Author: Niklas, Danish Lingonaut. 
(Keep scrolling for Niklas's original, Danish blog post. The English version has been directly translated, not localized.)

Over 1,000 years ago, there were no supermarkets kicking off the Christmas season three months before Christmas. No special offers on roast pork in October, no flashing Christmas lights in the windows at Halloween, and no annoying advertisements trying to sell us scratch-off Christmas calendars at the beginning of November. Back then, it was all about faith, hope, and community.

Christianity changed the Vikings' Yule celebrations

When the Vikings sailed around in the 600s, enjoying themselves with violence and plundering, the celebration was called jól or jólablót (sacrifice). The festival took place in the middle of the dark month of January and was celebrated over several days. It marked the end of winter. Finally, people could begin to hope for the return of the sun and warmer times.

Today, we in Scandinavia know that the dark times do not last forever, but back then, people feared for their survival. Therefore, they made sacrifices to Odin and Freyr in the hope of a good and fruitful year. And it helped to ease their concerns that there was enough food and drink to feed the entire town and the neighboring town. It was a combination of New Year's Eve, harvest festival, and Christmas lunch.

But when Christianity came to the Nordic countries, something happened. King Haakon the Good decided that the Vikings' winter festival should be combined with the celebration of the birth of Jesus and moved from January to December 24. The Vikings and society as a whole embraced Christianity, wiped the pig fat from the corners of their mouths, and drank beer to toast the new faith.

The word "Christmas" has changed its meaning

In the transition from the Nordic faith to Christianity, changes had to be made, so we changed the word "jól" to "jul." The meaning was the same: celebration. When you think about it, it is a little funny that we used and still use a pagan word for a Christian holiday. But the Danes are, of course, a stubborn people who do not like big changes.

Christmas was full of faith and hope

Nevertheless, the word has changed meaning over time. In the earliest texts about Christmas, the tone is solemn. The word has its roots in something sacred and is filled with faith, hope, and charity. Over time, what could be called "the Danish Christmas melody" emerged.

Hymns pour forth from Grundtvig's sleeves: Julen har englelyd (Christmas Has the Sound of Angels, 1837), Et barn er født i Betlehem (A Child Is Born in Bethlehem, 1820), Kimer, I klokker (Ring Out, Bells, 1856), to name but a few of the 1,600 hymns he wrote.

Every sentence was written with sincere respect for Christianity, and you can almost feel that when you read through the old hymns. The language was not intended to sell anything, but to bring people together.

Commercialization of Christmas

Fast forward to the 20th century, and the language changes again. Religion loses some of its importance. Christmas slowly moves away from the church and into people's living rooms, and advertising agencies quickly catch on. Professional copywriters delve into which buzzwords create the greatest desire to buy, and virtually all companies go all-in on the Christmas spirit.

For the same reason, "Christmas" is now placed in front of all kinds of words to make them sound more pleasant and evoke nostalgia and anticipation in customers: Christmas beer, Christmas tree, Christmas lunch, Christmas calendar, Christmas movie, Christmas coffee, Christmas socks. Suddenly, Christmas is no longer about God, but about joy, cosiness, Christmas magic and sales. The word has lost some of its original meaning and may have become a little superficial, but times are changing.

Christmas is a celebration of the heart

The language surrounding "Christmas" clearly reflects how our society has changed. Initially, it was about the hope for a prosperous year and about faith. Now, it is primarily about community, but equally about roast pork, rice pudding, and gifts. And that is perfectly acceptable, in my opinion.

After all, Christmas is a time to enjoy with your loved ones, and it doesn't matter where the word comes from. The hustle and bustle of everyday life is left outside in the snow while we enjoy ourselves in the glow of fairy lights with good food and gifts.

We still sing Grundtvig's Christmas hymns while dancing around the tree with great joy. And we still eat large quantities of food, washed down with wine and nisseøl (a type of beer). So perhaps Christmas is not so different from the Vikings' celebrations after all. Well, apart from the sacrifices, that is.

Niklas's article was originally written in his native language, Danish:

Hvordan har julens sprog ændret sig gennem tiderne?

For over 1000 år siden fandtes der ingen supermarkeder, som satte julen i gang tre måneder før jul. Ingen tilbud på flæskesteg i oktober, ingen blinkende julelys i vinduerne til Halloween og ingen irriterende reklamer, der ville sælge os skrabejulekalendere i starten af november. Dengang handlede det om tro, håb og fællesskab.

