雅思聽力考試中的日常生活部分經常會用到各種各樣的節日，聖誕節就是不得不提到的一個。因爲這是西方世界裏面最大的節日了，聖誕節中最重要的道具聖誕樹就顯得特別的重要，那麼你知道聖誕樹的來歷嗎?雅思爲大家整理了相關的`資料，希望大家在慶祝聖誕的過程中瞭解這些雅思聽力背景材料。
Legend suggests that, in the late 16th century, Martin Luther was the first to decorate an indoor tree with candles when he attempted to recreate the stars shining over a forest of evergreens.
The first mention of decorated trees being taken indoors came in 1605 in Germany - a country with a long Christmas tree history! The trees were initially decorated with fruit and sweets together with hand made objects such as quilled snowflakes and stars. German Christmas Markets began to sell shaped gingerbreads and wax ornaments which people bought as souvenirs of the fair and took home to hang on their tree.
Tinsel was also invented in Germany in about 1610. Up until fairly recently real silver was used, which was pulled into wafer thin strips by special machines. This was durable but tarnished quickly and many experiments took place to try and find an alternative - including a mix of lead and tin, which was too heavy and kept breaking. It was only in the mid 20th century that a viable alternative was found.
