In Central and Northern Europe, all deciduous trees lose their leaves completely during the cold winter. Only coniferous trees keep their needles and offer green colour even in winter. The tradition of having a Christmas tree dates back to about 1800. At that time, people thought that with the green, they could take health into their homes. Afterwards, the trees were decorated more and more, especially to Christ’s birthday (December 25). This decorating was meant to bring people luck for the following year. The lyrics of this song are originally from Silesia. August Zarnack (1777-1827) changed the first strophe in 1819 to the version that is sung today. Ernst Anschütz wrote the second (and a third) strophe. The melody was sung as a student song in the 18^th century.