In Christianity, Christmas is the festival celebrating the Nativity of Jesus, the Christian belief that the Messiah foretold in the Old Testament’s Messianic prophecies was born to the Virgin Mary.

在基督教的传统中，圣诞节是为庆祝基督耶稣降生的节日。基督教徒相信，弥赛亚告知圣母玛利亚孕育了上帝的儿子耶稣。

Usually adults will put their gifts for children in the family in Christmas stockings and this is the children’s favorite for Christmas. In the evening, children will hang up own socks by their beds, waiting for the next morning to get gifts.

通常大人会把他们给孩子的礼物放进圣诞袜内，这无疑是孩子们在圣诞期间的最爱。晚上，孩子们会把自己的圣诞袜挂在窗边，等待第二天早上收获礼物。

This tradition comes from the story of the three wise men who got gifts for baby Jesus on Christmas. Every Christmas, gifts are exchanged among loved ones, especially children. They will wrap their gifts up with colorful paper and ribbons.?

这个传统源自一个传说：三位智者在圣诞节给婴儿耶稣送出了礼物。每年圣诞节，亲朋好友尤其是孩子们都会互赠礼物，他们会用五颜六色的纸和彩带包装礼物。

The story of Santa Claus also comes from this tradition.

圣诞老人的故事也源自这个传统。

介绍圣诞节的英语短文 英文介绍圣诞节短一点

Christmas or Christmas Day is a holiday celebrating the birth of Jesus, the central figure of Christianity. It is traditionally celebrated on December 25 by most Western Christian churches. Although dating to probably as early as a.d. 200, the feast of Christmas did not become widespread until the Middle Ages. Aspects of celebration may include gift-giving, Christmas trees, display of Nativity sets, church attendance, the Father Christmas/Santa Claus myth, and family gatherings. The word Christmas is derived from Middle English Christemasse. It is a contraction meaning "Christ's mass". The name of the holiday is often shortened to Xmas because Roman letter "X" resembles the Greek letter X, an abbreviation for Christ.

圣诞节是庆祝天主教中心人物耶稣诞生的节日，通常西方天主教堂在12月25日庆祝。圣诞节最早可追溯到公元200年，但直到中世纪才开始广泛流传。圣诞节庆祝活动包括赠送礼物、圣诞树、摆耶稣系列雕像、参加教堂活动、圣诞老人传说、家庭聚会等。Christmas一词来源于中世纪英语Christemasse，大概的意思是耶稣的弥撒。有时候圣诞节被写成Xmas，因为罗马字母X和希腊文Chirst的缩写X很相似。

In many parts of the world, Christmas is the day when people celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem two thousand years ago. People who remember Christmas as a religious holiday celebrate the birth of Jesus and his coming into this world. To them, he is recognized as the Son of God and the Savior of the world. According to the Bible, Jesus was born in a manger because there was no room for him and his parents, Mary and Joseph, in an inn. Today, people often attend church, organize family gatherings, and decorate their homes and businesses. People feel the giving spirit and donate their time and money to worthy causes, or provide volunteer service to the needy. Christmas is also celebrated as a secular holiday when parents and children talk about Santa Claus and Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer

Christmas Day in United States

Many people in the United States celebrate Christmas Day on December 25. The day celebrates Jesus Christ's birth. It is often combined with customs from pre-Christian winter celebrations. Many people erect Christmas trees, decorate their homes, visit family or friends and exchange gifts.

What do people do?

People celebrate Christmas Day in many ways. In the days or even weeks before Christmas Day, many people decorate their homes and gardens with lights, Christmas trees and much more. It is common to organize a special meal, often consisting of turkey and a lot of other festive foods, for family or friends and exchange gifts with them. Children, in particular, often receive a lot of gifts from their parents and other relatives and the mythical figure Santa Claus. This has led to Christmas Day becoming an increasingly commercialized holiday, with a lot of families spending a large part of their income on gifts and food.

Many Sunday schools, churches and communities organize special events. These can include decorating the neighborhood or a shopping mall, putting up a Christmas tree and planning a Nativity display, concert or performance. A lot of plays and songs have a aspect of Christmas as a theme. Some groups arrange meals, shelter or charitable projects for people without a home or with very little money.

Public life

Government offices, organizations, businesses and schools are closed, almost without exception. Many people visit relatives or friends and are out of town. This may cause congestion on highways and at airports. Public transit systems do not run on their regular schedules. In general, public life closes down completely.

Background

The original meaning of Christmas is a special church service, or mass, to celebrate the birth of Christ. The story of the Nativity, or the events surrounding the birth of Jesus, are particularly important in religious celebrations of Christmas. However, many traditions that are around today have their roots in pre-Christian winter festivals. These include the importance of candles and decorations made from evergreen bushes and tree, symbolizing everlasting light and life.

