тому

      Imagine having to go outside in December and retrieve your presents and they're all freezing cold from being out there all night. Especially back when most toys were made of metal. "You can play with them in about five hours when they're thawed out!"

    • @martinbruhn5274
      @martinbruhn5274 17 днів тому

      @stevethepocket they're right outside, it doesn't get freezing cold right at the door, because the building warms up the immediate outside. Plus it's not going to be outside all night, just like 5 minutes before the parents wake the children up

    • @TheFeldhamster
      @TheFeldhamster 17 днів тому

      Was going to write this. Shoes are still a thing in Germany. If socks have become a thing in Germany nowadays (not in my extended family in Germany and not here in Austria where I live), it's a recent cultural import of American traditions via Hollywood movies.

  • @IanZainea1990
    @IanZainea1990 17 днів тому +1

    The best part of your videos is when you refer to your other videos and emphasize their award winningness. Gets me every time lol

  • @Jim-gf9tp
    @Jim-gf9tp 18 днів тому +2

    People still use charcoal (rather than coal) for snowmen, something a lot of people still have for their grills.

  • @ToyInsanity
    @ToyInsanity 18 днів тому +2

    I keep reading that UK snowmen have 2 body spheres. The addition of a third body sphere is a uniquely American enhancement. Can anyone confirm if UK snowmen are made with 2 body spheres?

    • @Eric_Hunt194
      @Eric_Hunt194 17 днів тому +1

      @@ToyInsanity We do tend to draw them as two circles- one for the body and a smaller one for the head. When it comes to actually building the things, anything goes... though in recent years there often isn't enough snow to make a very big snowman!

  • @professordogwood8985
    @professordogwood8985 18 днів тому +2

    JJ, in Surrey British Columbia I came across a snowman one winter wearing a turban and sporting a moustache. It's no joke!
    Of course, this may be seen as risqué by some but remember, being that Surrey has a large Punjabi population, the children that made said snowman probably have older relatives that wear turbans and sport facial hair. This plays into your analysis of the quaint humour of the Victorians having a chuckle out of a gentlemanly snowman that wears a top hat and smokes a pipe. In this case, the snowman resembled a gentleman of a different culture.

  • @P.Aether
    @P.Aether 18 днів тому +2

    Happy holidays, JJ. You helped me in hard times to feel positive about life. Thank you for that. I wish you good health and motivation so you can continue to make award winning production throughout 2025 as well. Cheers from the far away Eastern EU 🇪🇺, Bulgaria 🇧🇬 ✌🏻🙂

  • @ExistenceUniversity
    @ExistenceUniversity 18 днів тому +4

    3:27 "carry 'various' relics of Victorian times." What do you mean various? It's entirely Victorian! Top Hat, Scarf, Corn Pipe, Coal for face and buttons, sticks.

    • @ExistenceUniversity
      @ExistenceUniversity 18 днів тому +2

      4:10 Ok, wait! Am I the weird one? Is that not funny to others, was I the only one that got the joke as a kid? His a fancy lad! It's funny because he is made of snow!
      I'm the weird one eh/huh?

    • @MediaRepositoryHF
      @MediaRepositoryHF 18 днів тому

      You're right about the top hat, but everything else you mentioned isn't culturally or periodically specific to the Victorian era.

    • @ExistenceUniversity
      @ExistenceUniversity 18 днів тому

      @MediaRepositoryHF why because we still wear scarves, that must mean that victorians aren't known for having scarves?

  • @rangecow
    @rangecow 18 днів тому +1

    White peppermint sticks -- the candy cigarettes of the 50s and 60s, available in many "brands." Sold with candy pipes and cigars on the candy shelves.

  • @forthrightgambitia1032
    @forthrightgambitia1032 18 днів тому +4

    If you do a video next year, mistletoe should definitely feature.
    What's interesting to me is that the US doesn't have a strong Christmas dinner tradition in the way the UK does - eith classics like turkey, goose (in the past) brussel sprouts etc. I think mainly because Thanksgiving steals it thunder.

    • @ashkitt7719
      @ashkitt7719 17 днів тому

      @@forthrightgambitia1032 That being said I would argue that Christmas is the one day of the year in which Americans would not be caught dead eating fast food.

    • @stevethepocket
      @stevethepocket 17 днів тому

      @@ashkitt7719 Well yeah because the restaurants are all closed!

  • @TheTankGeo
    @TheTankGeo 18 днів тому +1

    I am from Virginia and I also "posted" my letters to santa up the chimney, though my family also seems to hold onto their english roots more than others.

  • @emmegrace1110
    @emmegrace1110 18 днів тому +1

    would love to hear what you can find about the history of fruitcake. i did a research article for my high school newspaper, using a 1920s cookbook as one of my sources, and learned a lot about why it’s a part of christmas tradition and where the idea came from. happy holidays, j.j. and friends!

