Which of these names does NOT belong to one of Santa's reindeer?
A) Comet
B) Prancer
C) Blitzen
D) Klaxon
In many households, part of the fun of eating Christmas pudding is finding a trinket that predicts your fortune for the coming year. For instance, finding a coin means you will become wealthy. What will you be if you find a button?
A) Poor
B) Famous
C) A bachelor
D) Called away on a trip
A ring means you will get married; while a thimble predicts spinsterhood. The idea of hiding something in the pudding comes from the tradition in the Middle Ages of hiding a bean in a cake that was served on Twelfth Night. Whoever found the bean became "king" for the rest of the night.
In Sweden, a common Christmas decoration is the Julbukk, a small figurine of a goat. Of what material is it usually made?
A) Candy
B) Straw
C) Uranium
D) Fir wood
What is the Irish custom of "feeding the wren" or "hunting the wren" on December 26?
A) Taking one's in-laws out to dinner
B) Carrying a wren door to door, to collect money for charity
C) Leaving a basket of cakes at the door for passers-by
D) Putting out suet and seeds for the wild birds
At Christmas, it is traditional to exchange kisses beneath a sprig of which plant?
A) Ivy
B) Yew
C) Holly
D) Mistletoe
In Tchaikovsky's ballet "The Nutcracker", who is the nutcracker's main enemy?
A) A girl called Clara
B) The King of the Mice
C) Dr. Almond
D) Drosselmeyer the magician
At lavish Christmas feasts in the Middle Ages, swans and peacocks were sometimes served "endored". What does that mean?
In the Ukraine, what does it mean if you find a spider web in the house on Christmas morning?
A) Good luck
B) Misfortune will strike in the coming year
C) The winter will be unusually cold
D) Your house needs cleaning!
All through the Christmas season in old England, "lambswool" could be found in the houses of the well-to-do. What was it?
A) Imitation snow used in decorations
B) A brew of hot ale with roast apples floating in it
C) The material used for knitting Christmas gifts
D) A fluffy confection made from almonds and sugar
If you were given some frumenty at a Medieval Christmas party, what would you probably do with it?
A) Eat it
B) Burn it
C) Put it in your sweetheart's hair
D) Use it to polish your boots
Many of us are quite familiar with the first verses of the traditional Christmas carols, but how well do you know the rest of the lyrics? For instance, what is the first line of the second verse of Angels from the Realms of Glory?
A) "Christ by highest heav'n adorèd"
B) "Shepherds in the fields abiding"
C) "Shepherds why this jubilee?"
D) "Don we now our gay apparel"
The other suggested lines come from (a) Hark, the Herald Angels Sing, (c) Angels We Have Heard On High and (d) Deck the Halls. The words to Angels from the Realms of Glory were written by Scottish journalist and poet James Montgomery (1771-1854). Montgomery was a supporter of parliamentary reform and a prolific writer. About 100 of his hymns are still in use.
Lastly
Which of the following names does NOT belong one of the Three Kings?
A) Caspar
B) Balthazar
C) Teleost
D) Melchior
