CHRISTMAS QUOTES QUIZ

I hope you're all having a wonderful festive season!

Can you match these Christmas quotes [1 - 6] with their sources [a - f]?  The answers are at the end of the quiz.

1. "Look, Daddy. Teacher says, every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings."

2.  "There are always Uncles at Christmas."

3.  "I heard the bells on Christmas Day,
       Their old, familiar carols play."

4.  "Where the treetops glisten
        and children listen
        to hear sleigh bells in the snow."

5.  " 'One can never have enough socks,' said Dumbledore. 'Another Christmas has come and gone and I didn't get a single pair.  People will insist on giving me books.' "

6.  " 'Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents,' grumbled Jo, lying on the rug."

Little Women - 1933 film version

a.  Irving Berlin: White Christmas [song]

b.  Louisa May Alcott: Little Women [novel]

c.  Dylan Thomas:  A Child's Christmas in Wales [fictionalised autobiography]

d.  J:K: Rowling:  Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone [novel]

e.  Henry Wadsworth Longfellow:  Christmas Bells [poem]

f.  Wonderful Life [film]

Highlight the space below to see the answers:

1f, 2c, 3e, 4a, 5d, 6b.

CHRISTMAS QUIZ

See if you can do our Christmas quiz! Answers at the end.

Christmas Quiz 2014

1.  What name do we give to the 24th December?
2.  What name do we give to the 25th December?
3.  What name do we give to the 26th December?
4.  A Christmas religious song is called a Christmas - - - - - .
5.  The answer to question 4 is also the title of a famous book about Christmas by Charles - - - - - - - .
6.  In Britain and the USA people usually eat roast - - - - - - on Christmas Day.
7.  After the meat course people eat a dessert called Christmas - - - - - - - .
8.  We send Christmas  - - - - - to all our friends, neighbours and colleagues.
9.  At 3 pm on Christmas Day the  - - - - - speaks to the British nation and the Commonwealth.
10. What name do we give to the 31st December?
11. What name do we give to the 1st January?
12. What is the New Year celebration called in Scotland?
13. Who wrote the traditional poem Auld Lang Syne, which is sung to welcome the New Year?
14. Which famous children's book opens with the words, "Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents"?
15. A special carol service takes place on Christmas Eve at King's College in - - - - - - - - - , UK.
16. Who says, "Ho, ho, ho!" at the beginning of every sentence?
17. What will probably happen if you stand or sit under the mistletoe [vischio] ?
18. Can you complete this song line? "We - - - - you a merry Christmas, we - - - - you a merry Christmas..."
19. Mince - - - - are traditional Christmas sweet pastries.
20. New Year's - - - - - - - - - - - are promises that we often break.

Merry Christmas!

Please highlight the space below to see the quiz answers:

1. Christmas Eve  2. Christmas Day  3. Boxing Day  4. carol  5. Dickens  6. turkey  7. pudding  8. cards  9. Queen  10. New Year's Eve  11. New Year's Day  12. Hogmanay  13. Robert Burns  14. Little Women  15. Cambridge  16. Father Christmas / Santa Claus  17. Someone will kiss you! 18. wish  19. pies  20. resolutions

NEW CHRISTMAS BOOKLET - NUOVO LIBRETTO PER NATALE

We have a new Christmas booklet at London Town, Modica - Centro Linguistico Internazionale. It contains Christmas vocabulary, information about British Christmas and New Year traditions, a puzzle and a Christmas quiz:

Nel libretto troverete: un vocabolario natilizio inglese, informazioni sulle tradizioni natilizie britanniche, un gioco di parole nascoste e un quiz.  Chi s'iscrive avrà il libretto!

MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE!

tidings = news

SOME CHRISTMAS VOCABULARY

Here are some Christmas words:


angel

bauble

bells

candles

candy canes

Christmas cake

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Christmas crackers

Christmas presents

Christmas pudding

Image: Wikipedia

Christmas shopping

Christmas tree

Father Christmas / Santa Claus

holly

kissing under the mistletoe

mistletoe

reindeer

singing Christmas carols

sleigh

snowy chimney

star

READING - THE LEGENDS OF THE POINSETTIA

Image: Wikimedia Commons

The poinsettia plant is as much a symbol of Christmas in Italy as the presepe [crib] that is found in almost every home. With their bright red colour and leaves in the form of star points, the plants are loved, carefully tended and are often kept from one year to the next. In Italy they are known as Stelle di Natale [Christmas stars] a name which the Italians adopted from Spanish missionaries in Mexico, where the plant originated. A group of Spanish Franciscan monks working in Mexico used the plants in a Christmas procession for the first time in the seventeenth century and after that the Mexicans started using them in Nativity scenes. It was Joel Robert Poinsett, US Ambassador to Mexico from 1825 – 1829, who gave the plant its English name and took it to the United States. At Christmas 1899 poinsettia plants were placed in St Peter’s Basilica, drawing admiration from all who saw them.

Now Coldiretti, the Italian farming union, has issued some advice for the care of the 20 million “Christmas stars” that Italians are expected to buy this Christmas: The plants should be kept in light, well-heated rooms and in winter can withstand direct sunlight. It is important to water them only when the soil surrounding them is completely dry. Coldiretti also urges consumers to buy plants grown in Italy, thus ensuring quality and helping the agricultural sector. The capital of the poinsettia in Italy is without doubt the Versilia [Tuscan Riviera] and in particular the town of Viareggio, where it is estimated that 5 million plants will be produced for sale this year. Small plants should cost around 2.50 euros, larger ones up to 30 euros and the largest around 70 – 80 euros.

There are two legends about the poinsettia that you may like to know about. Neither is Italian but – hey- it’s Christmas! The first and most famous concerns a little Mexican girl called Pepita or, in some versions, Lola, or maybe a boy called Pablo. Pepita, on her way to see the annual Nativity scene in her village, suddenly realised she had no offering to take with her that would show her love for the Baby Jesus and she started to cry. At that point, an angel spoke to her and advised her to gather some greens from the roadside, for Jesus would know that they were given with love. Pepita did so but the other children laughed at her gift. Then, all of a sudden, the greens turned into a beautiful, red poinsettia plant.

The other legend is more universal: When God created Nature, he asked all the flowers to give to the humans who chose and tended them the very best of themselves – beauty, love, harmony and wisdom. But there was one plant that nobody wanted, although it tried hard to be chosen, for it had tiny flowers and its leaves were too big. The plant became very sad and in December God saw this. He said, “I know you want to give men beauty, love, harmony and wisdom and, as men need these things, I am going to help you. I will give you my blood and put it on your leaves, which will turn deep red and make you the most beautiful flower on earth in this most important season for man.” And so the plant with the tiny flowers and big leaves became the lovely stella di Natale and ever since, it has brought men beauty, love, harmony and wisdom.

Take care of your “Christmas stars” this year.

EXERCISE - VOCABULARY

Find words in the text that have a similar meaning to the ones below:

1.  cared for 

2.  came from

3.  attracting

4.  tolerate

5.  an unverified, traditional story

6.  yearly

7.  very small

8.  good judgement  

Highlight the space below to see the answers:

1. tended  2. originated  3. drawing  4. withstand  5. legend  6. annual  7. tiny  8. wisdom

The above article by Pat first appeared in Italy Magazine UK in 2009.

STIR-UP SUNDAY

Today is Stir-Up Sunday in the UK.  This day falls on the last Sunday before Advent and the name comes from some words in a prayer which is read on that day.  In the prayer, people ask God to "stir up" or encourage them to do good things.  As "stir" also means "mix", people began to associate this Sunday with the task of making Christmas pudding as it has to be stirred a lot and should be made several weeks before Christmas.

Traditionally, every person in the family stirs the pudding and makes a wish while they do so but these days, most people buy their Christmas puddings.

Image: Musical Linguist at the English language Wikipedia