The festival of Epiphany is a Christian holiday celebrated on January 6 by Western Churches. It marks the end of the Twelve Days of Christmas following Christmas Day.
The word ‘Epiphany’ originates from Greek and means manifestation.
It is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as: “The manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles as represented by the Magi (Matthew 2:1–12).”
Protestants and Roman Catholics say the date is when the Magi, or the Three Wise Men, followed the Star of Bethlehem to visit the baby Jesus.
In Eastern Orthodox churches, Christians commemorate the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist in the River Jordan.
They observe the feast on January 19 using the Julian calendar but for Western Christians – who follow the Georgian calendar – the date is January 6.
To make matters more complicated, some Protestant churches celebrate an Epiphany season lasting until the day before Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent.
The six Sundays following the Epiphany are known as the time of the manifestation.
In contrast, Catholicism only marks Epiphany as a single day and Pope Francis gives a mass on the feast every year.
Many countries around the world observe Epiphany in different ways.
In the Spanish-speaking world, Epiphany is known as Dia de los Reyes (Three Kings’ Day) while in Eastern Europe, swimmers will dive into freezing water to follow a cross thrown by a priest.
How does Epiphany relate to Twelfth Night?
Twelfth Night sees the culmination of the Twelve Days of Christmas, beginning on Christmas Day, and refers to the night before Epiphany.
Sometimes called Epiphany Eve, Twelfth Night is the time when families across Britain traditionally take down their festive lights, decorations and fir trees.
This is in keeping with a 19-century tradition where it is considered unlucky to keep up Christmas greenery, such as holly and ivy, beyond this day.
Christians traditionally believed that tree spirits sought protection from winter in the trees and must be freed before the start of Epiphany.
Nowadays, many people still follow the custom to avoid bad luck.
Although Twelfth Night is generally considered to take place on January 5, some people count the next day.
This is because some people count the Twelve Days of Christmas from December 26 and not December 25.
To be on the safe side, the Church of England says Twelfth Night takes place on January 5.
READ MORE: Epiphany 2018: When should you take the Christmas Tree down?