Symbol of love, fertility, and harvest.
The Yule ham is a Pagan tradition that dates back to the Middle Ages. Freyr was a goddess of the harvest who rode a golden-bristled boar. Wild boars were sacrificed to her during Yule. They prayed to the goddess to give them offspring, love, and a plentiful harvest. At the Yule feast, the wild boar would be boiled and consumed. Later, during Yule, the wild boar would be offered, with the head of the hog containing an apple being served to the family’s head.
People still eat ham for dinner in current times. The Boar’s Head Carol, which refers to the Yule wild boar, is one of the earliest carols still sung in England.