The single question that has caused the most chaos at any christmas trivia game I’ve ever run is this: “What color was Rudolph’s nose?” Not because it’s hard. Because someone always says “It glowed” instead of naming the color, and then three people start arguing about whether glowing counts as a color. That’s what a good trivia question does. It makes you realize you never actually thought about the thing you thought you knew.
I’ve been running holiday trivia nights for over a decade now. Office parties, family gatherings, bar events where people have had exactly enough eggnog to get competitive. What I’ve learned is that the best christmas trivia game isn’t about stumping people. It’s about creating those moments where the whole table leans in at the same time. Some of these questions will feel like gifts. Some will feel like coal. That’s the point.
The Ones Everyone Thinks They Know
1. In the song “Twelve Days of Christmas,” what gift is given on the fifth day?
Everyone sings this song. Almost nobody can answer this without singing through the whole thing in their head first. Watch the lips move.
Show Answer
Five golden rings. Most common wrong answer: “five gold rings.” Technically the lyrics say “golden,” and I’ve seen someone lose a tiebreaker over that distinction. I don’t recommend being that strict unless you want a drink thrown at you.
2. What country started the tradition of putting up a Christmas tree?
This one separates the people who’ve been to a Christmas market from the people who think they have.
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Germany. The tradition dates to the 16th century. A surprising number of people say England, probably because of the Victorian imagery we all grew up seeing on cards.
3. How many reindeer pull Santa’s sleigh, not counting Rudolph?
The “not counting Rudolph” part is doing heavy lifting here. I add it specifically because people start counting on their fingers and then second-guess whether Rudolph was original.
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Eight. Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, and Blitzen. All from Clement Clarke Moore’s 1823 poem. Rudolph didn’t show up until 1939.
4. What’s the best-selling Christmas song of all time?
I love this question because everyone has a strong opinion and almost everyone is wrong in the same way.
Show Answer
“White Christmas” by Bing Crosby, with an estimated 50 million copies sold. The most common wrong answer is Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” which dominates streaming but has sold far fewer physical copies. Generational fault lines show up fast on this one.
5. What plant is traditionally hung in doorways for people to kiss under?
A breather question. Everyone needs one early. But even here, I’ve had someone confidently say “holly.”
6. In what modern-day country was St. Nicholas born?
This is the first question that usually makes someone set their drink down.
Show Answer
Turkey. He was born in Patara, in what’s now the Antalya province. People say “the North Pole” as a joke, but the real wrong answer everyone commits to is Greece. The region was part of the Greek-speaking Roman Empire, so it’s not a crazy instinct, but the geography is firmly Turkish.
7. What does the name “Scrooge” mean before Dickens used it?
Trick framing on this one. Most people assume it already meant something miserly.
Show Answer
It didn’t mean anything widely recognized. Dickens essentially invented the word’s association with miserliness. There’s some evidence it may relate to an old English dialect word meaning “to squeeze,” but before A Christmas Carol, nobody was calling anyone a scrooge.
8. What date is Christmas celebrated on in most Orthodox Christian countries?
I use this one to remind the room that Christmas isn’t the same everywhere. It lands differently depending on who’s playing.
Show Answer
January 7th. This is because many Orthodox churches follow the Julian calendar rather than the Gregorian. December 25th on the Julian calendar falls on January 7th on the Gregorian.
9. In the movie Elf, what are the four main food groups according to Buddy?
If you’ve seen the movie once, you remember the scene. If you’ve seen it twenty times, you still can’t get all four.
Show Answer
Candy, candy canes, candy corns, and syrup. People always forget candy corns and substitute chocolate or sugar. The specificity of “candy corns” is what makes it hard to recall.
10. What Christmas decoration was originally made from strands of silver?
This one pulls a memory out of people who grew up in the ’60s and ’70s. Younger players just guess.
Show Answer
Tinsel. It was originally made from real silver in Germany in the 1600s, then moved to cheaper metals, and eventually plastic. Lead tinsel was common well into the 20th century, which is a fact that makes everyone uncomfortable.
