Have you heard of Christmas in July? This is when people celebrate Christmas in the month of July, on the 25th (or a few days before or after). You may think this is quite a new idea, but a summer camp for girls in North Carolina, the United States, celebrated it way back (see below for Glossary) in 1933 (Wikipedia). That’s 92 years ago.  It is unclear exactly why they did this, but perhaps they just couldn’t wait until December.

Countries in the Southern Hemisphere, like Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, have winter in the months of June, July and August, which is the opposite to the Northern Hemisphere. This means that Christmas Day, 25th December, is celebrated during the summertime.

One of the great things about Christmas is all of the lovely food available at that time of year. Unfortunately, people don’t usually feel like eating roasts and plum puddings and drinking mulled wine when it’s hot.  Instead, seafood and beer is a lot more popular here in Australia. July is usually our ‘coldest’ month, so it’s the perfect time to enjoy all of the more traditional Christmas dishes.

In addition to eating Christmas fare, people can exchange gifts, put up a Christmas tree and shop at a ‘Christmas in July’ Sale. It’s just a bit of fun and not taken too seriously. Christmas in July is not an official holiday, and it’s certainly not celebrated by everyone, but it is becoming increasingly popular.

If you need some help with your English, you might like to have regular lessons with Cathy.  Get in contact today to arrange your free trial lesson.

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Glossary

way back – long ago

can’t wait  [informal] – used to say how excited you are about something that you are going to do

Southern Hemisphere – is the half sphere of Earth which is south of the equator or, more simply, the bottom half of the Earth

Northern Hemisphere – is the half sphere of Earth which is north of the equator or, more simply, the top half of the Earth

roast – a joint of meat (e.g. beef, lamb, turkey) that has been roasted (cooked in an oven or over a fire)

plum puddings – a rich boiled suet (type of fat) pudding containing raisins, currants, and spices

mulled wine – a combination of red wine, sugar and spices that is served hot or warm and traditionally drunk in winter, especially at Christmas, in some countries

fare – food

increasingly – more and more