{"id":11540,"date":"2017-12-18T09:30:18","date_gmt":"2017-12-18T14:30:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/%year%\/%monthnum%\/%day%\/5-facts-about-christmas-in-america\/"},"modified":"2024-04-13T23:47:20","modified_gmt":"2024-04-14T04:47:20","slug":"5-facts-about-christmas-in-america","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2017\/12\/18\/5-facts-about-christmas-in-america\/","title":{"rendered":"5 facts about Christmas in America"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/FT_15.12.23_5factsXmas4_promo.jpg\" alt=\"Christmas tree ornaments\" class=\"wp-image-276245\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wherever Americans stand on holiday-time debates on issues ranging from what\u2019s depicted on&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/11\/20\/style\/starbucks-gay-agenda.html\">Starbucks cups<\/a>&nbsp;to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/constitutioncenter.org\/blog\/a-review-of-the-seasons-lawsuits-about-holiday-displays\">public displays<\/a>&nbsp;of religious symbols, it\u2019s hard to disagree that Christmas is still a big part of many people\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Just in time for the holidays, here are five facts about Christmas in America and how people celebrate it:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"is-style-has-big-number wp-block-paragraph\">Nine-in-ten Americans (90%) \u2014 and 95% of Christians \u2014 say they celebrate Christmas, according to a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2017\/12\/12\/americans-say-religious-aspects-of-christmas-are-declining-in-public-life\/\">new Pew Research Center survey<\/a>. While these figures have generally held steady in recent years, \u00a0<strong>the role of religion in Christmas celebrations appears to be declining<\/strong>. Today, 46% of Americans say they celebrate Christmas as primarily a religious (rather than cultural) holiday, down from 51% who said this in 2013, with Millennials\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2017\/12\/12\/americans-say-religious-aspects-of-christmas-are-declining-in-public-life\/#big-differences-in-how-generational-cohorts-mark-the-holidays\">less likely than other adults<\/a>\u00a0to say they celebrate Christmas in a religious way. A majority of U.S. adults (56%) also say religious aspects of Christmas are emphasized less in American society today than in the past, though relatively few are bothered by this trend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.pewresearch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/12\/11132612\/PF_12.12.17.christmas-03.png\" alt=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"is-style-has-big-number wp-block-paragraph\">When they go to the store, which greeting do Americans prefer: \u201cmerry Christmas\u201d or \u201chappy holidays\u201d? For some, this can be a sensitive question, but\u00a0an increasing number of Americans do not seem to have strong feelings either way.\u00a0<strong>About half of Americans (52%) now say it doesn\u2019t matter how stores greet their customers over the holidays,\u00a0<\/strong>up from 46% in 2012. About a third (32%) choose \u201cmerry Christmas\u201d \u2013 down considerably from the 42% who said this five years ago. Republicans are\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2017\/12\/12\/americans-say-religious-aspects-of-christmas-are-declining-in-public-life\/#partisan-differences-in-views-on-christmas-in-public-life\">much more likely than Democrats<\/a>\u00a0to say they prefer \u201cmerry Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<p class=\"is-style-has-big-number wp-block-paragraph\">Holiday displays on government property \u2013 which prompt annual scrutiny \u2013 are another sometimes controversial aspect of Christmas. We asked Americans if Christian symbols such as nativity scenes should be allowed on government property, and, if so, whether they should be allowed by themselves or only if accompanied by symbols from other faiths.\u00a0<strong>A growing share says religious displays should\u00a0<em>not<\/em>\u00a0be allowed on government property under any circumstances<\/strong>\u00a0(26%, up from 20% three years ago). At the same time, a declining share say Christian symbols should be allowed on government property even if they are unaccompanied by symbols from other religions (37% today, down from 44% in 2014). Roughly three-in-ten (29%) say these displays should be allowed only if they are accompanied by other religious symbols like Hanukkah candles, a share that has held relatively steady in recent years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.pewresearch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/12\/11132611\/PF_12.12.17.christmas-02.png\" alt=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"is-style-has-big-number wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Americans have long argued about whether nativity scenes and other religious holiday displays on public property violate the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution\u2019s First Amendment. <\/strong>In the 1980s,\u00a0the Supreme Court handed down\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2007\/06\/27\/religious-holiday-displays\/\">two landmark rulings<\/a>\u00a0that allow for displays of Christmas cr\u00e8ches,\u00a0Hanukkah menorah\u00a0and other religious holiday symbols on public property so long as they do not actively endorse or promote a particular religion or religion in general.\u00a0In practice, religious symbols that are a part of larger secular holiday display (containing, say, Christmas trees, Santa Claus and reindeer) have had a much better chance of surviving a court challenge than those displays that are solely or more overtly religious.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.pewresearch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/12\/11132614\/PF_12.12.17.christmas-04.png\" alt=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"is-style-has-big-number wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Most Americans believe that elements of the biblical Christmas story reflect actual historical events, although the percentage expressing this view has dropped noticeably in recent years.<\/strong>\u00a0Two-thirds (66%)\u00a0say Jesus was born to a virgin, compared with 73% who\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2014\/12\/15\/most-say-religious-holiday-displays-should-be-allowed-on-public-property\/\">said this in 2014<\/a>; 75% believe he was laid in a manger, down from 81%. Similarly, the shares who say they believe that wise men, guided by a star, brought Jesus gifts \u2014 and that an angel appeared to shepherds to announce the birth of Jesus \u2014 also have declined. A slim majority of U.S. adults (57%) believe that all four of these things actually happened, down from 65% three years ago. Belief in these events has declined not only among people with no religious affiliation, but\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2017\/12\/12\/americans-say-religious-aspects-of-christmas-are-declining-in-public-life\/#religious-nones-explain-much-but-not-all-of-decline-in-belief-in-christmas-story\">among Christians as well<\/a>. Overall, about one-in-five Americans (19%) now say\u00a0<em>none<\/em>\u00a0of these things actually happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Note: This is an update of a post originally published on Dec. 21, 2015.&nbsp;<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Read five facts about Christmas in America and how people celebrate the holiday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":165,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"sub_headline":"","sub_title":"","_crdt_document":"","_prc_public_revisions":[],"_ppp_expiration_hours":0,"_ppp_enabled":false,"ai_generated_summary":"","apple_news_api_created_at":"2022-12-21T16:36:43Z","apple_news_api_id":"71c2e344-0eb2-48d5-8fa8-9c4df28764f7","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2022-12-21T16:36:43Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAD\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/w==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/AccLjRA6ySNWPqJxN8odk9w","apple_news_cover_media_provider":"image","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_cover_video_id":0,"apple_news_cover_video_url":"","apple_news_cover_embedwebvideo_url":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"relatedPosts":[],"_prc_fork_parent":0,"_prc_fork_status":"","_prc_active_fork":0,"datacite_doi":"","datacite_doi_citation":"","_prc_seo_qr_attachment_id":0,"spoken_article_player_enabled":true,"bylines":[{"key":"27687b16-5dc4-4afc-8046-5e03ab520a8b","termId":854},{"key":"1f3c24d0-d7e8-452a-8976-d58dd4dda5be","termId":930}],"acknowledgements":[],"displayBylines":true,"footnotes":"","prc_watchers":[]},"categories":[161,179,453,169,172,447],"bylines":[930,854],"collection":[],"datasets":[],"_post_visibility":[],"formats":[467],"_fund_pool":[],"languages":[],"regions-countries":[515],"research-teams":[517],"workflow-status":[],"class_list":["post-11540","short-read","type-short-read","status-publish","hentry","category-beliefs-practices","category-christianity","category-leisure","category-non-religion-secularism","category-religion-politics-1","category-religion-politics-3","bylines-david-masci","bylines-michael-lipka","formats-short-read","regions-countries-united-states","research-teams-religion"],"label":"Short 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