1 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:07,080 Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff from how Stuff Works, Hey, brain Stuff, 2 00:00:07,120 --> 00:00:10,160 Speaker 1: I'm Lauren vogel Bomb. And during the Christmas season, Polly 3 00:00:10,200 --> 00:00:13,480 Speaker 1: adorn's houses all over the world. The prickly green plant 4 00:00:13,520 --> 00:00:16,320 Speaker 1: in its red berries, whether real or crafted from plastic, 5 00:00:16,560 --> 00:00:19,000 Speaker 1: are popular ornament for anyone wanting to make their space 6 00:00:19,040 --> 00:00:22,120 Speaker 1: a little more festive. But where did this tradition begin? 7 00:00:22,640 --> 00:00:24,520 Speaker 1: Why do we deck our halls with bows of holly 8 00:00:24,600 --> 00:00:28,320 Speaker 1: every December? What does holly represent in the celebration of Christmas? 9 00:00:29,280 --> 00:00:32,040 Speaker 1: Despite its association with the Christmas season, holly did not 10 00:00:32,120 --> 00:00:35,000 Speaker 1: get its name from holy. The name of the plant 11 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:38,120 Speaker 1: is very similar across both Germanic and Latin languages, and 12 00:00:38,159 --> 00:00:41,840 Speaker 1: its origin is probably the Proto Indo European root word kell, 13 00:00:42,200 --> 00:00:46,280 Speaker 1: which appropriately means prickly or to prick, Proto Indo European 14 00:00:46,360 --> 00:00:49,639 Speaker 1: being the ancient based language of all Indo European languages. 15 00:00:50,560 --> 00:00:53,280 Speaker 1: Even in ancient times, people took advantage of the sharp 16 00:00:53,400 --> 00:00:56,280 Speaker 1: ends of holly's leaves. Druids hung it on windows and 17 00:00:56,360 --> 00:00:59,880 Speaker 1: doorways to fend off evil, which is in spirits. Before 18 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:02,640 Speaker 1: holly was hung in houses to accompany Christmas trees, it 19 00:01:02,720 --> 00:01:05,120 Speaker 1: was considered to be a sacred plant by the Druids. 20 00:01:05,440 --> 00:01:08,440 Speaker 1: While other plants wilted in winter weather, holly remained green 21 00:01:08,480 --> 00:01:10,880 Speaker 1: and strong, its berries of brightly colored red and the 22 00:01:10,880 --> 00:01:14,679 Speaker 1: harshest of conditions. The Druids regarded holly as a symbol 23 00:01:14,680 --> 00:01:17,840 Speaker 1: of fertility and eternal life, thought to have magical powers. 24 00:01:18,360 --> 00:01:21,039 Speaker 1: In Dreadic lore, cutting down a holly tree would bring 25 00:01:21,080 --> 00:01:24,200 Speaker 1: bad luck. In contrast, hanging the plant in homes was 26 00:01:24,200 --> 00:01:27,360 Speaker 1: believed to bring good luck and protection. Holly was also 27 00:01:27,400 --> 00:01:31,119 Speaker 1: thought to protect homes against lightning strikes. Romans associated holly 28 00:01:31,200 --> 00:01:34,080 Speaker 1: was Saturn, the god of agriculture and harvest, and decked 29 00:01:34,120 --> 00:01:37,199 Speaker 1: the halls with its bows during the festival of Saturnalia. 30 00:01:37,440 --> 00:01:41,639 Speaker 1: Early Christian calendars mark Christmas Eve as template exhorditor, meaning 31 00:01:41,720 --> 00:01:45,600 Speaker 1: churches are decked, though supposedly Saturnalias celebrators didn't allow some 32 00:01:45,720 --> 00:01:48,840 Speaker 1: Christians to hang bows in honor of Christmas A. Christians 33 00:01:48,840 --> 00:01:52,320 Speaker 1: adopted the holly tradition from Druid, Celtic and Roman traditions, 34 00:01:52,520 --> 00:01:56,880 Speaker 1: and its symbolism changed to reflect Christian beliefs. Today, Christians 35 00:01:56,880 --> 00:01:59,800 Speaker 1: may consider holly symbolic of Jesus Christ in two ways. 36 00:02:00,280 --> 00:02:02,480 Speaker 1: The red berries represent the blood that Jesus shed on 37 00:02:02,520 --> 00:02:05,440 Speaker 1: the cross on the day he was crucified. Legend states 38 00:02:05,440 --> 00:02:08,040 Speaker 1: that holly berries were originally white, but that the blood 39 00:02:08,080 --> 00:02:10,760 Speaker 1: Christ shed for the sins of humankind stained the berries 40 00:02:10,800 --> 00:02:14,960 Speaker 1: forever read. Holly's pointed leaves symbolized the crown of Thorn's 41 00:02:14,960 --> 00:02:17,320 Speaker 1: placed on Jesus's head before he died on that cross. 42 00:02:18,639 --> 00:02:22,079 Speaker 1: Holly is known as Christ's thorn in German meaning christ thorn. 