  • @thomasgraf1986
    @thomasgraf1986 17 днів тому +1

    A moment to appreciate the retro 3D models I assume JJ crafted by hand. The man keeps learning new tricks!

  • @michaelvickers4437
    @michaelvickers4437 16 днів тому +1

    JJ representing as UA-cam's greatest promoter of using your library card to do your own research. 🏫📚👍

  • @limaalphanovemberzulu
    @limaalphanovemberzulu 18 днів тому +2

    0:18 - 0:20 BFDI mentioned which makes sense tho. Anyhow, Philippine Christmas culture had got to be one of the interesting Christmas canons specifically to most of mankind. (according to me) One thing that most of Filipinos would know and anyone who are interested in exploring Philippine culture is we have the longest celebration in the world for a reason (& when I say for a reason, it’s Spanish colonialism. Yep.) from September to January, can’t forget they also call it “ber months” exclusive to months ending with -ber. Another icon that is part of the Philippine Christmas Canon is the parol (which is a Spanish loanword for lamp), which basically represents the star of Bethlehem guiding the 3 Kings which is popular to every Filipino like Christmas trees.

    • @limaalphanovemberzulu
      @limaalphanovemberzulu 18 днів тому

      Now that I covered 2 things that Filipinos had in common (including me) based on my home country’s Christmas canon, there are honorable mentions to my home country’s Christmas canon that I have to include which is Simbang Gabi, basically a nine day series of mass exclusively targeting to any Filipino who follow Catholicism and Aglipayanism. Another thing that is common to our Christmas canon is our celebration ends in Three Kings Day aka Feast of the Epiphany falling on a 1st Sunday right after New Year’s Day.

  • @Joshua-w5hJ77
    @Joshua-w5hJ77 18 днів тому

    I love how you always pull out a book that explains the most obscure and specific topic you're talking about.

  • @archiebarker-baseball6625
    @archiebarker-baseball6625 18 днів тому +1

    Your videos sure do win a lot of awards!😅

  • @Radar_of_the_Stars
    @Radar_of_the_Stars 18 днів тому +5

    can't wait for your 2024 cultural canon video, I feel like the election has left me very Out-Of-The-Loop on non-politics culture

  • @jared1870
    @jared1870 15 днів тому

    Finally, a video about Christmas symbols worth watching. Thank you!

  • @jefcaine
    @jefcaine 18 днів тому +2

    Fun fact! Frosty the Snowman, much like Jesus, predicts his own death but reassures his followers he'll return again someday.

  • @benjaminwilson2945
    @benjaminwilson2945 18 днів тому +8

    13:55 The idea is that by burning your Christmas list, the contents of your list will magically make its way to Father Christmas.
    This isn't as common nowadays because modern homes are less likely to have fireplaces/chimneys.

    • @TheKingOfBeans
      @TheKingOfBeans 18 днів тому

      No, you hold the letter over the fire and it floats up the chimney due to the hot air

  • @aviator4
    @aviator4 18 днів тому +2

    As a kid, my Sunday School teachers always said that the candy cane was actually a J for Jesus.
    I also vaguely remember an adult telling me it was a shepherd's hook, because Jesus is our shepherd.

    • @Jabberwockybird
      @Jabberwockybird 18 днів тому +1

      Probably just more post hoc rationalization.
      I'm a Christian, and I think post-hoc rationalization is silly

  • @markthetrois420
    @markthetrois420 18 днів тому +1

    Here in New Mexico we have a tradition known as 'luminarias' or 'farolitos.' There is much debate over the naming convention. Basically, along walkways and atop the flat edges of the adoe buildings, we place lines of brown paper lunch sacks, with sand and a candle in them, lit on christmas eve.

    • @JJMcCullough
      @JJMcCullough  18 днів тому +2

      That sounds very pretty

    • @markthetrois420
      @markthetrois420 17 днів тому

      @JJMcCullough mate, its probablyy one of the prettiest visuals.

    • @stevethepocket
      @stevethepocket 17 днів тому

      Ah yes, luminaries. Definitely used to see those from time to time here in Ohio too; I want to say our church used to line the sidewalk with them, before they switched to using milk jugs with the tops cut off, probably for safety.

  • @Suwawako
    @Suwawako 18 днів тому +1

    One of my dad's traditions is putting candy canes on the Christmas tree, but our candy canes would be the crazy Jolly Ranchers ones... I guess I am not worthy for the peppermint taste orz

  • @ManiacalMoogle
    @ManiacalMoogle 17 днів тому

    2:30 that kid sure loves his mom 😂

  • @reginabodette4919
    @reginabodette4919 18 днів тому +1

    I think it would be interesting if you did a video about christmas plants (ie pointesetta, fir tree, mistletoe).

