Let's understand why millions in the world celebrate Christmas on January 7 and not on December 25.

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Edited by: Shashwat Bhandari, Jan 10, 2026

New Delhi: Christmas is celebrated across the world on December 25 but hundreds of millions of people unlike the West celebrate the festival on January 7 and not on December 25. Some nations in Eastern Europe, some places in Middle East such as the Arab world including Palestine and Egypt celebrate the occasion on January 7.

Why Do Millions Celebrate Christmas on January 7 And Not on December 25

Christmas is celebrated to mark the birth of Jesus Christ, a central figure of Christianity. The term Christmas comes from Christ + Mass which means a religious service held in Jesus Christ honour.

Noting that Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem, many in the world have a difference to mark his birth date.

The difference in assuming Jesus Christ birth date is there because of two different calendars. So some celebrate the occasion on December 25 while many also celebrate the festival on January 7.

How Christmas is Marked on Two Different Dates?

Though the majority of world celebrate Christmas on December 25, but also millions in some parts as mentioned above celebrate the festival on January 7.

It's not that those who celebrate Christmas on January 7 believe that Jesus Christ was born on some different day (December 25) but because they follow a different calendar. So as per the calendar they follow, January 7 is December 25 for them unlike rest of the world.

Why There is Difference in Two Calendars

The explanation to this goes back to 1582 when Pope Gregory XIII directed that the Catholic Church should shift to a new calendar which is the Gregorian calendar in order to replace the Julian calendar.

Why He Wanted to Shift to Gregorian and Replace Julian Calendar

According to Julian Calendar — introduced by Julius Caesar in 46 BC, there was a fault in measuring the days and seasons as he over estimated the solar year by 11 minutes.

Due to his mis-calculation, the Julian Calender was losing one day in every 128 years while the Gregorian calendar loses one day in every 3236 years, which makes it more accurate system to mark a solar year.

So, in order to jump to the accurate date, the world had to skip 10 days to make up for the missing time accumulated over 15 centuries.

As the world returned to the track, most people shifted to the Gregorian calendar but some orthodox communities and eastern Christian churches decided to follow the Julian calendar to keep up with the tradition.