Christmas HARD Quiz

Christmas HARD Quiz

As if Friday's Christmas quiz wasn't hard enough for some ...here is a version of HARD Quiz for those who perhaps might be surprised at the answers
 
1. Xmas is a modern trendy abbreviation for Christmas for lazy folk who can't spell. True or False?
 
False 
 
The term "Xmas" dates back to the 1500s
 
a church with a large christmas tree outside lit up at night
DIEGOGRANDIGETTY IMAGES

Contrary to popular belief, "Xmas" is not a trendy attempt to take Christ out of Christmas. "Christianity" was spelled "Xianity" as far back as 1100. X, or Chi, is the Greek first letter of "Christ" and served as a symbolic stand-in at the time. In 1551, the holiday was commonly called "Xtemmas," which was later shortened to "Xmas."

2. Who sent the first Christmas cards ...

a. President Herbert Hoover

b. Henry VIII

c. Queen Victoria 

d. The pope

Queen Victoria was the first official person to send a Christmas card, but the first commercial card came in 1843 when Sir Henry Cole produced 1000 and sold them for one shilling each. There are currently only 12 of these cards left in the world with one going up for auction a couple of years ago for £30,000.

3. The genus name for mistletoe is Viscum album which in English means

a. White Berry

b. Glossy holly

c. Dung on a twig

d. True bush

Mistletoe, or as it is more well-known Viscum album (kidding), means “dung on a twig” in the Anglo-Saxon. According to the National Wildlife Federation, it spreads through bird droppings. Think about that during your next kiss.

4. The first song played in space was...

a. Happy Birthday

b. Jingle Bells

c. Rocket Man

d. Homeward Bound

On the 16 December 1965, the song 'Jingle Bells' made history by becoming the first song to be played in space during NASA’s Gemini 6A space flight. At-least… we think it was the first…maybe Santa sang to Rudolph on his trips??