In Roman times, a mid-winter festival was held. This was a relaxing time with a lot of parties and merry making. It was also common to give other people small gifts, such as dolls for children and candles for adults. This festival culminated with the celebration of the winter solstice, which fell on December 25 in the Roman calendar. In Scandinavia, a festival called Yule and lasting up to twelve days was held in late December and early January. In this time people burnt logs and held parties. These customs have influences how Christmas Day is celebrated today in the United States.

The Bible does not give a precise date for the birth of Jesus. It is also unclear when December 25 became associated with the birth of Jesus, although it may have been around two hundred years after his birth. In the early centuries of Christianity, the anniversary of the birth of Jesus was not a cause for celebrations. The idea of turning this day into a celebration started in the early Middle Ages in Europe.

During Reformation and up until the middle of the 1800s, Christmas was often not celebrated because partying and merry making was seen as unchristian. From about 1840, celebrating Christmas became more widespread. December 25 was declared a federal holiday in the United States in 1870. Since then Christmas Day has become a steadily more important holiday.

Symbols

A wide range of people and objects represent Christmas. These include baby Jesus, the Nativity and the Three Kings, but also Santa Claus, reindeer and elves. Common objects at this time of year are pine trees, holly, decorations, fairy lights, candles and presents. Christmas Day is now truly a mix of religious celebration and commercial interests.

介绍圣诞节的英语短文

　Christmas is one of the most important celebrations of the year for the western countries. It falls on the twenty- fifth of December and has the same importance as Chinese New Year to people with English backgrounds. The celebration is for the birth of Jesus Christ, who is the son of God in Christianity. Now days Christmas is no longer only celebrated by the Christians, but by most people from all over the world.

　On the twenty- fourth of December everyone gets excited for it’s the day before Christmas which is called Christmas Eve. The children are usually sent to bed early and are warned that “Santa Claus will only come and give you a present if you be good.” The younger kids actually believe that Santa will come down the chimney on the sleigh that’s pulled by his reindeers. Food like short bread and beer are prepared for Santa when he comes, however most times parents just eat them. Some children put socks and sacks up for the holding of the presents (that their parents put in).

　Rise and shine on Christmas morning! The children are always the first ones to wake up, some even do at four. Present wrappers everywhere! They look into their presents with a big smile on their face and oh dear….I hope no one’s disappointed. I feel sorry for anyone that got pink underwear. Children play while dinner is prepared by the adults. The Christmas dinner are usually eaten together by relatives. The tradition of Christmas pudding and roosters are usually eaten with deserts afterwards. The rest of the day is usually games and fun before the good days all come to an end.

　I wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

　圣诞节是西方国家一年中最重要的庆祝活动之一。这是十二月的第二十五，对有英语背景的人来说和春节一样重要。这是为了庆祝Jesus Christ的诞生，他是基督教的上帝之子。现在，圣诞节不再仅仅是基督教徒庆祝，而是来自世界各地的大多数人庆祝。

　十二月的第二十四日，每个人都很兴奋，因为圣诞节的前一天是圣诞节前夕。孩子们通常早睡，并警告称，“圣诞老人只会给你的礼物如果你是好的。”年轻的孩子们相信Santa会上，坐在驯鹿拉的雪橇从烟囱。当Santa来的时候，像短面包和啤酒这样的食物是为他准备的，但是大多数时候父母只吃它们。有些孩子把袜子和麻袋拿起来拿礼物(他们的父母穿上了)。

　在圣诞节早晨升起和照耀!孩子们总是第一个醒来，有些甚至四岁起床。到处包装!他们看着他们的礼物，脸上带着灿烂的笑容，哦，亲爱的……我希望没有人失望。我为那些穿粉红色内衣的人感到难过。孩子们玩耍，晚餐由大人准备。圣诞晚餐通常由亲戚一起吃。圣诞布丁和公鸡的传统，通常吃的沙漠之后。在美好的日子结束之前，剩下的时间通常是游戏和娱乐。

　祝大家圣诞快乐，新年快乐!

　英文介绍圣诞节短一点

　December 25th is the day of celebration and of fun and frolic. As the long awaited winter holidays arrive, Christmas spirit builds up. The lovely snowflakes, our dear Santa, decorated homes complete with whole range of Christmas star, mistletoe, the good-luck plant, ivy, laurels and not the least the beautifully decorated and illuminated Christmas tree are some of the inseparable parts of the picture. The soft music of the Christmas carols and children eager to open their gifts certainly lend unique warmth to the coldest day of the year.