Where Confidence Starts to Crack
11. What Christmas carol was originally written for Thanksgiving?
This is one of my all-time favorites for a christmas trivia game. People narrow their eyes when they hear it.
Show Answer
“Jingle Bells.” Written by James Lord Pierpont in 1857, it was composed for a Thanksgiving Sunday school celebration. There’s nothing in the lyrics about Christmas at all if you actually read them.
12. What was Frosty the Snowman’s nose made of?
Everyone wants to say a carrot. Everyone.
Show Answer
A button. His nose was a button. The corncob pipe is what people remember as the distinguishing feature, but the carrot nose belongs to generic snowman lore, not Frosty specifically. This one starts arguments that last.
13. In the song “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town,” what two things does Santa check?
Simple question. Surprisingly tricky wording.
Show Answer
His list. He checks it twice. The question asks “what two things” and people try to come up with two different items. The answer is just one list, checked twice. I’ve watched tables overthink this into oblivion.
14. Which president was the first to put up a Christmas tree in the White House?
People guess Lincoln. People always guess Lincoln for any “first president to do a nice thing” question.
Show Answer
Franklin Pierce, in 1856. Some historians argue it was earlier, but Pierce gets the most widely accepted credit. The Lincoln guess is so common I’ve started awarding half a point for it just to keep people from giving up.
15. What flavor is a traditional candy cane?
Don’t overthink this one. But someone always does.
Show Answer
Peppermint. I include this as a palate cleanser after harder questions. Even so, I once had someone say “wintergreen” with full conviction and refuse to back down.
16. In A Christmas Story, what does Ralphie want for Christmas?
If you’ve ever watched TBS on Christmas Day, you know this in your bones.
Show Answer
A Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot Range Model air rifle with a compass in the stock and “this thing which tells time.” Partial credit for “a BB gun,” but the full name is where the points live.
17. What did the other reindeer not let Rudolph do?
Sing the line in your head. Now say the answer without the melody.
Show Answer
Join in any reindeer games. Not “play reindeer games.” The actual lyric is “join in any reindeer games.” This distinction has cost people rounds.
18. What’s the name of the Grinch’s dog?
Quick one. But it sorts the room into people who watched the cartoon and people who just know the memes.
19. Boxing Day is celebrated the day after Christmas in the UK and other countries. What’s its official date?
Americans tend to know Boxing Day exists but treat it like a vague concept. This pins them down.
Show Answer
December 26th.
20. What real-life mail carrier inspired the name “Kris Kringle”?
This is a trick question, and I use it intentionally. Watch how people react.
Show Answer
None. “Kris Kringle” comes from “Christkind,” the German word for the Christ Child, which got anglicized and mangled over centuries. It has nothing to do with a mail carrier. People invent elaborate backstories for this one.
The Part Where Tables Go Quiet
21. What Christmas song was the first to be broadcast from space?
This fact is so specific it almost doesn’t sound real. That’s what makes it stick.
Show Answer
“Jingle Bells.” Gemini 6 astronauts Tom Stafford and Wally Schirra played it on a smuggled harmonica and sleigh bells in December 1965, after reporting a UFO sighting that turned out to be a prank setup for the performance.
22. In the original “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” TV special, who provided the voice of the Grinch?
The Jim Carrey answer is the generational trap here.
Show Answer
Boris Karloff. He both narrated and voiced the Grinch in the 1966 special. People under 35 almost always say Jim Carrey, who played the role in the 2000 live-action film.
23. What are Christmas crackers filled with, traditionally?
Americans tend to think these are food. They are not.
Show Answer
A paper crown, a small toy or gift, and a joke (usually a terrible one). The cracker itself contains a small strip that makes a snapping sound when pulled. If someone says “cheese” or “candy,” they’ve never been to a British Christmas.
24. What popular Christmas beverage is also called “milk punch”?
The name gives away the texture but not the drink.
25. In It’s a Wonderful Life, what happens every time a bell rings?
Even people who haven’t seen the movie know this one. That’s the beauty of cultural osmosis.
