"When we humans moved into northern Europe 40,000 years ago, it's likely that to cope with the depths of the cold winter we got together to cheer ourselves up, and also to mark the turning of the year back towards summer. It's no coincidence that Christmas Day falls very close to the winter solstice, when the sun begins its journey back to warmer and longer days."
"Alcohol may well have been part of the celebrations, since we have been drinking it for at least 10,000 years. That's when we see the first archaeological evidence of the deliberate production of alcohol, in what was the first beer made from fermented grain."
The Christmas season functions as a period of communal merrymaking rooted in prehistoric practices of gathering to endure deep northern winters and to mark seasonal reversal toward warmer, longer days. When humans moved into northern Europe roughly 40,000 years ago, group celebrations likely helped people cope with cold and to cheer themselves while acknowledging the turning of the year toward summer. Christmas Day lies close to the winter solstice, symbolizing the sun’s gradual return. Alcohol likely featured in ancient celebrations; deliberate production of alcoholic beverages began around 10,000 years ago, with archaeological evidence pointing to early beer made from fermented grain.
Read at Independent
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