Here at That’s Christmas 365, we celebrate Christmas all year round, not just as a religious festival, but as a deeply rooted part of British culture, community life, and shared tradition.
Which is why a growing trend has caught our attention: the quiet replacement of Christmas with the far vaguer phrase holiday season.
Walk through a British high street in December and you will still see Christmas trees, crackers, baubles and mince pies.
Yet increasingly, the words around them feel oddly non-committal. Holiday offers. Seasonal greetings. Festive period savings.
So what’s going on, and why does it feel so jarring in a UK context?
Christmas Is More Than a Date in the Diary
In the UK, Christmas is not just a single day or a narrow religious observance. It shapes our national calendar. Schools break up for Christmas. Parliament adjourns for Christmas. Entire industries, from transport to broadcasting, work around Christmas as a fixed cultural anchor point.
Even for those who don't celebrate Christmas personally or religiously, it remains a shared reference. It is woven into family routines, public life, and the national rhythm of winter.
Calling all of this the holiday season feels oddly detached, as though something with meaning has been replaced by something generic.
Inclusion Doesn’t Have to Mean Disappearance
Britain is proudly diverse, and many people celebrate festivals other than Christmas during the winter months. That diversity is a strength, and one that has long been recognised without difficulty.
We already acknowledge Diwali, Hanukkah, Eid and other celebrations openly and respectfully, without renaming them or blending them into a single catch-all phrase. Inclusion has never required the removal of Christmas from our vocabulary.
There is a difference between making space for everyone and quietly stepping away from naming Christmas at all.
A Marketing Import That Doesn’t Quite Fit
The phrase holiday season feels increasingly imported, rather than home-grown. It is far more common in North American usage, where “holiday” covers a range of celebrations clustered together.
In the UK, however, we traditionally talk about holidays in the summer, and Christmas in December. When global brands adopt one-size-fits-all language, it can flatten cultural differences and leave British traditions feeling oddly diluted.
Why Language Matters at Christmas
Language shapes how we experience tradition. When Christmas becomes a “seasonal event” rather than Christmas itself, it loses some of its character and warmth.
Christmas markets become winter markets. Christmas concerts become festive showcases. Christmas messages become generic greetings.
Each change is small, but together they create a sense that something familiar is being quietly nudged aside rather than openly discussed.
Confidence in Our Traditions
Questioning this shift is not about insisting everyone must celebrate Christmas in the same way. It is about being confident enough in our culture to name it honestly.
Christmas has always existed alongside other traditions. It has never needed to be hidden, softened, or rebranded to make room for others.
At That’s Christmas 365, we believe it is possible, and healthy, to celebrate Christmas openly while respecting the many different ways people mark the winter season.
When We Mean Christmas, Let’s Say Christmas!
Not everything needs to be endlessly reworded or rebranded. When we are talking about Christmas, perhaps the simplest and most respectful approach is to call it exactly that.
Christmas is not exclusionary. It is part of Britain’s cultural fabric.
And for many people across the UK, whether they celebrate quietly, enthusiastically, traditionally, or simply enjoy the atmosphere, Christmas is still Christmas.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments are welcome!