Show Answer
An angel gets its wings.
26. What’s the name of the ballet that’s become synonymous with Christmas performances?
Easy to answer. Harder to spell on a written answer sheet, which I’ve learned to account for.
Show Answer
The Nutcracker, composed by Tchaikovsky. First performed in 1892. It wasn’t actually popular in the United States until the 1950s, which surprises people who assume it’s been a Christmas staple since forever.
27. In what decade did Coca-Cola first use Santa Claus in its advertising?
This is one of those questions where the common myth is almost right, which makes it more annoying.
Show Answer
The 1930s. Haddon Sundblom created the iconic red-suited Santa for Coca-Cola ads starting in 1931. The myth that Coca-Cola invented Santa’s red suit is false, though. Red-suited Santas appeared in illustrations well before that. What Coke did was standardize and popularize a specific look.
28. How many ghosts visit Scrooge in A Christmas Carol?
Three is the obvious answer. It’s also wrong.
Show Answer
Four. The Ghost of Jacob Marley plus the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Yet to Come. People forget Marley every single time. I’ve run this question at maybe forty events and the “wait, Marley counts?” reaction never gets old.
29. What Christmas movie features the line “Keep the change, ya filthy animal”?
Be precise here. The answer isn’t what most people think it is.
Show Answer
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. Not the original Home Alone. The original features “Merry Christmas, ya filthy animal” from the fictional movie Angels with Filthy Souls. The sequel has the “keep the change” variant from Angels with Even Filthier Souls. People merge these in memory constantly.
30. What’s the most popular Christmas tree topper in the United States?
Star versus angel. Every family has a side.
Show Answer
A star. Angels come in second. But the margin is closer than people think, and I’ve seen this question nearly cause a fistfight between spouses who each assumed their family’s tradition was universal.
Songs You’ve Sung Wrong Your Whole Life
31. In “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” what weather event causes Santa to need Rudolph’s help?
People say “snow” or “blizzard.” The song is more specific than that.
Show Answer
A foggy Christmas Eve. “Rudolph with your nose so bright, won’t you guide my sleigh tonight?” The visibility issue is fog, not snow. It’s right there in the lyrics but people project a blizzard onto it every time.
32. What Christmas song includes the lyric “Oh, what fun it is to ride”?
Easy. But the next one won’t be.
Show Answer
“Jingle Bells.”
33. In “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” what dessert do the singers demand?
“Demand” is the right word. The song gets weirdly aggressive if you listen to the full lyrics.
Show Answer
Figgy pudding. “Now bring us some figgy pudding… we won’t go until we get some.” It’s essentially a caroling shakedown.
34. Who wrote “White Christmas”?
The songwriter, not the singer. That distinction matters here.
Show Answer
Irving Berlin. A Jewish immigrant from Russia wrote the most iconic Christmas song in American history. That fact reframes the whole song if you let it.
35. What Christmas song was written by a Sunday school teacher to teach children about the birth of Jesus?
Multiple songs fit this description loosely, but only one has the confirmed origin story.
Show Answer
“Away in a Manger.” Though its authorship is debated, the song was widely used in Sunday school settings from the late 1800s. The common myth that Martin Luther wrote it is false.
36. “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” was recorded by Band Aid to raise money for famine relief in what country?
The song is a time capsule of 1984. Some of its lyrics haven’t aged well, which is a conversation for another day.
37. In “The Christmas Song,” what are roasting on an open fire?
You’re already singing it. Just make sure you get the word right.
Show Answer
Chestnuts. Written by Mel Tormé and Bob Wells, reportedly on a hot summer day. They were trying to think of cool, wintry thoughts.
38. What year was “All I Want for Christmas Is You” by Mariah Carey originally released?
This one ages people. They either remember buying the CD or they think it’s always existed.
Show Answer
1994. It didn’t hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 until 2019, twenty-five years after release. That stat alone makes this answer worth knowing.
