"May your days be merry and bright..."
~ White Christmas - Irving Berlin, 1941

Christmas lights are one of my favorite part of the holiday season. I love driving home from work on dark roads and seeing beautiful displays of Christmas lights dotted along residential streets and the town centers of the little villages here along the Hudson River. 
Have you ever wondered why we hang lights around our homes, towns and cities during the Christmas season? I have! So I looked it up. 
The origins come from pagan rituals during winter solstice - or Yule - at the end of December. Firelight was symbolic of the return of gradually longer days. Bonfires and burning a yule log welcomed the return of sunlight and the rebirth of a new year full of promise. 

Fast forward a few thousand years - candles were used in Germany to decorate Christmas trees in the 17th century - adding not just a sense of warmth to the winter season, but also serving to ward off evil spirits. By this time, the light used to celebrate the season had less to do with pagan Yule celebrations and was more aligned with Christianity - symbolizing Jesus Christ as being the "light of the world". The glow of the candles was also thought to mimic stars shining through the branches of conifers - a popular story often attributed to Martin Luther. 

Fast forward another few hundred years - Christmas trees and lights become part of Christmas pop-culture in the U.S. The tradition of illuminating Christmas trees with small candles continued until the late 19th century. Thomas Edison created the first strand of Christmas lights in 1880. His associate, Edward Johnson was the first to hand-wire red, white, and blue bulbs to his Christmas tree, which he displayed in his street-facing parlor window - captivating the public.

By the 1920’s, electricity was found in more homes, and electric lights became more affordable. The popularity of using electric lights as a Christmas decoration grew from there, eventually spreading to Europe and Asia. Today, Christmas lights have become a festive and joyful symbol of the Christmas season.