How do the Chinese celebrate Christmas? As the festival is approaching, many foreign people might ask this question.

Although many traditions - such as kissing under the mistletoe - have their origins in pre-Christian pagan celebrations, Christmas is a Christian holiday honoring the birth of Christ. With baptized Christians comprising approximately only one percent of the Chinese population, it seems safe to assume that Christmas is not a major holiday. However, nowadays, Christmas is widely celebrated in the country, especially by young Chinese.

Christmas was introduced to China by foreign missionaries in the 19th century. In recent years, the festival became widely known. People erect artificial trees in their apartments and develop them into Christmas trees full of Chinese flavors by decorating them with glittering metal scales, colorful paper flowers, paper chains, paper lanterns and so on. When Christmas is approaching, stores lose no time to launch big promotions and their staffs disguise themselves as Santa Claus to distribute small gifts and candies to passersby.

Particularly in urban areas, you'll find Christmas trees, lights, and other decorations on the streets and in department stores. Children hang up muslin stockings in the hope that Santa Claus will visit and leave gifts.

Since China is a vast country, the atmosphere in its different regions is not the same. People in some coastal areas attach more importance to Christmas celebrations. For instance, in Shenzhen and Guangzhou areas, which neighbor Hong Kong, nearly all young people celebrate the festival though they have different religious beliefs.

Attendance at Christmas Eve mass has also become more popular in recent years. On December 25, many churches hold worship rituals respectively. The Catholic and Orthodox churches hold Christmas mass, and the Protestantism observes Christmas worship. Celebrations in some churches start at 12 o'clock midnight. Besides worship rituals, they also stage dramas, acting out the story of birth of Jesus.

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