christmas tree 圣诞树

ChristmastreeChristmastreeAChristmastreeisadecoratedtree,usuallyanevergreenconifer（常绿针叶树）suchasspruce（云杉）,pine（松木）orfir（冷杉）,traditionallyassociatedwiththecelebrationofChristmas.AnartificialChristmastreeisanobjectmadetoresemblesuchatree,usuallymadefrompolyvinylchloride(PVC).Thetreewastraditionallydecoratedwithediblessuchasapples,nutsorotherfoods.Inthe18thcentury,itbegantobeilluminatedbycandles,whichwithelectrificationcouldalsobereplacedbyChristmaslights.Today,thereareawidevarietyoftraditionalornaments（装饰品）,suchasgarland（花环）,tinsel（金属箔）,andcandycanes（拐杖糖）.AnangelorstarmaybeplacedatthetopofthetreetorepresenttheangelGabriel*ortheStarofBethlehem*fromtheNativity（耶稣诞生）.AngelGabriel加百利，替上帝把好消息告诉世人的天使StarofBethlehem圣诞星（出自《马太福音》）•ThecustomoftheChristmastreedevelopedinearlymodernGermanywithpredecessorsthatcanbetracedtothe16thandpossiblythe15thcentury,inwhich“devoutChristiansbroughtdecoratedtreesintotheirhomes”.ChristmastreesarehunginSt.George‘sChurch,Sélestatsince1521.ItacquiredpopularitybeyondGermanyduringthesecondhalfofthe19thcentury.PublicChristmastrees•Sincetheearly20thcentury,ithasbecomecommoninmanycities,towns,anddepartmentstorestoputuppublicChristmastreesoutdoors,suchastheMacy'sGreatTreeinAtlanta(since1948),theRockefellerCenterChristmasTreeinNewYorkCity,andthelargeChristmastreeatVictoriaSquareinAdelaide.•TheUnitedStates'NationalChristmasTreehasbeenliteachyearsince1923ontheSouthLawnoftheWhiteHouse.Today,thelightingoftheNationalChristmasTreeispartofwhathasbecomeamajorholidayeventattheWhiteHouse.•ThegivingofChristmastreeshasalsooftenbeenassociatedwiththeendofhostilities.AfterthesigningoftheArmisticein1918thecityofManchestersentatree,and£500tobuychocolateandcakes,forthechildrenofthemuch-bombardedtownofLilleinnorthernFrance.•Insomecasesthetreesrepresentspecialcommemorativegifts,suchasinTrafalgarSquareinLondon,wheretheCityofOslo,NorwaypresentsatreetothepeopleofLondonasatokenofappreciationfortheBritishsupportofNorwegianresistanceduringtheSecondWorldWar;inBoston,wherethetreeisagiftfromtheprovinceofNovaScotia,inthanksforrapiddeploymentofsuppliesandrescuerstothe1917ammunitionshipexplosionthatlevelledthecityofHalifax;andinNewcastleuponTyne,wherethemaincivicChristmastreeisanannualgiftfromthecityofBergen,inthanksforthepartplayedbysoldiersfromNewcastleinliberatingBergenfromNazioccupation.NorwayalsoannuallygiftsaChristmastreetoWashington,D.C.asasymboloffriendshipbetweenNorwayandtheUSandasanexpressionofgratitudefromNorwayforthehelpreceivedfromtheUSduringWorldWarII.Customsandtraditions•BothsettingupandtakingdownaChristmastreeareassociatedwithspecificdates.Traditionally,ChristmastreeswerenotbroughtinanddecorateduntilChristmasEve(24December)or,inthetraditionscelebratingChristmasEveratherthanthefirstdayofChristmas,23December,andthenremovedthedayafterTwelfthNight(5January);tohaveatreeupbeforeorafterthesedateswasevenconsideredbadluck.SettingupandtakingdownDecoration•Tinsel(金属箔）andseveraltypesofgarland（花环）orribbonarecommonlyusedtodecorateaChristmastree.Silveredsaran（树脂）-basedtinselwasintroducedlater.Delicatemold-blownandpaintedcoloredglassChristmasornaments（装饰品）wereaspecialityoftheglassfactoriesintheThuringianForest,especiallyinLauschainthelate19thcentury,andhavesincebecomealargeindustry,completewithfamous-namedesigners.Baubles（小摆件）areanothercommondecoration,consistingofsmallhollowglass（中空玻璃）orplasticspherescoatedwithathinmetalliclayertomakethemreflective,withafurthercoatingofathinpigmentedpolymer（集合体）inordertoprovidecoloration.Lightingwithelectriclights(fairylights)iscommonlydone.Atree-topper,traditionallyeitheranangelorastar,completestheensemble（总体效果）.•Individuals‘decorationstypicallyincludeamixoffamilytraditionsandpersonaltastes;evenasmallunattractiveornament,ifpasseddownfromaparentorgrandparent,maycometocarryconsiderableemotionalvalueandbegivenaplaceofprideonthetree.•Conversely,treesdecoratedbyprofessionaldesignersfordepartmentstoresandotherinstitutionswillusuallyhavea“theme”;asetofpredominant（主要的）colours,multipleinstancesofeachtypeofornament,andlargerdecorationsthatmaybemorecomplicatedtosetupcorrectly.SomechurchesdecoratewithChrismontrees,whichusehandmadeornamentsdepictingvariousChrismonsymbols.•Manypeoplealsodecorateoutdoortreeswithfoodthatbirdsandotherwildlifewillenjoy,suchasgarlandsmadefromunsaltedpopcornorcranberries,orangehalves,andseed-coveredsuetcakes.•Becausecandleswereusedtolighttreesuntilelectricbulbscameabout,amat(UK)orskirt(US)wasoftenplacedonthefloorbelowthetreetocollectwaxdrippings（蜡滴）andalsoanyneedlesthatfell.Evenwhendriplesscandles,electriclightsandartificialtreeshavebeenused,askirtisstillusuallyusedasadecorativefeature:amongotherthings,ithidestheChristmastreestand,whichmaybeunsightlyyetanimportantsafetyfeatureofhometrees.Whatbeganasordinaryclothhasnowoftenbecomemuchmoreornate,somehavingembroideryorbeingputtogetherlikeaquilt.Production•Naturaltrees•Themostcommonlyusedspeciesarefir(冷杉）,whichhavethebenefitofnotsheddingtheirneedleswhentheydryout,aswellasretaininggoodfoliage（叶子）colourandscent（气味）;butspeciesinothergen