Is kissing under the mistletoe a Christmas or New Year tradition?
Originally a pagan tradition that was brought into Catholicism when the church was trying to win converts from amongst the pagan peoples throughout Europe. They did this by incorporating their pagan worship customs into the developing Catholic traditions. The Norse legend says that the god Loki in envy killed the handsome god Balder with a dart made from the mistletoe; all other plants having vowed not to harm Balder; the mistletoe, having been overlooked, was therefore used. According to this pagan tradition the mistletoe dart was plucked out of Balder’s fatal wound and given to the goddess of love, Freya, whence the custom that a lad may kiss a lass if he sees her under the mistletoe. After the reformation, most Protestants later kept most of the Catholic Christmas traditions. Interestingly, the early Puritans in America banned Christmas because it was so pagan.
