If you’re ever in Britain around Christmas time, you’ll find pictures of robin red breasts adorning Christmas cards, ornaments, stamps, chocolate boxes, shop windows and Christmas wrapping paper. Their images can even be found decorating Christmas cakes. How did the humble European robin become the Christmas robin?

Why Robins are on Christmas cards

Although robin folklore existed for many years, the robin became far more widely associated with Christmas after it was depicted on Christmas cards in 19th century England; a tradition that has been retained to this day. (1)

Why are robins on Christmas cards? It’s all inspired by the robins who used to deliver the Christmas cards in 19th century Britain.

In the 1800s, British postmen wore bright red uniforms. They wore red in honor of the crown since red is considered both a Royal color and an important color on the English flag. (Incidentally, this may also be one of the reasons why British post boxes were eventually standardized to be red). The postmen in their red-breasted coats resembled the much-loved British bird, the robin red-breast, earning Victorian postmen the nick-name: Robins.

Around Christmas time, people would eagerly await the Robins’ delivery of Christmas cards from near and far. Some greeting card artists were inspired by this to illustrate their cards with the joyous delivery of letters, and instead of drawing a postman, one artist decided to draw the Robins’ namesake, the robin birds, delivering letters in their little beaks. The trend caught on and survives to this day despite the fact that the postmen’s red coat uniforms and the postmen’s Robin nickname have long been retired to the history books.

Robin Folklore

Aside from the postman-robin association explaining the robin’s presence on Christmas cards, the robins already had a rich association with Christmas because various folklore stories exist surrounding the Christmas robin. Below are three of the most popular Christian tales of robin folklore regarding how the robin got its red breast:

1.) The kind-hearted Robin who got its red breast tending to baby Jesus’s fire

One tale from robin folklore is that when Mary was giving birth to Jesus, the fire that was burning to keep the stable warm and comfortable was about to go out. Just as Mary was starting to worry about the chill of the night descending upon her and her newborn, a tiny brown bird alighted by the fire, singing and flapping its little wings. The flapping made the embers glow brightly, re-igniting the fire. In some versions of this tale, the little bird also brought small twigs in its beak to help feed the fire.

As the robin flew around, tending to the fire, the flames crackled and snapped, and a stray red-hot ember flew from the hearth, landing on the brown bird’s breast, making it glow bright red. When Mary saw all this, she declared that the red breast was a sign of the bird’s kind heart and that the bird and all its descendants would wear a red breast proudly for evermore. (2)

2.) The robin who got its red breast trying to help Christ at the crucifixion

Another story about how the robin got its red breast is based on Christ’s crucifixion. The story goes that as Christ was dying on the cross a little brown bird flew beside him, trying to comfort him with its song. The bird clamped its little beak on Jesus’ thorny crown, trying to remove it, and although the bird was not strong enough, in its passionate attempts pulling on the thorns, a little bit of Christ’s blood stained the bird’s breast red. (3)

3.) The robin who got its red breast when giving water to souls in Purgatory

A less popular bit of robin folklore tells of the robin who was kind enough to fetch water for the souls in Purgatory or hell. As it flew in this fiery place, its breast was accidentally scorched, giving the robin its red breast. (1)

Today the robin is considered by some to be Britain’s favorite bird. (4) With the existence of so many positive tales about the robin red breast in folklore and also in everyday life with its cheerful song and its role in keeping gardeners company, it is easy to understand why the robins were well-liked enough to be retained as decorations for Christmas cards and decorations well after their original meaning was forgotten. Well… forgotten until now!

References
(1) de Vries, A. 2004. Elsevier’s Dictionary of Symbols and Imagery. Emerald Group Publishing.
(2) Egan L.B. 1988. A Christmas Stocking: A Child’s Treasury for the Festive Season. Simon & Schuster Ltd
(3) Cooper J.C. 1992. Symbolic and Mythological Animals. Harpercollins
(4) British Bird Lovers website

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Have you ever wondered how a circled straight line intersected by an upside down V-shape became a peace symbol? Here’s a look at the peace sign origins:

History of the Peace Sign:

The peace symbol came into existence in 1958, but at this time it didn’t stand for peace; it was a British-derived symbol representing the anti-nuclear movement; a movement which rallied together against British testing of nuclear weapons.

