IT HAS often been questioned as to why Scots celebrate Hogmanay rather than Christmas.

The answer is Christmas was banned for a time and frowned upon by the Scottish Presbyterian church for over 400 years.

It was not until the middle of the 20th century Christmas celebrations returned to the calendar.

In olden times the Picts in Clackmannanshire celebrated the winter solstice, the longest night of the year, with a log on which they carved the face of an old woman. As it burned, it was supposed to rid them of bad luck.

They also introduced the lighting of candles which were placed at their windows.

In later years, the pagans and druids of the county continued this winter celebration. It was also the time when they asked their ancient gods to return the Sun to them.

They used to scour the countryside for greenery and took it into their homes and this is where trees and decorations began. They would bring in an evergreen, which symbolised life, and decorate it with shapes.

Mistletoe, taken from the oak tree, was believed to bring fertility, and may be where kissing under the mistletoe hails from.

They built a fire in their homes and burned the Yule log, as, at that time, a year was known as yule, taken from the Old Norse meaning mid-winter.

The log was specially chosen and placed on the dying embers of the old fire. Its charred remains were thought to bring protection to the house throughout the year.

The Protestant Reformation took place in the 16th century and since 1583, the Church of Scotland frowned upon Yuletide celebrations, seeing it as being too closely associated the Roman Catholic Church traditions, stating the celebrations did not reflect anything in the Bible.

In 1640 an Act was passed in the Scottish Parliament banning the celebration, and even mincemeat pies were banished from the table.

There are records of people who continued to celebrate being arrested for breaking the law. It was not until the 1680s the act was repealed.

During the Victorian period there was somewhat of a revival thanks to Prince Albert and German customs becoming popular, but Hogmanay remained the celebration of choice.

It was only in 1958 that Christmas became an official festive holiday, but not until 1974 when Boxing Day followed suit.

However, Hogmanay and New Year's Day remain the main celebrations across the country and is probably the reason why January 2 is also a public holiday in Scotland.