Open Thread: Twelfth Day of Christmas

Hosted by a Christmas church ornament

Tomorrow is Jan. 6!  In Christianity, it’s known as Three Kings Day or Epiphany.  In the Middle Ages in Europe, it was celebrated as the twelfth of the 12 Days of Christmas - Christmas Day itself was a time for quiet praying and religious ritual, and the celebration grew and grew over the next 12 days, culminating in a giant rowdy party on the 6th.   The Shakespeare play “Twelfth Night” references this tradition, and the poem “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” starts close to the midpoint of the 12 Days.

Today in America, those of us who celebrate Christmas for secular or other non-Christian reasons generally view Jan. 6 as the day all of the turkey leftovers should finally be out of the fridge.

What random trivia regarding this time of year do YOU know?  Do you follow any interesting traditions during the 12 Days of Christmas?  Do you have non-Christmas-related, but still interesting, traditions instead?  Do you still have leftovers in the fridge?

~Kristycat

(Hi!  As you may have noticed, the Open Threads are currently being posted by me, Kristycat.  It’s a pleasure to meet you, I hope they’ll be interesting and spark some conversation, and starting Tuesday I promise I’ll get away from  holiday-themed ones for a while!)