Andreas Alm

Historian, folklorist and archivist | Scandinavia and German-Speaking Europe | Lund University Folklife Archives | 🇸🇪

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

A possible, but often overlooked, clue to the origin of Christmas tree🎄

Two plausible theories on the origin of the Christmas tree were proposed already in the 19th century. One is that it represents the paradise tree which was set up during medieval mystery plays on the day of Adam and Eve (24 December). The other is that it is an equivalent of the maypole erected during the wintertime. Pictured is a calendar (month of May) with a maypole, 1503-1508.

However, in German folkloristic material there is yet another clue to why the Christmas tree tradition might have taken off and gained popularity in some regions during the 16th century. From the early 15th century, we have German sources describing a legend about miraculous apple trees that bloom and bear fruit only on one single night every year - Christmas Eve.

Keep in mind that, according to the earliest sources actually describing the Christmas trees, they are set up on Christmas Eve and decorated with apples and wafers (and occasionally some other stuff).

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@ala_myran @RichardHerrey @martenschultz Ja, naturligtvis var det inget konfidentiellt i detta fallet. Frågan är dock om ”andra dokument på riksdagsledamöternas bänkar” principiellt gäller samtliga dokument eller om man som fotograf själv får avgöra vad som är ok eller ej.

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@martenschultz @RichardHerrey Jag tänkte på den som Ulf Kristersson postade.

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@RichardHerrey @martenschultz Men den omdiskuterade bilden måste väl bryta mot detta?

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@1WretchedVessel @Atomsmade Ica Stones are forgeries and dinosaurs did not live with man.

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@TheSkepticWiz A very scholarly conclusion…

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@Poobah09641567 @TheSkepticWiz Is this your first encounter with @TheSkepticWiz ?

S/he finds random stuff in Facebook groups and reposts it without even considering confirming the authenticity beforehand. It’s neither the first nor the last time s/he posts a fake quote.

Napoleon didn’t say that either.

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@xbrownricex @TruthFairy131 @grok You can find most of them at https://t.co/laPa1eHHak and https://t.co/OK9CuqurKu

Just search the titles he mentions in the video.

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@SuchitraBisoen @TruthFairy131 You can find most of them at https://t.co/OK9CuqurKu and https://t.co/laPa1eHHak

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@anderslindberg Det är ju inte bara med von Papen du har dragit paralleller till Kristersson.

Jag har länge längtat efter en höjd nivå och mer saklighet i det politiska samtalet, men det är och förblir en naiv dröm. Varken du eller Jomshof har bidragit något nämnvärt till förändring.

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@HassanKhan_Vi Påminner lite om reklam för ett mobilabonnemang.

”Med Vi-kompis ingår just nu 100GB fri surf utan bindningstid för endast 199 kr”.

Men det blir säkert bra.

[Fake History Hunter @fakehistoryhunt]

A time travelling pal just introduced me to the medieval Glimmingehus in Sweden and I'm obsessed.
It looks like a superb building but there are also some fascinating and peculiar details.
I'd like to know what you think.
Let's take a look.
https://t.co/JNQoYyeivk

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@054durin @SteveMcRae_ @benitokatolik @AtheistPhoenix I’m absolutely flabbergasted by this conversation. I’ve had more productive discussions with Christian fundamentalists. Amazing.

Alright, I think we are done here. Bye.

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@054durin @SteveMcRae_ @benitokatolik @AtheistPhoenix Hitler always took a more careful approach, trying to avoid a full conflict with the churches, especially with military operations and war around the corner. He became increasingly aware of the difficulties.

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@054durin @SteveMcRae_ @benitokatolik @AtheistPhoenix …(it was said in the propaganda). Once in power, the relations between the Nazis and the churches were always shaky and several top members of the party wanted to be done with them once and for all.

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@054durin @SteveMcRae_ @benitokatolik @AtheistPhoenix I’ll be happy to discuss that topic once we are finished with this one.

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@054durin @SteveMcRae_ @benitokatolik @AtheistPhoenix You’re not even willing to grant that the members of an organisation called ’Leauge of Militant Atheists’ (or ’Society of the Godless’ as they were also called) might have been atheists? And whose leader wrote this in 1934.

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@054durin @SteveMcRae_ @benitokatolik @AtheistPhoenix Does the Leauge of Militant Atheists in the Soviet Union have anything to do with atheism? Has the fact that the members were atheists influenced their lives and actions?
https://t.co/lOf52VQpZW

[Andreas Alm @AndreasAlm9]

@054durin @SteveMcRae_ @benitokatolik @AtheistPhoenix …demonstrated etc. Or is all we can say, regarding the history of atheism, that atheists are individuals that don’t believe in gods?