December birthstone, Turquoise, Tanzanite.

December birthstone meaning

December is the most generous of the birthstone months, with turquoise, tanzanite, blue topaz, and zircon all listed as traditional or modern options. The shared theme across all four is blue, in tones that range from the warm sky-blue of turquoise to the deep violet-blue of fine tanzanite. December is the month of cold light and short days in the Northern Hemisphere, and a clear blue stone sits with that quality directly. Turquoise carries the longest tradition, with use across Egyptian, Persian, Tibetan, and Native American cultures over thousands of years.

History and mineralogy

Turquoise was being mined in the Sinai Peninsula by 3000 BCE and was treasured by the Egyptians, the Aztecs, and the indigenous peoples of the American Southwest, with each culture treating the stone as protective. Tanzanite is the youngest of the December stones, discovered only in 1967 in northern Tanzania, near Mount Kilimanjaro, and named by Tiffany and Co. for the country of origin. Tanzanite is mined at a single deposit, which is unusual for a major birthstone, and the mineralogy is the trichroic variety of zoisite. Blue topaz has been a December stone since the mid-twentieth century, replacing or sitting alongside the older blue zircon.

December birthstone as a gift

Turquoise is the most distinctive December gift, with the warm sky-blue colour and the matrix patterns making each stone visually unique. Sleeping Beauty turquoise from Arizona, now mined out, is the historic standard. Tanzanite offers a more modern, deep-violet alternative at varying price points, and blue topaz is the most affordable of the December stones at very modest prices.

Alternative December birthstones

If Turquoise, Tanzanite is not the right fit, the most common alternative December birthstones are Lapis Lazuli, Blue Topaz, Zircon. Each carries a related but distinct tradition. The colour family stays close, with most of these stones sitting in the turquoise or sky blue or violet blue range.