It is believed that the tradition of decorating Christmas trees originated in Riga, Latvia. To mark the special occasion, in 2010 Latvia celebrated the 500th anniversary of this festive tradition that now spans across the world.
Nowadays there still persists a slight disagreement between Latvia and Estonia as for the birthplace of Christmas tree. It is known however that the tradition began at around 15th century in Livonia (currently the territory of Latvia and Estonia) and by 16th century it had spread to Northern Germany.
Although it remains unknown where exactly the first Christmas tree was installed, the first documented use of a tree in a winter Christmas celebration is the one in Riga Town Hall Square in 1510. The Christmas tree was decorated with paper flowers, ribbons, dry flowers, straw dolls and possibly also with fruit. After the ceremony the Christmas tree was burnt.
Sign located in The Town Hall Square. It's easy to find.
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