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Whether on the tree, on a mantle, or hanging from the ceiling, decorations can make any place feel more festive. Evergreen plants and dried fruit have been used as decorations in Europe for millennia -- and they still hold sway -- but alongside them, we now also have bright shining baubles, beads and fairy lights.
According to tradition, the first decorated Christmas tree was at Riga in Latvia in 1510, but it was German Christmas markets that really kicked off the use of decorations. One popular type of stall at these fairs was the cookie and gingerbread makers. With the wax left over from the gingerbread making process, sellers would use moulds of angels, or other scenes from the Nativity, to create a wax figure which was painted and sold as Fairings. Many people took these Christmas fair souvenirs home and placed them on their tree. Such wax ornaments remained popular right up until the second half of the 19th century when glass baubles became much sought after. Lauscha in Germany is generally attributed as the source of glass tree ornaments -- glassblowing being a main trade of the town -- and by the late 1800s, glass ornaments were exported to rich Europeans who could afford such a luxury.
Tinsel was invented in Germany in 1610 and was made from wafer-thin strips of silver. This practice was used up until the 20th century when the introduction of foil made it easier to mass-produce in different colours.
Adi is a unisex Hebrew name that translates either as "jewel" or "ornament." Adino "our ornament" is a derivation borne by one of the "mighty men" of King David in the Old Testament. The similar Adah was borne by two women in the Old Testament and means "adornment."
For other translations, Ziynet is a Turkish feminine name that means "ornament". And the Persian word ara meaning "to decorate, to adorn" is found in the names Delara, Jahanara and Roshanara.
The Latin mirar "to admire, to look upon" has been the basis for several names including the famous Miranda. Lesser known is Mirèio, the protagonist and title of a Provençal poem by Frédéric Mistral in 1859. It later led to Mireia, or Mireya in Spain, Mireille in France, and Mirella in Italy.
Other names include the Hawaiian Kawehi "the adornment" and the Slavic Krasimir "adornment" + "peace, world".