Around the World in Tinsel and Tradition
39. In Japan, what fast-food chain has become a Christmas dinner tradition?
This one always gets a laugh, and then people Google it to make sure I’m not lying.
Show Answer
KFC. The “Kurisumasu ni wa Kentakkii” (Kentucky for Christmas) campaign started in 1974 and became so popular that people place orders weeks in advance.
40. In Mexico, what are the nine nights of celebration before Christmas called?
If you grew up with this tradition, this is a freebie. If you didn’t, it’s a genuine learning moment.
Show Answer
Las Posadas. The celebrations reenact Mary and Joseph’s search for lodging and run from December 16th to 24th.
41. What country leaves shoes out instead of stockings for Christmas gifts?
Multiple countries do variations of this, but one is the classic answer.
Show Answer
The Netherlands (and also France, among others). Dutch children leave their shoes out for Sinterklaas. The tradition predates the stocking custom.
42. In Australia, Christmas falls during what season?
This is a question I include early in any christmas trivia game for kids and families. It’s easy, but it reorients how people think about the holiday.
Show Answer
Summer. Beach barbecues and sunshine. The whole Northern Hemisphere imagery of snow and fireplaces doesn’t translate, and Australians have their own set of traditions built around warm weather.
43. In Iceland, what are the 13 Yule Lads?
This is the kind of question that makes people want to look something up after the game is over.
Show Answer
Thirteen troll-like figures from Icelandic folklore who each visit children on the 13 nights before Christmas, leaving gifts in shoes for good children and rotting potatoes for bad ones. Each has a distinct personality and name, like Spoon-Licker and Door-Slammer.
44. What country is credited with the tradition of the Advent calendar?
Same country as the tree. They really went all in on Christmas infrastructure.
Show Answer
Germany. The first known printed Advent calendar dates to the early 1900s.
45. In the Philippines, what is the giant lantern festival called?
The Philippines starts celebrating Christmas in September. I respect that energy.
Show Answer
The Giant Lantern Festival, or Ligligan Parul, held in San Fernando, Pampanga. The lanterns can be up to 20 feet in diameter.
The Food Round (Nobody’s Neutral)
46. What dried fruit is traditionally found in Christmas pudding?
Multiple correct answers exist, but one is the most expected.
Show Answer
Raisins (along with currants and sultanas). Christmas pudding is essentially a dried fruit delivery system held together by suet and hope.
47. What spice gives gingerbread its distinctive warm flavor?
The name is right there. But people still overthink it.
Show Answer
Ginger. Though cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg contribute, ginger is the namesake and the dominant flavor. I’ve had people say “cinnamon” with startling confidence.
48. Stollen is a traditional Christmas bread from what country?
Germany again. They really do own December.
Show Answer
Germany. It’s a dense, fruit-studded bread dusted with powdered sugar, meant to resemble the swaddled baby Jesus. That last detail changes how you look at it.
49. What Italian Christmas cake shares its name with a city in Milan’s history?
The question is a little misleading. That’s intentional.
Show Answer
Panettone. It doesn’t share its name with a city, but the question’s framing makes people try to connect it to Milan’s geography. Panettone originated in Milan, and the name likely comes from “panetto,” meaning small bread. I use this question to keep people honest about reading carefully.
50. What’s traditionally hidden inside a Christmas pudding for good luck?
A choking hazard disguised as a blessing. Peak Victorian logic.
Show Answer
A silver coin (traditionally a sixpence). Whoever finds it in their serving is supposed to have good luck in the coming year, assuming they don’t crack a tooth first.
Movies That Made December
51. In Home Alone, where are the McCallisters going on vacation when they leave Kevin behind?
People remember the house, the traps, and the pizza. The destination is fuzzier.
Show Answer
Paris. They’re flying to Paris for Christmas. The most common wrong answer is London, which feels right but isn’t.
52. Is Die Hard a Christmas movie?
I’m not asking for debate. I’m asking what the screenwriter said.
Show Answer
Screenwriter Steven E. de Souza has said yes, it’s a Christmas movie. The film is set on Christmas Eve, features Christmas music, and ends with the reunion of a family. Whether you agree is your business, but the creator’s intent is on the record.
