TOMORROW most Scots will celebrate Christmas day, four centuries after the festive season was banned in the country.

History tells us that it was only as late as 1958 that Christmas Day became a public holiday in Scotland. Boxing Day wasn't made a public holiday until 1974, so the Christmas we think of today is quite a modern development.

As well as Christmas Day becoming a public holiday in 1958 in Scotland, both Boxing Day and New Year’s Day didn't achieved public holiday status until more than a decade later in 1974.

Here are a some of our most interesting festive traditions, some that we still practice, others that have faded away over the years...

First footing

The ritual of visiting friends, family and neighbours after the bells with gifts of coal, whisky or black bun as a sign of good stead has been a long-standing tradition in Scotland.

Stemming back to the time of the invading Vikings in the 8th and 9th century, it is believed that the first person to enter a house, the “first foot”, can bring luck – or misfortune – for the year ahead. In Scottish tradition good luck comes in the form of a tall, dark-haired man being the first footer.

READ MORE: Why Christmas was banned in Scotland for four centuries - and how that changed

The most popular Hogmanay tradition is the singing of Auld Lang Syne, which was written by the Scottish poet Robert Burns and sees people gathering together and linking arms to sing in unison. This became a popular convention by the mid-20th century. 

Neolithic solstice

Celtic Pagans held celebrations around the time of winter solstice (usually around December 21 or 22) to mark the shortest day of the year. The festivities were in part to brighten the dark winter days, and to appease the gods to allow the sun to return.

Yule logs

Yule logs weren't always a chocolate Christmas dessert. It has its roots in an ancient Celtic Druid ceremony that was particularly popular in Scotland's Northern harbour towns.

The National:

The Druids believed that during the 12 days of midwinter, the Sun stood still, so they burned an oak log continuously during this time to ward off darkness and give power back to the Sun. Once the log had almost completely burned down, the last piece would be saved to light the following year's fire (sounds amazing, but we still like the chocolate version).

Scotland's Krampus

Christmas mischief maker, Krampus, is a European figure but Scotland once had its own version. When children on the Hebridean isle of Islay were naughty in the lead up to Christmas, they were warned that they might be paid a visit from "Crom Dubh na Nollaig" (the dark crooked one of Christmas). 

Children were told that the sound of wind howling down the chimneys was the cries of Krampus.

Mistletoe kissing

Kissing under the mistletoe comes from the Celtic Winter Solstice celebration where the plant was a symbol of life and fertility due to the fact that it thrived during the coldest months. A Druid priest would cut a piece from a sacred oak each year as hanging mistletoe in your house supposedly brought good luck.

It soon became the custom for a man to be allowed to kiss any woman caught beneath it. However, every time you kissed someone, you had to pluck away a berry. When all the berries were gone, the kissing had to stop.