Between 1956 and 1958 Britain was experimenting with hydrogen bombs to develop nuclear weapons for the country’s security. Many people were against nuclear weapons for many reasons similar to the ones people in the anti-nuclear movement have today, including:

• Threat to lives everywhere:
  - Nuclear weapons have a lot of killing power, and even if used in “legitimate” self-defence it has the potential for killing a lot of innocent people and other species.
  - If nuclear weapons get into the wrong hands, the situation could be catastrophic.
• Health side effects of nuclear testing: Radiation exposure from uranium mining and nuclear testing leads to health problems like cancer (although it would not really make us glow luminescent green, in spite of what many people believe based on some cartoons and Hollywood films).
• Nuclear weapon development is a waste of resources: It is costly and wastes money that could be better spent developing things to improve the country’s quality of life rather than developing weapons that hopefully will never be used.
• Creates dangerous waste matter: Safe storage of radioactive nuclear waste is a costly problem.

One group that was against the 1956-1958 nuclear tests was an organization called “Direct Action Committee Against Nuclear War”, an early precursor of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (the CND), that exists today. In 1958 the London-centered anti-nuclear war groups had been organising their first major anti-nuclear protest, and when artist Gerald Holtom showed his sketches for a nuclear disarmament symbol, the march organizers agreed it was a great visual aid to their cause, giving a memorable symbol to remind people what they stood for.

The symbol Holtrom designed represented the letters N D (standing for Nuclear Disarmament), in the Semaphore arm-signalling language used by the Navy at sea, where much of the nuclear tests were taking place.

In Semaphore, N is formed by placing the arms on either side of the body in an upside-down V-shape, and D is formed by placing one arm up and the other down, forming a straight line. Holtrom merged these two Semaphore letters, adding a circle around it, thus giving rise to the famous “peace” symbol.

Holtrom later revealed that part of his inspiration for the symbol was picturing a figure with its arms held in despair. Holtrom said he was representing his own feelings of despair, some of which may have been connected to the imagined pain that could result from nuclear weaponry.

After it was publicized on banners and buttons in the London anti-nuclear weapons protest in 1958, more and more people began associating the cause with Holtrom’s symbol.

Anti-nuclear enthusiasts like Albert Bigelow spread the symbol to the newspapers when, as an act of protest, he sailed into nuclear testing waters in a boat fitted with the Nuclear Disarmament symbol.

How the Nuclear Disarmament became the Peace Symbol

One American university student called Philip Altbach, an active member of the Student Peace Union at the University of Chicago, had spent time in the UK working with peace and anti-war groups like the anti-nuclear war organizations. He took a liking to Holtrom’s symbol. In 1960 Philip had a heap of the Nuclear Disarmament buttons shipped over to the United States, after talking the Student Peace Union into adopting the symbol. This was the turning point of the sign into representing a wider “peace” message.

Philip and the Student Peace Union sold their peace buttons on college campuses throughout the early 1960s, right during the hippie era where peace promotion was everywhere, encouraging “peace” buttons to sell like hot cakes.

Through other similar routes, various humanitarians took up the “peace symbol” in their civil rights marches too, and celebrities who campaigned for peace further publicized the peace symbol.

By the end of the 1960s, Holtrom’s Nuclear Disarmament symbol had become known as “the peace symbol”.

Little note…

After seeing his symbol spread in popularity throughout the world, and gain a new meaning of “Peace”, Holtrom is said to have regretted his original inspiration for the symbol arising from a negative place, being based on an image of a man with his arms reaching out in despair. He remarked that in hindsight he would have preferred to draw the symbol upside down, representing a person with his arms raised in celebration of joyful peace. Holtrom tried to campaign to have the symbol inverted to reflect this image of joy but sadly his wishes were not heeded. Holtrom, this one’s for you:

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Anchor tattoos are one of the oldest tattoo designs in the West and they are still popular today. Why do people get anchor tattoos? What does the anchor symbol mean?