53. What’s the name of the main character in The Polar Express?
Think about it. Really think about it.
Show Answer
He’s never given a name in the film. He’s credited as “Hero Boy.” This blows people’s minds because they’ve watched it a dozen times and never noticed. The brain fills in a name that was never there.
54. In A Charlie Brown Christmas, what does Charlie Brown’s sad little tree need?
The answer everyone gives is technically wrong but emotionally right.
Show Answer
“A little love.” That’s Linus’s line. People say “ornaments” or “decorations” because that’s what the kids add to it, but the thematic answer is love. I accept both in casual play, but the Linus answer is the one that matters.
55. What 2003 Christmas movie features Will Ferrell as a human raised by elves?
The year is the only tricky part. The movie is unforgettable.
56. In The Nightmare Before Christmas, what’s the name of Jack Skellington’s ghost dog?
This one identifies the real fans. Casual viewers remember Jack but not the dog.
57. What does the Ghost of Christmas Present show Scrooge in the Muppet Christmas Carol?
Specifically the Muppet version. Because that’s the definitive version and I’ll die on that hill.
Show Answer
The same things as the original story: the Cratchit family’s Christmas dinner, Tiny Tim, and scenes of people celebrating despite hardship. But in the Muppet version, it’s Michael Caine acting opposite puppets with complete sincerity, which is its own kind of miracle.
58. In Love Actually, what does Mark use to confess his love to Juliet?
Romantic or creepy? The debate never ends. But the prop is specific.
Show Answer
Cue cards. He shows up at her door with handwritten cards while playing a carol on a boombox. Whether this is sweet or deeply unsettling depends entirely on who you ask, and asking is half the fun of this question.
The Ones That Sound Made Up But Aren’t
59. What Christmas tradition was once illegal in the United States?
This one always gets a “no way” from at least one person.
Show Answer
Celebrating Christmas itself. The Puritans in Massachusetts banned Christmas celebrations from 1659 to 1681, with a fine of five shillings for anyone caught observing the holiday. They considered it too frivolous and too connected to pagan traditions.
60. What animal delivers Christmas presents in some parts of Italy?
Not a reindeer. Not even close.
Show Answer
A broomstick-riding witch named La Befana delivers gifts on Epiphany Eve (January 5th). She’s not technically an animal, but the question is designed to make people guess donkey or goat before learning the real answer is a witch. I love the look on people’s faces.
61. What was the first state in the US to make Christmas an official holiday?
It wasn’t one of the original colonies. That surprises people.
Show Answer
Alabama, in 1836. Christmas didn’t become a federal holiday until 1870. Alabama being first at something positive is a fact that plays well in certain rooms.
62. How long did the largest snowball fight on record last?
This is a fun one to let people guess wildly before revealing the answer.
Show Answer
The largest snowball fight involved 8,200 participants in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, in 2016. It lasted about an hour. The question of “how long” is less interesting than “8,200 Canadians decided to do this.”
63. What’s the Krampus?
If you know, you know. If you don’t, you’re about to have a very different relationship with Alpine Christmas traditions.
Show Answer
A horned, demonic figure from Central European folklore who punishes naughty children during the Christmas season. He’s essentially the anti-Santa, and Krampus runs (where people dress as Krampus and chase people through the streets) are a real tradition in Austria and surrounding countries.
64. What percentage of Americans put up a real Christmas tree versus an artificial one?
I ask this as a range question. Closest without going over.
Show Answer
Roughly 75-80% of Christmas-tree-displaying households use artificial trees. Only about 20-25% use real ones. People who use real trees are almost always shocked by how outnumbered they are.
The Deep Cuts
65. What was the first commercially produced Christmas card?
Not who made it. What was on it.
Show Answer
Commissioned by Sir Henry Cole in 1843, it depicted a family drinking wine, including the children. It was controversial at the time for appearing to encourage underage drinking. The first Christmas card caused a scandal. That’s perfect.
