On the seventh day of my Christmas Holidays my employer gave to me…seven Yule logs burning in an open fire.

Dating back to at least the medieval ages – the tradition of the “Yule Log” involves a specially chosen log (off times a whole tree) being placed in the family hearth; to feed the fire throughout “The 12 Days of Christmas”. (But more about that later.)

Afterwards the remains of the log would be placed under the bed for luck and protection against threats of lightning and fire itself. Some people even believed that by counting the sparks off the log, they could read their future.

Some say the tradition is Nordic in origin; and indeed “Yule” was a winter festival celebrated in Scandinavia, and many other parts of Northern Europe, in particular Germany and England.

The first written mention of the practice dates back to 1648, where it is referred to as a “Christmas Log” in a poetry collection by Robert Herrick.

As for my myself I was always more familiar with the term in regards to Chocolate Yule Logs.

We had the most delicious vegan log one year. You never know, might have one this year as well.

As usual if I’ve gotten anything wrong, please mention it down below in the comments. It’s why I have them.

If you’ve enjoyed this Christmas Folklore / tradition titbit, why not Follow the Wee blog if you haven’t already. And remember to check me out on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Goodreads, Tumblr, TikTok, Kofi and Facebook. Until Next time Wee Readers, have a very bonny day and a very merry Holiday season. Remember to sign up to the Wee Mailing List to receive the final days of the Blog series.