Born on December 25
Christmas
Light in the darkest week of the year.
Next: December 25, 2026
Where it comes from
Christmas marks the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. The Gospels give no date; 25 December was fixed in Rome in the 4th century, close to the winter solstice and existing midwinter festivals.
How it's celebrated
Church services, a family meal and gifts are the core almost everywhere it is kept, but the timing and the table vary. Much of Europe and Latin America opens gifts on Christmas Eve; Britain, North America and Australia on Christmas morning. Orthodox churches that keep the Julian calendar celebrate on 7 January.
Did you know
The first commercial Christmas card, commissioned by Sir Henry Cole in London in 1843, sold for a shilling; about a thousand were printed.
Read the full story of Christmas
Star sign
Capricorn · December 22 – January 19 · Earth sign
Patient and ambitious, climbing steadily to the top.