Christmas Quiz
1. On Christmas Day 1977, Charlie Chaplin died in
a) Switzerland, b) England, c) USA or d) Canada?
2. On 26th December of what year was the USSR officially dissolved?
3. The Shrine of the Three Kings, a reliquary said to contain the bones of the Three Wise Men, can be visited in the cathedral in
a) Canterbury, b) Cologne, c) Vienna or d) Rome?
4. Every year in November Sinterklaas, the Dutch Father Christmas, arrives in Holland. Where does he come from and how does he get to Holland? (1 point per correct answer)
5. For which football club has Christmas come early when they won the Intertoto Cup 2006, the first silverware since 1969?
6. In what year did NORAD, the North American Aerospace Defense Command, start tracking Santa's flight path around the world? (+/- 5 years)
7. In what year were the first electric Christmas lights used? (+/-20 years)
8. Which of Santa's other 8 reindeer was the father of Rudolph the red-nosed one?
9. Kwanzaa, a cultural holiday celebrated from 26th December till 1st January, originated from
a) Sudan, b) Indonesia, c) USA or d) Kenya?
10. Which city is believed to be the birthplace of Jesus of Nazareth?
11. If a Norwegian uses a bakken, what sport is he into? (*)
12. In what year did Coca Cola begin featuring Santa in their advertising at Christmas? (+/- 10 years)
13. In the 1930's, the Addis Brush Company produced the first artificial-brush trees, using the same machinery that made their
a) toilet brushes, b) hair brushes, c) tooth brushes or d) paint brushes?
14. Similar to the tradition of putting out cookies & milk out for Santa, the children in Sweden try please the Swedish Santa, Tomte, by leaving out
a) a bowl of rice pudding, b) a glass of vodka, c) a plate of dried herrings or d) a bottle of glogg (mulled wine)?
15. On 26th December 1898, Marie and Pierre Curie announced the discovery of which element?
16. Which European football league does not take a winter break:
a) Italy, b) Netherlands, c) Portugal or d) Austria?
17. Bandy is an ancestor of which winter sport?
18. In which country was the city of Natal ("Christmas") founded on 25th December 1599?
19. True or False: The man who founded the Buddhist Society in London in 1924 was a barrister called Christmas Humphreys?
20. In what century was Saint Nicholas of Myra born?
21. In what year did Band Aid release their record "Do They Know It's Christmas?"? (+/- 1 year)
22. George Frederick Handel's Christmas oratorio, The Messiah, was first performed in 1742 in
a) London, b) Dublin, c) Vienna, or d) Jerusalem?
23. The music to 'Silent Night' was originally written for a
a) guitar, b) piano, c) harpsichord or d) pipe organ?
24. In Dickens '"Christmas Carol", how many children does Bob Cratchit have? (BQ: what's the name of the youngest?)
25. True or False: Dr. Seuss, the creator of the Christmas hating Grinch, was a psychiatrist?
26. In order to make their geese happier, fatter & tastier for the coming Christmas season, farmers in Cheshire have begun to
a) dress them in woolly hats & scarves, b) feed them mulled wine, c) put up heaters in the coops or d) let them live in their houses?
27. Four of the top five teams at the 2006 ClauWau, the Santa Claus World Championships, came from the host country, Switzerland. The other team was from
a) Japan, b) Holland, c) Jamaica or d) Kenya?
28. In what year did John Calcott Horsley invent and design the first Christmas card? (+/- 50 years)
29. Which artist was famous for his many paintings of the Madonna with Baby Jesus:
a) Raphael, b) Michelangelo, c) Leonardo da Vinci or d) Marc Chagall?
30. What was the exact title of John Lennon & Yoko Ono's 1971 Christmas single?
31. The mistletoe grows
a) only on conifers, b) only on deciduous trees or c) on both?
32. True or False: only male reindeer have antlers?
33. The Christmas Star (Poinsettia) originated from
a) Cuba, b) China, c) Mexico, or d) Brazil?
34. In which country does Joulupukki, the Yul Goat, bring the presents?
35. Which Wallace & Gromit movie, set at Christmas and first aired on 24 December, won the 1995 Oscar for best Animated Short Film? (Bonus Question: Which recurring character was introduced in the movie?)
ANSWERS
1. a) Switzerland
2. 1991
3. b) Cologne
4. from Spain (he lives in a palace in Madrid) - (by steamboat)
5. Newcastle United
6. 1958 (corrected)
7. 1882
8. Donner
9. c) USA
10. Bethlehem
11. Ski jumping
12. 1931
13. a) toilet brushes
14. a) a bowl of rice pudding
15. Radium
16. c) Portugal
17. ice hockey
18. Brazil
19. true
20. 3rd century AD
21. 1984
22. b) Dublin
23. a) guitar
24. 6 (Tiny Tim)
25. False
26. a) dress them in wooly hats & scarves
27. c) Jamaica (Team High 5)
28. 1843
29. a) Raphael
30. Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
31. c) on both
32. False
33. c) Mexico
34. Finland
35. A Close Shave (Bonus: Shaun the Sheep)