Why the mistletoe tradition is not very Irish

MISTLETOE is as closely associated with Christmas as holly and the Christmas tree.

But it’s a mysterious plant and it’s not clear how or where this connection began.

Firstly it’s not an Irish native plant, although, strangely enough, there is an Irish word for it, “drualas”, that seems to be fairly ancient. This may date back to the early days of Christianity when, because of the activities of Irish missionary monks, the language was spoken beyond our shores.