66. In the song “Twelve Days of Christmas,” how many total gifts are given?
This is a math problem disguised as a trivia question. Watch the room divide between people who count and people who guess.
Show Answer
364. When you count each repetition (the partridge is given 12 times, the turtle doves 11 times, and so on), the total is 364 gifts. One for every day of the year except Christmas itself.
67. What did Harry Truman’s administration add to the White House Christmas display that no previous president had included?
Specific enough to be hard. General enough that a good guesser might land it.
Show Answer
The first National Christmas Tree lighting ceremony on the Ellipse was actually started by Calvin Coolidge in 1923. Truman’s notable contribution was restarting the tradition after it was suspended during World War II, in 1945. If someone says “electric lights” for any president question, give them a look.
68. What language does “Noel” come from?
French is the obvious answer. It’s not quite that simple.
Show Answer
French, derived from the Latin “natalis,” meaning “birth.” So while French is technically correct, the word’s roots are Latin. I give full credit for either answer but use the Latin connection to add context.
69. What was the original color of Santa’s suit before the red became standard?
There wasn’t one original color. That’s the point.
Show Answer
Santa appeared in green, brown, tan, and blue in various depictions throughout the 19th century. The red suit predates Coca-Cola (despite the myth), appearing in Harper’s Weekly illustrations by Thomas Nast in the 1860s and 1870s. But there was no single “original” color.
70. What’s the name of the condition where people feel stressed, anxious, or depressed during the holiday season?
This one changes the tone in the room. I use it carefully, but I use it. Because a good christmas trivia game acknowledges the full picture.
Show Answer
The holiday blues, or sometimes called the Christmas blues. It’s not a clinical diagnosis but a widely recognized phenomenon. Including this in a trivia game gives people permission to acknowledge something they might be feeling, which is worth more than a point.
71. What year was “A Visit from St. Nicholas” (also known as “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas”) first published?
This poem invented more of what we think of as Christmas than almost any other single work.
Show Answer
1823. It established the names of the reindeer, the imagery of Santa coming down the chimney, and the description of him as a jolly, round figure. Before this poem, there was no consensus Santa. After it, there was.
72. What Christmas item was invented by a London confectioner named Tom Smith in 1847?
British players get this instantly. Everyone else takes a swing.
Show Answer
The Christmas cracker. Smith was inspired by French bonbons wrapped in tissue paper and added the “snap” mechanism. The terrible jokes came later, and they’ve only gotten worse.
73. In the original Rankin/Bass Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer special, what does the elf Hermey want to be instead of making toys?
If you grew up with this special, you can still hear his voice saying it.
Show Answer
A dentist. Hermey wants to be a dentist. It’s one of the most oddly specific character motivations in children’s television history, and it’s never explained why.
74. What’s the world record for the most lights on a Christmas tree?
I ask for the approximate number. Within 100,000 gets full credit.
Show Answer
The record is over 194,000 lights, set in Australia in 2015 by David Richards. The electricity bill is a question I’ve never been able to answer.
The Last One
75. What is the most-watched Christmas special in television history?
This is the question I close every holiday trivia night with. Not because it’s the hardest, but because the answer tells you something about who we are when we sit down together in December. People guess Rudolph. People guess Charlie Brown. People guess the Grinch. All three are in the conversation, and all three are wrong.
Show Answer
A Charlie Brown Christmas holds records in some categories, but the single most-watched Christmas broadcast in US television history is the 1970 airing of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” which drew over 55 million viewers. But here’s what I love about asking this at the end of a christmas trivia game: the answer doesn’t matter as much as the moment where everyone in the room is arguing about the same thing, leaning across the same table, caring about something together. That’s what Christmas does. That’s what trivia does. And when those two things overlap, you get a room full of people who showed up for questions and left with something warmer than a score.
I've been writing family trivia from Manchester, UK for 12 years, and the standard I hold myself to is simple: every question has to work for a ten-year-old and still be interesting to the adults at the table. I've written for JetPunk trivia, and I take the same care with every set I write.
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