Yule gifts and traditions

Yule is the midwinter festival held around the winter solstice, about 21 December. In modern pagan practice it celebrates the return of the sun as the days start to lengthen again. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide. Customs vary between families and traditions.

Yule is marked at the winter solstice, which falls on 21 or 22 December in the UK depending on the year. Check an almanac or our Wheel of the Year page for the exact date. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide.

Yule comes from the Old English 'geol' and Old Norse 'jól', names for a midwinter season in Germanic and Norse tradition. 'Yuletide' survives in English Christmas carols. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide. Customs vary between families and traditions.

Traditionally a large log was burned in the hearth over midwinter, and some households kept a piece to light next year's fire. Today many people burn a candle-decorated log or bake the chocolate version. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide.

Red, green, gold and white are traditional Yule colours: green for evergreens, red for holly berries, gold for the sun and white for snow. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide. Customs vary between families and traditions. We share these meanings as tradition and belief, not as advice or a promise of any effect.

Holly, ivy, mistletoe, pine and yew are traditional Yule greenery, brought indoors as a sign that life continues through winter. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide. Customs vary between families and traditions. We share these meanings as tradition and belief, not as advice or a promise of any effect.

Good Yule gifts include candles, sun and star symbols, evergreen-scented incense, a Yule altar cloth or a crystal such as citrine or garnet, chosen for the season's gold and red colours. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide. Customs vary between families and traditions.

Common customs include decorating with evergreens, lighting candles on the longest night, watching the solstice sunrise, sharing a meal and exchanging small gifts. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide. Customs vary between families and traditions. We share these meanings as tradition and belief, not as advice or a promise of any effect.

No, but they overlap. Many Christmas customs, such as evergreens, the Yule log and midwinter feasting, have roots in older winter festivals. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide. Customs vary between families and traditions. We share these meanings as tradition and belief, not as advice or a promise of any effect.

A Yule altar is a small seasonal display, often with evergreens, red and gold candles, pine cones and a sun symbol, used as a focus for reflection on the longest night. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide. Customs vary between families and traditions.

Garnet, ruby-red stones, citrine, clear quartz and green stones such as bloodstone are traditionally associated with Yule for their seasonal colours. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide. Customs vary between families and traditions. We share these meanings as tradition and belief, not as advice or a promise of any effect.

Wassailing is an old English winter custom of toasting good health, and in cider country singing to apple trees to wish for a good harvest. It often took place over the twelve days of Christmas. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide.

A simple Yule custom is to sit in darkness on the longest night, then light a single candle to welcome back the sun, perhaps writing down a hope for the coming year. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide.

Yes. Many families mark both, for example lighting candles at the solstice and keeping Christmas traditions on the 25th. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide. Customs vary between families and traditions. We share these meanings as tradition and belief, not as advice or a promise of any effect.

The Yule goat is a Scandinavian midwinter figure, often made of straw, which survives today as a popular Christmas decoration in Sweden and beyond. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide. Customs vary between families and traditions. We share these meanings as tradition and belief, not as advice or a promise of any effect.

Spiced cakes, roasted nuts, mulled drinks, oranges and anything warming are traditional midwinter foods, shared to mark the turn of the year. Read our Yule festival page and Yule guide. Customs vary between families and traditions. We share these meanings as tradition and belief, not as advice or a promise of any effect.