Winter Holiday Lore: Answers
Created | Updated Dec 23, 2012
We hope you enjoyed the quiz, and that Santa brought you lots of Stuff.
Winter Holiday Lore: Answers
If you can't get into this quiz, you're a Grinch. (Look it up.)
- Everybody knows that the winter solstice is on 21 December. (Yeah, right.) What happens at Stonehenge on this date every 18 years?
The moon rises over where a stone used to be. Archaeologists, the clever people, know where Stone D used to be. Check it out by reading The Mysteries of Stonehenge. - What did the ancient Romans think of holly? It was useful for warding off witches. Also lightning strikes. According to A Celebration of Holly, the holly plant was not only sacred to Druids, but also to Romans, who associated it with Saturn.
- Where would you find the Christmas Tree Cluster? In a constellation. Monoceros (the 'Unicorn'), to be exact.
- Why do the Sami drink reindeer urine? It's a way to get high. You knew that. Everybody on h2g2 knows that, thanks to The Influence of Fly Agaric on the Iconography of Father Christmas.
- If you are the first foot in Scotland, what should you bring?
Coal, salt, liquor or sweets. This is a custom for Hogmanay: The Scottish New Year. - Whose birthday is on 25 December? Mithras'. According to Mithras: The Other Saviour, the dating comes from a different tradition from Christianity.
- Where can you buy a carving of Ded Moroz for your winter holiday?
Moscow. The Edited Guide recommends you try The Vernisage in Izmailovo, Moscow, Russia. - In Frankfurt am Main, what does it mean if your girlfriend sends back your Bethmännchen?
You should probably cancel the wedding plans. According to Frankfurt am Main, Germany: Where Past Meets Present, this refusal of a Christmas delicacy is a way of saying that she's really not into you that much. - In days of yore, what did Father Christmas wear on the Isle of Wight? Green. A rather pagan notion, but then, everything's different on that magical island, including Christmas Traditions of the Isle of Wight. Just ask Bluebottle.
- Why might a Pennsylvania Dutch farmer go out to the barn at midnight on Christmas Eve? To hear them talk, because they speak on that night. The Guide Entry on The Pennsylvania Dutch also informs us that anyone born on Christmas Eve will be able to understand what cows say. (No, we don't know when 2legs' birthday is.)
If you got them all, reward yourself with extra eggnog. Share these titbits with your friends. And have the best of holidays!