Just a little journal to say Happy Solstice (12.04 pm 21/12/08) to everyone on TF!!The pivotal point of the Saturnalia festival (which is the principle pagan celebration that Xmas ripped off), it is also known as midwinter and, for those of us in Northern Latitudes almost marks the start of longer days. Although the 21st will be our shortest day of the year (datlight wise) it is not actually till around the 25th when we start getting those extra 10 minutes every day.For those of you with astronomical or scientific interests, wiki says this;  The winter solstice occurs at the instant when the Sun's position in the sky is at its greatest angular distance on the other side of the equatorial plane from the observers hemisphere. Depending on the shift of the calendar, the event of the winter solstice occurs some time between December 20 and December 23 each year in the northern hemisphere, and between June 20 and June 23 in the southern hemisphere, during either the shortest day or the longest night of the year, which is not to be confused with the darkest day or night or the day with the earliest sunset or latest sunrise From a more cultural perspective, nearly all cultures have some sort of tradition revolving around rebirth and emergence from winter, particularly those in the Northern Hemisphere.The celebrations around this time are some of the oldest winter celebrations worldwide. Because the earliest hunter gatherers' and agrarian communities' lives revolved around the seasons and because it was a life which was mainly lived outdoors, the Sun was the most imprtant thing to them and featured in most pagan traditions. The Norse religion saw the sun as a wheel that revolved as seasons changed and it is from their word for wheel (houl) that Yule probably derives.The Romans had the feast of Saturnalia which ran for 7 days from 17th December. It was a time of misrule and many masters and servants would swap places and clothes for one day of chaos.It is Saturnalia that principally gave us the Xmas tradition of decorating houses in greenery, lighting candles and the exchange of presents.From the druids and Germanic pagan traditions came the evergreen tree that is now our Xmas tree as well as the tradition of mistletoe as mistletoe fruited (?) in winter so was thus seen as a symbol of life in the winter. Many stone circles, some 3 or 4000 years old, are set to show the winter solstice through certain stones, an amazing achievement for neolithic manIt was also from the druidic traditions that the Yule log and the 12 days of Xmas (the concept not the song!) came. The Celtic pagans believed the sun stood still for 12 days around this period (due to it's position in sky in northern hemisphere). The Yule log would be a common log for the whole village or tribe. On the solstice (usually half way through their 12 day period) all other fires would be extinguished, and then the whole village would take a light from the Yule Log. They believed that this ritual would banish any malignant spirits of the last year. The solstice celebrations could get pretty riotous (would probably make a good TF event) with much supping of ale and mead. (would be one of few occasions over winter that the whole tribe/village would get together) So, when someone wishes you Merry Xmas, remember that the festival itself, and most of the traditions we take for granted, are actually far older than 2000 years!!! 

Have a great Solstice!!! 

I read about it in school. Thanks 4 refreshing my memory.

they teach this in your school system!!! Am impressed - they didn't in ours!!! : )

Very well done and historically correct post!

(Recorded history is estimated at 4000 BC or earlier.)

Nice Job Parkman, I mean Iain. ;-)

Really!!!

That's almost a school report comment Mike!!

(yes, I got Hiro to pop me back to a few choice events then used my mind control power to have some fun with some damsels bwahahaha)

less of the Parkman crap already!!!

very interesting about history !!!!

Yes today is around 30 cel sunny our longest day !!! hope it's not to cold up there in wee Scotland for ya!! !!!!!! lol lol

yes yes Dave - hey am pretty used to it. When I go to Th I have to go from pale blue to white before tanning ; )

brighter days ahoy !

I love the feeling, when I exit BKK airport and 35 degrees and bright sunshine hit me like a hammer.