Christmas lights in Zurich, 1958. (Jules Vogt/Photopress-Archiv)
Jules Vogt/Photopress-Archiv
Christmas tree in the control room of a nuclear power plant near Zurich, 1970. (Jules Vogt/ETH-Bibliothek)
ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, Bildarchiv / Fotograf: Vogt, Jules / Com_L20-0243-0111 / CC BY-SA 4.0
A Christmas celebration at a petrol station near Bern, 1952. (Keystone)
Keystone
A family Christmas within the walls of one of Switzerland's most iconic buildings - the Munot tower. The Munot watchperson still lives in the flat on top of the tower with his family, performing the symbolic function of looking out for the ship traffic on the Rhine. 24. Dezember 1958 (Jules Vogt/Photopress-Archiv).
Jules Vogt/Photopress-Archiv
A military Christmas in the 10th batallion near Bern, 1914. (Jules Decrauzat/Photopress-Archiv)
Jules Decrauzat/Photopress-Archiv
A forest Christmas near Baden in 1958.
Candid Lang/RDB
Swissair flight attendant offering Christmas cookies to passengers on a festively decorated plane. Zürich, 1975. (ETH-Bibliothek)
ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, Bildarchiv / Fotograf: Comet Photo AG (Zürich) / Com_LC0738-009-002-001 / CC BY-SA 4.0
Bernese school children singing Christmas carols in support of a Red Cross children in need campaign. Bern, 1948. (Keystone)
Keystone
Christmas shopping in Zürich, 1977. (ETH-library)
ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, Bildarchiv / Fotograf: Comet Photo AG (Zürich) / Com_LC1000-002-000-004 / CC BY-SA 4.0
Christmas in Basel by the Rhine port, 1960. (ETH-library)
ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, Bildarchiv / Fotograf: Comet Photo AG (Zürich) / Com_C09-190-005 / CC BY-SA 4.0
Changing the Christmas light bulbs in Zürich, 1962. (ETH-library)
ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, Bildarchiv / Fotograf: Comet Photo AG (Zürich) / Com_L11-0355-0002-0003 / CC BY-SA 4.0
Members of the action committee "Christmas 1968" are raising awareness for world hunger in front of the Bern Minster. Bern, 1968. (Joel Widmer/Photopress-Archiv)
Joel Widmer/Photopress-Archiv
Young men celebrating Christmas in a youth correctional facility near Aarau in 1944. (Keystone)
Keystone
Rural post office in the Bernese Alps, 1951. (Margrit Bäumlin/Photopress Archiv)
Margrit Bäumlin/Photopress Archiv
Bahnhofstrasse Zürich, 1990. (ETH-Bibliothek)
ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, Bildarchiv / Fotograf: Comet Photo AG (Zürich) / Com_LC1000-001-004 / CC BY-SA 4.0
Colourful Christmas trees, dressed up shop windows, illuminated streets, carols and the smell of cookies are traditions that encapsulate the spirit of the festive season for many of us. It is hard to imagine now, but what we regard as the festival of family and love hasn’t always been celebrated in this way.
The Christmas we celebrate is in fact an eclectic mix of traditions and customs of Germanic and Christian origin which have evolved over many years. Many of them, like the Christmas tree, have only been around since the beginning of the 19th Century. (The tree is thought to have been introduced by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and proved so popular that the tradition spread around the world.)
Switzerland shares many of its Christmas traditions with its Central European neighbours. Church services, presents, baking cookies and decorating the tree all play a central part in the celebrations. On Christmas Eve, there is a festive family meal and many people visit a midnight church service, although the Christian origins of the festival are no longer important to every family.
In our series #swisshistorypics, we take a look back in time with pictures of Christmas celebration from the last 80 years.
Adapted from the German by Laura Németh, swissinfo.ch
Adapted from the German by Laura Németh
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
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You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.