Entitled: "New York City, rich and poor; or, the two Christmas dinners, a scene in Washington Market, sketched from real life." Engraving of rich family and poor family buying Christmas dinners. Christmas dinner is the primary meal traditionally eaten on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. Christmas dinner around the world may differ and the traditions reflect the culture of the country it is being celebrated in. Christmas is an annual commemoration of the birth of Jesus Christ and a widely observed cultural holiday, celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, it closes the Advent season and initiates the twelve days of Christmastide, which ends after the twelfth night. Christmas is a civil holiday in many of the world's nations, is celebrated by an increasing number of non-Christians, and is an integral part of the Christmas and holiday season. Illustration appeared in Frank Leslie's illustrated newspaper, January 4, 1873.