1. People used an anchor as a symbol of their Christianity

In early Christianity, Christians were persecuted by the ruling Romans. To identify themselves as Christians to one another and simultaneously lie low from anti-Christian threats, they used secret symbols like the anchor, which was chosen for its resemblance to a cross. The anchor’s nature of strongly holding ships steady even in stormy weather strengthened the analogy of the anchor to religion.

The religious use of the anchor was used to decorate Christian buildings to mark them as safe houses for fellow Christians seeking refuge. Anchor symbols can still be seen to be decorating some ancient buildings and Christian catacombs to this day.

Used in this religious way, the anchor is called the “Crux Dissimulata” which means the “dissimilar cross” or the “disguised cross” in Latin.

After the adoption of the anchor symbol by the Christians, meaning was given to the various parts of the anchor: The curved base of the anchor was deemed to be symbolic of Mary and the cross that rises from it is like Christ being born from her.

2. Seafarers used anchor tattoos to demonstrate their affinity with the sea

For centuries, sea-faring sailors and other mariners expressed a penchant for the anchor symbol, and it was an extremely popular tattoo in this community.

The nautical nature of the anchor symbol makes it clear why it was chosen by the sea-faring community. Why the anchor was chosen above other parts of the ship is likely for similar reasons that the Christians liked the symbol: For its connection with strength and stability, and also because it marked the successful, safe end of a voyage. In fact, a tradition arose where the anchor tattoo was used to celebrate a sailor’s first successful voyage across the Atlantic Ocean, and it was proudly exhibited as a sign of an experienced sailor.

Later, members of the US Navy carried on the “Atlantic Ocean crossing” anchor tattoo tradition. In our day, some marines, coastguards, fishermen and other sea-faring folk have adopted the long-held fondness for the anchor tattoo. It is even sported by cartoon sailor, Popeye!

For some, the anchor tattoo can be used to commemorate the end of a sailor’s career as he sets his anchor down for the last time.

3. People who have an indirect connection with the sea may also choose an anchor tattoo

People who have friends or family with nautical connections, may decide to get an anchor tattoo because it reminds them of their loved one. In families where a partner, a child or parent was a sailor, the sea-faring tradition can become deeply rooted in the family even if they don’t sail themselves.

People who simply have a love for the sea may also choose to sport the anchor tattoo.

4. The anchor as a symbol for stability

Even if you’re a land-lubber through and through, you may choose to get an anchor tattoo as a symbol of stability, security and groundedness.

Occasions where stability may be commemorated include:

• Acknowledging the secure support from loved ones, be it family, friends or a loving partner. Like being called their rock, they are called their anchor in stormy seas, offering a strong stability in their lives and helping to keep them in balance.
• On a similar note, the anchor may represent a person’s appreciation for having a safe port to come home to. This may be particularly meaningful for people who travel a lot in their work lives. Singer and actress Miley Cyrus says that its symbolic meaning for her gratitude for having a safe port is the main reason behind her anchor tattoo.
• For people who have had a tumultuous, unstable past, having an anchor tattoo can be a reminder for them to strive to maintain a more peaceful present and future. It could be a pledge to be faithful, loyal and a promise to be there for someone, no matter what happened in the past.
• Reminding them to stay down to Earth, which is especially an issue for people who are highly revered and in the public eye.

5. The anchor as a symbol for holding strongly to your principles

People who hold on to their values and principles no matter what may choose to exemplify this part of their personality with an anchor tattoo.

The anchor may be used by people who have become in tune with “who they are” after a long period of feeling they didn’t really know.

The anchor tattoo also became well-liked in the homosexual community to honor how they remain true to themselves even during hard times of intolerance from others.

6. A broken anchor may represent letting go of old inhibiting ways

Since an anchor represents the unchanging, for some it can be a symbol of problems and stuck situations that they are unable to move on from. Choosing a broken or cracked anchor tattoo can be a celebration of finally succeeding to let go of something, and moving forward.

7. It just looks good!

Some people decide on an anchor tattoo for no other reason than the simple: “Because I like the way it looks.”

Famous People with Anchor Tattoos:

• Popeye ( )
• Winston Churchill
• Kate Moss
• Miley Cyrus
• Kelly Osbourne

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