  • @youcef3
    @youcef3 18 днів тому +1

    Well done, J.J., the video is as always very instructive. One detail puzzled me, the Showa Period started with the enthronement of Emperor Hiro Hito in the year 1926, we can, of course split into a pre-warcShowa period and a post-war Showa Period starting 1945. After the war societies changed worldwide, in France this recovery period is called "Les trente (30) glorieuses", in Germany it's called Wirtschaftswunderjahre, the years of the economic miracle.

  • @beachboysandrew
    @beachboysandrew 15 днів тому +1

    I live in the U.S. but grew up culturally German and went to a German school. On Sankt Nikolaus Tag (but not near Christmas ourself!) the younger grades in the German school would do the “fill shoes with candy” tradition. I’m not sure how common this is in actual Germany anymore, but it’s alive and well among German-Americans (meaning the ones still in touch with that culture, not just ancestry)

  • @jacobbarron3890
    @jacobbarron3890 18 днів тому +1

    You should do a video seeing if any of your Year In Review predictions were accurate, maybe in the medium-term future, just like that video of you reviewing that prediction book.

  • @georgec3351
    @georgec3351 18 днів тому +1

    Interestingly enough, the gingerbread of the 1600s was a lot more bread-like, being baked into a form similar to American biscuits

  • @jordynstanley9050
    @jordynstanley9050 18 днів тому +1

    Merry Christmas Canada 🇨🇦 from the Commonwealth of Virginia 🇺🇸🎄🎅⛄️

  • @JasminMiettunen
    @JasminMiettunen 15 днів тому

    Listen, I'm only subscribing because I'm expecting another one of these videos for next Christmas, so you better deliver!
    I'd love to hear about the Christmas tree, it’s the most important tradition in our house ❤️

  • @TheKawaiifan
    @TheKawaiifan 13 днів тому

    As someone who grew up in Seattle I was taken aback by the unexpected Archie Mcfee mention. I passed that place on the school bus as a kid!
    Yeah, that shops weird af

  • @gamepopper101
    @gamepopper101 17 днів тому

    As a British kid of the 90s, I have never heard of the idea of posting letters up the chimney.

  • @manzell
    @manzell 18 днів тому +1

    How about try to see if there's any rhyme or reason for there being both "Christmas Morning gift opening" and "Christmas Eve gift opening" family traditions?

  • @laotasurfs1110
    @laotasurfs1110 18 днів тому +6

    Reindeer, mistletoe, yule log, christmas ham ;)

    • @vincentlevarrick6557
      @vincentlevarrick6557 18 днів тому

      Honest question, how common is Christmas ham in the US? I was under the impression that Americans eat turkeys for Xmas dinner, and ham was more likely in British Commonwealth countries.

    • @Chris2Flock
      @Chris2Flock 15 днів тому

      @@vincentlevarrick6557Everyone I know always has ham.

    • @vincentlevarrick6557
      @vincentlevarrick6557 15 днів тому

      @@Chris2Flock Oh right, ta!
      Follow up question - which part of the US are you from/reside in? I am curious if it's a regional/cultural thing. 😁

    • @Chris2Flock
      @Chris2Flock 15 днів тому +1

      @@vincentlevarrick6557 Im
      In Colorado now but originally from Illinois. I think it’s both religious and cultural for many. For me it’s cultural because I’m no longer religious.

    • @Chris2Flock
      @Chris2Flock 15 днів тому

      @@vincentlevarrick6557 The groceries stores here are always extra full of hams for Xmas.

  • @Brick-Life
    @Brick-Life 15 днів тому

    Great to learn about these Xmas things!

  • @Devlinator61116
    @Devlinator61116 17 днів тому +1

    Perhaps do a video on the inter-era Christmas, and why some things (like Winter Wonderland) survived while most other things did not.

  • @tomhalla426
    @tomhalla426 18 днів тому +1

    There was another episode of British influence on US culture in the mid 1960’s, with both music and fashion. The music itself was, of course, mostly previously US influenced, Blues, R&B, and rock.

  • @ImmanuelErvin
    @ImmanuelErvin 18 днів тому +1

    Another "award winning" video.. my brain is a bit less smooth, thanks j.j.🧠

  • @simplicitylost
    @simplicitylost 18 днів тому +1

    It’s always so fascinating to learn the histories behind these everyday objects. You could do a whole short series on just Christmas icons. :)

  • @RNS_Aurelius
    @RNS_Aurelius 16 днів тому

    British children don't still post letters up the chimney but I do vaguely remember hearing about that in a story. Most post WW2 homes don't have chimneys, some homes have what used to be a fireplace but no chimney. What used to be the chimney in my home now houses the gas boiler but the external chimney still remains.