Kristendommen ændrede vikingernes jól

Da vikingerne i 600-tallet sejlede rundt og hyggede sig med vold og plyndringer, blev fejringen kaldt jól eller jólablót (ofring). Festen lå midt i den mørke januar måned og blev fejret over flere dage. Den markerede, at vinteren snart var overstået. Endelig kunne man begynde at håbe på solens genkomst og varmere tider.

I dag ved vi i Skandinavien, at den mørke tid ikke varer evigt, men dengang frygtede de for deres overlevelse. Derfor ofrede de til Odin og Frej i håb om et godt og frugtbart år. Og så hjalp det lidt på bekymringerne, at der var mad og drikke nok til at mætte hele byen og nabobyen. Det var en slags kombination af nytårsaften, høstfest og julefrokost.

Men da kristendommen kom til Norden, skete der noget. Kong Håkon den Gode bestemte sig for, at vikingernes vinterfest skulle slås sammen med fejringen af Jesu fødsel og flyttes fra januar til den 24. december. Vikingerne og samfundet i det hele taget tog kristendommen til sig, tørrede grisefedtet væk fra mundvigen og skålede i øl for den nye tro.

Ordet “jul” har skiftet betydning

I overgangen fra den nordiske tro til kristendommen skulle der forandringer til, så vi ændrede ordet “jól” til “jul”. Betydningen var den samme: fejring. Hvis man tænker over det, er det alligevel lidt sjovt, at man brugte og stadig bruger et hedensk ord for en kristen højtid. Men danskerne er selvfølgelig et stædigt folk, der ikke bryder sig om de helt store forandringer.

Julen var fuld af tro og håb

Alligevel har ordet ændret betydning gennem tiderne. I de tidligste tekster om jul er tonen højtidelig. Ordet bunder i noget helligt og er fyldt med tro, håb og næstekærlighed. Med tiden opstår det, man kan kalde “den danske julemelodi”.

Det vælter ud med salmer af Grundtvigs ærmer: Julen har englelyd (1837), Et barn er født i Betlehem (1820), Kimer, I klokker (1856), bare for at nævne nogle af de 1600 salmer, han skrev.

Hver sætning var skrevet med oprigtig respekt for kristendommen, og det kan man næsten mærke, hvis man læser de gamle salmer igennem. Sproget skulle ikke sælge noget, men samle mennesker.

Kommercialisering af julen

Springer vi frem til 1900-tallet, ændrer sproget sig igen. Religionen mister lidt sin plads. Julen bevæger sig langsomt væk fra kirken og ind i stuerne, og den fanger reklamebureauerne hurtigt. De professionelle tekstforfattere dykker ned i, hvilke buzzwords der skaber den største købelyst, og stort set alle virksomheder går all-in på julestemningen.

“Jul” sættes af samme grund i dag foran alle mulige ord, så de lyder hyggeligere og vækker nostalgi og forventning hos kunderne: Juleøl, juletræ, julefrokost, julekalender, julefilm, julekaffe, julesokker. Pludselig handler julen ikke længere om Gud, men om glæde, hygge, julemagi og salg. Ordet har lidt mistet sin oprindelige betydning og er måske blevet en anelse overfladisk, men tiderne ændrer sig.

Julen er hjerternes fest

Sproget omkring “jul” afspejler ret tydeligt, hvordan vores samfund har ændret sig. Først handlede det om håbet om et godt år og om tro. Nu handler det mest om fællesskab, men lige så meget om flæskesteg, risengrød og gaver. Og det er helt okay, hvis du spørger mig.

Når alt kommer til alt, er julen en tid, hvor man hygger sig med sine nærmeste, og så er det lige meget, hvilken oprindelse ordet har. Hverdagens travlheder får lov til at stå ude i sneen, mens vi hygger os i lyskædernes skær med god mad og gaver.

Vi synger stadig Grundtvigs julesalmer, mens vi med stor glæde danser rundt om træet. Og vi spiser stadig mad i store mængder, som skylles ned med vin og nisseøl. Så måske er julen slet ikke så forskellig fra vikingernes fejring. Altså, lige bortset fra det der med ofringerne.