In which culture is this considered the &quot;first day of winter&quot;? English&#x2F;US? I knew that the mid summer (longest day) was called &quot;the first day of summer&quot; in English and always though it was just an oddity in the language (like inflammable and flammable...)<p>The reason we celebrate christmas in late december is because old pagan <i>mid-winter</i> festivals used to be around this time. Sure the coldest winter weather is probably a month or so away still, but it&#x27;s sure closer to the middle of the winter than the start, even if you count temperature and not sunlight?