43 00:02:22,840 --> 00:02:24,640 Speaker 1: Both of these symbols are meant to serve as a 44 00:02:24,680 --> 00:02:27,720 Speaker 1: reminder to Christians of Jesus suffering, but they aren't the 45 00:02:27,760 --> 00:02:31,359 Speaker 1: only stories tying Holly to Jesus. One claims that the 46 00:02:31,400 --> 00:02:34,400 Speaker 1: cross on which Jesus was crucified was constructed of hollywood. 47 00:02:34,840 --> 00:02:38,480 Speaker 1: Another says that Holly sprang up from his footsteps. Less 48 00:02:38,480 --> 00:02:42,360 Speaker 1: common symbolism includes the holly's white blossoms representing purity, and 49 00:02:42,400 --> 00:02:44,520 Speaker 1: the idea that if the holly used decorade a home 50 00:02:44,520 --> 00:02:47,120 Speaker 1: for Christmas prickly, the man of the house will rule 51 00:02:47,160 --> 00:02:49,560 Speaker 1: for the coming year, but if the holly used is smooth, 52 00:02:49,639 --> 00:02:53,280 Speaker 1: the woman will rule. Traditionally, holly has been associated specifically 53 00:02:53,320 --> 00:02:55,400 Speaker 1: with men, for whom it was considered to bring good 54 00:02:55,480 --> 00:02:59,560 Speaker 1: luck and protection. The female counterpart to holly being ivy. 55 00:03:00,200 --> 00:03:02,640 Speaker 1: But let's take a closer look at the science behind 56 00:03:02,720 --> 00:03:07,600 Speaker 1: this legendary plant. Holly botanical name elux aquifolium is a 57 00:03:07,639 --> 00:03:11,080 Speaker 1: shrub or tree found primarily in North America, Europe, and Asia, 58 00:03:11,600 --> 00:03:14,280 Speaker 1: with hundreds of species of the plant, ranging from short 59 00:03:14,320 --> 00:03:17,160 Speaker 1: shrubs two meters high or about six feet, to tall 60 00:03:17,200 --> 00:03:19,480 Speaker 1: trees up to forty meters high or about a hundred 61 00:03:19,480 --> 00:03:22,480 Speaker 1: and thirty feet. It's known primarily for its bright crimson 62 00:03:22,520 --> 00:03:26,919 Speaker 1: berries and prickly green leaves. Hollies can be evergreen, meaning 63 00:03:26,919 --> 00:03:29,200 Speaker 1: the plant's glossy leaves are on the tree year round, 64 00:03:29,480 --> 00:03:32,720 Speaker 1: or deciduous meaning the leaves fall off seasonally. White flowers 65 00:03:32,720 --> 00:03:35,200 Speaker 1: bloom in May or June, and with help from insects 66 00:03:35,240 --> 00:03:40,600 Speaker 1: like bees, the female flowers produce those characteristic berries. Like 67 00:03:40,680 --> 00:03:44,520 Speaker 1: its holiday companion mistletoe, Holly's berries are toxic to humans, 68 00:03:44,560 --> 00:03:48,000 Speaker 1: resulting in nausea and severe stomach aches when ingested. Not 69 00:03:48,040 --> 00:03:51,080 Speaker 1: so for some animals, though. Berries are a vital source 70 00:03:51,120 --> 00:03:54,800 Speaker 1: of food for birds such as thrushes and blackbirds. Although 71 00:03:54,840 --> 00:03:57,400 Speaker 1: the scarlet berries are famously prominent in homes for the 72 00:03:57,400 --> 00:04:00,200 Speaker 1: holiday season, they're not the only useful part of hollyse 73 00:04:00,640 --> 00:04:02,920 Speaker 1: The berries are poisonous, but the green leaves have been 74 00:04:03,040 --> 00:04:06,200 Speaker 1: used in herbal remedies for centuries for various medical conditions 75 00:04:06,240 --> 00:04:10,400 Speaker 1: like dizziness, fever, and hypertension, though there's currently little medical 76 00:04:10,400 --> 00:04:14,400 Speaker 1: proof of the plan's effectiveness. Also, Hollywood is hard and compact, 77 00:04:14,520 --> 00:04:17,240 Speaker 1: making it excellent for carving. It's sometimes used to make 78 00:04:17,320 --> 00:04:20,560 Speaker 1: chess pieces and walking sticks. If you have a passion 79 00:04:20,560 --> 00:04:22,680 Speaker 1: for holly three and sixty five days of the year. 80 00:04:23,080 --> 00:04:26,080 Speaker 1: The mission of the New Jersey based Holly Society of 81 00:04:26,080 --> 00:04:29,680 Speaker 1: America is to stimulate interest, to promote research, and collect 82 00:04:29,680 --> 00:04:33,720 Speaker 1: and disseminate information about the genus Lex. Members can join 83 00:04:33,720 --> 00:04:35,880 Speaker 1: a local chapter, find out where to get the best 84 00:04:35,960 --> 00:04:38,680 Speaker 1: Christmas holly, and gaze upon the Holly of the year, 85 00:04:38,800 --> 00:04:41,360 Speaker 1: as voted on by the h A Board of Trustees. 86 00:04:46,560 --> 00:04:49,240 Speaker 1: Today's episode was written by Sam Abramson and produced by 87 00:04:49,240 --> 00:04:51,400 Speaker 1: Tyler Clang. For more on this and lots of other 88 00:04:51,440 --> 00:05:05,719 Speaker 1: festive topics, visit our home planet, how Stuff Works dot com.