Mistletoe and Kissing Balls (snigger)

My favourite fact about Mistletoe is that the name derives from the old English tān, meaning ‘twig’ and the Germanic base mix, which means ‘dung’. So it literally means 'shitty twig’. The Oxford English Dictionary suggests this may be because ‘the plant is propagated in the excrement of birds’. 

Almost everyone associates Mistletoe (Viscum album) with Christmas and cheeky kisses. However, that's a fairly modern tradition and only came about when the Christian church absorbed many pre-existing traditions and practices. Our relationship with the plant goes back much, much further ...

It was a hugely important plant, associated with fertility and healing by the Celts, the Norse peoples and the Anglo Saxons. Because Mistletoe grows on tree branches without being connected to the earth, the belief was that the plant was magical and sustained by the Gods. Any tree that hosted the plant was held as sacred. 

If the ancients found it growing on an oak, their most revered and holy tree, it was seen as being of particular significance. The belief was that the plant would absorb the host tree’s essence, which is sort of accurate, as Mistletoe is actually a parasite. 

In this situation, Mistletoe was harvested in accordance with strict ceremony. The event took place on the sixth night of the new moon after the Winter Solstice and the plant was treated with incredible reverence and care. The Mistletoe was cut using a golden sickle and a cloth was held below the tree by other members of the order to catch it - the plant was never allowed to touch the ground. The Druid would then divide the branches into many sprigs and distribute them to the people who hung them over doorways as protection against thunder, lightning and other evils. It was considered to be so magical that valuable livestock were sacrificed to the sun god, to thank him for the gift - although slaughter was common around this time to ensure meat for the Winter and because feeding livestock in the colder months was expensive. 

For centuries it was known as 'All-Heal' because its leaves and berries were used not only to provide protection from evil, but to strengthen the body against poisons and 'ill humours'. This is somewhat odd as the berries are poisonous to humans. However, birds find them very tasty - especially the Mistle Thrush, which takes its name from this very reason. The berries are quite sticky and adhere to their beaks. Therefore, when they try to get them off by rubbing against trees branches, the seed is spread and a new host is found. 

 

Mistletoe is mostly found on apple trees but it will grow on many other species. I spotted these clusters recently in nearby High Wycombe (I was a passenger in a car at the time).

And, while out walking last month, I found a fairly established Mistletoe growing off a wild Dog Rose. Most of the berries were still green at the time but I revisited the site a few days ago and all of the berries are now white. 

 

Decorating the house with evergreens like Holly (see here), Ivy (here) and Mistletoe is a Winter tradition of long-standing. Some of the plants have a significance of their own (such as the mistletoe being associated with love), but overall, evergreen plants were thought to bring good luck as they remain green through the cold months, carrying the spirit of Spring and Summer. It is interesting to note that Mistletoe was excluded from church decorations, probably due to its pagan and magical associations. This ancient ban on mistletoe is still widely observed even today. 

And yet, Mistletoe was seen as a plant of peace and love. There are all sorts of theories about why we kiss under the Mistletoe but one is that, if enemies met by chance under a tree with Mistletoe on it, they would lay down their arms and maintain a truce until the next day. A second theory links the practice to Anglo-Saxon legend and to Freya, goddess of love, beauty and fertility. If a couple in love exchanged a kiss under the Mistletoe, it was interpreted as a promise to marry, as well as a prediction of happiness and long life. 

By Tudor times, there was a  tradition of hanging a 'Kissing Bough' - a sphere made from various types of evergreen including Mistletoe - over the doorway to greet guests. But then the Victorians took things up a level with their 'Kissing Balls', many of which were incredibly elaborate. And the parties they held under them were often a bit saucy. Both the gentry and paupers alike used the tradition to go a little further than an innocent kiss and 'gambols' were commonplace.

And so were Summer children.

As a footnote I have to include a few images I stumbled across online for Christmas-themed novelty goods. Do people really not know the difference between Mistletoe and Holly?

I strongly suspect that some of these items are made in the Far East where they're still getting the hang of the Western Christmas tradition. As you probably know, for some unknown reason, Christmas Day for the Japanese means eating out at a KFC. Do they think that Colonel Sanders is Santa? 

And there is a story - most likely urban myth - that at the turn of the Millennium, a Japanese retail outlet had a window display depicting Santa nailed to a cross.

Ah, the dangers of trying to assimilate the traditions and beliefs of other cultures without fully understanding them ...