Etymology of Words and Phrases, Part 5: ‘Tis the Christmas Season

Uncategorized 6 Minutes

CHRISTMAS CARDS -The tradition of sending Christmas cards originated in the mid-1800s when a few people began to design handmade cards to send to family and friends. A man named John Calcott Horsley is credited as being the first to actually print Christmas cards. The card depicted a family enjoying the holiday, with scenes of people performing acts of charity. The card was inscribed: “Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year to You.” Some of the other cards of the era were rather bizarre!!!

CHRISTMAS GIFT! –

A greeting used on Christmas morning, with the first person saying it traditionally receiving a gift. The custom, which has been traced back to as early as 1844, is no longer observed but ‘Christmas gift!’, which used to be a far more popular Christmas greeting than ‘Merry Christmas!’, is still heard among older people.”

CHRISTMAS PICKLE – Pickle ornaments were considered a special decoration by many families in Germany where the fir tree was decorated on Christmas Eve. It was always the last ornament to be hung on the Christmas tree, with the parents hiding it in the green boughs among the other ornaments. When the children were allowed to view the tree they would begin gleefully searching for the pickle ornament. The children knew that whoever first found that special ornament would receive an extra little gift left by St. Nicholas for the most observant child.

EPIPHANY – January 6 is known in western Christian tradition as Epiphany. It goes by other names in various church traditions. In Hispanic and Latin culture, as well as some places in Europe, it is known as Three Kings’ Day. Because of differences in church calendars, mainly between the Eastern Orthodox and the western Catholic and Protestant traditions, both Christmas and Epiphany have been observed at different times in the past.

Epiphany is the climax of the Christmas Season and the Twelve Days of Christmas, which are counted from December 25th until January 5th. The day before Epiphany is the twelfth day of Christmas, and is sometimes called Twelfth Night, an occasion for feasting in some cultures. The term epiphany means to show” or “to make known” or even “to reveal.” In Western churches, it remembers the coming of the wise men bringing gifts to visit the Christ child, who by so doing “reveal” Jesus to the world as Lord and King.

GOD SPEED THE PLOUGH; PLOUGH MONDAY – God speed the plough, ‘a wish for success or prosperity,’ was originally a phrase in a 15th-century song sung by ploughmen on Plough Monday; the first Monday after the Twelfth Day, which is the end of the Christmas holidays, when farm laborers returned to the plough, soliciting ‘plough money’ to spend in celebration.

HARD CANDY CHRISTMAS – A bleak Christmas — one where the family is so low on money that everyone gets hard candy for Christmas instead of gifts. The phrase is the title of a song written by Carol Hall and sung by Dolly Parton: “Lord it’s like a hard candy Christmas.I’m barely getting through tomorrow.But still I won’t let Sorrow bring me way down.I’ll be fine and dandy.

MERRY CHRISTMAS – England of the Anglo-Saxon period and the Middle Ages was not a very happy place to be, let alone ‘merrie.’ So why the phrase “Merrie Christmas” indicating revelry and joyous spirits, as if England were one perpetual Christmastime? The answer is that the word ‘merrie’ originally meant merely ‘pleasing and delightful,’ not bubbling over with festive spirits, as it does today.

The same earlier meaning is found in the famous expression, ‘the merry month of May.'” Note: In “A Royal Duty,” Paul Burrell said the Queen preferred “Happy Christmas” because she believed “Merry Christmas” implies drunkenness.

SANTA CLAUS – Today, people around the world are familiar with the popularized depiction of Santa Claus: a chubby old gnome with a snow-colored beard, eight tiny reindeer, and an army of freckle-faced elves who leap at his beck and call.

Though commonly thought of as an American folk legend, Santa Claus owes most of his existence to old religious customs that came to this country with immigrants from Europe. Interwoven in our holiday tradition are the traditions of Spain, Germany, Italy and, above all, the Dutch Netherlands, where one of the clearest connections to the Santa tradition can be found.

Before becoming known in America as Santa Claus, this magical gift bearer was commonly referred to as “Sinter Claes” or “Sinterklass,” a Dutch language corruption of both the name and the religious title of Saint Nicholas, a fourth century bishop of the Eastern Orthodox Church. And as Dutch tradition tells it, Sinterklass doesn’t travel by sled or live at the North Pole. He also doesn’t dress up in a red velvet suit trimmed with faux polar bear fur, or manage a year-round sweatshop staffed by toy-making elves.

Sinterklass

Making a list and checking it twice to keep an accurate record of who’s been naughty and who’s been nice throughout the year is a monumental task, even for a magical old dude like Sinterklass. So assisting him with his gift-giving enterprise is Zwarte Piet (literally “Black Peter”), a Moorish youth with an old school feathered cap on his head and 24-karat “bling” in his earlobes.

View post on imgur.com



A smiling St. Nicholas, “De Goede Sint” (“The Good Saint”), and Black Pete ride their horse and donkey as Dutch children crowd around them in this artwork by Dutch writer and illustrator, Marie “Rie” Cramer, 1929

XMAS – “The X abbreviation of ‘Xmas’ for ‘Christmas’ is neither modern nor disrespectful. The notion that it is a new and vulgar representation of the word ‘Christmas’ seems to stem from the erroneous belief that the letter ‘X’ is used to stand for the word ‘Christ’ because of its resemblance to a cross, or that the abbreviation was deliberately concocted “to take the ‘Christ’ out of Christmas.” Actually, this usage is nearly as old as Christianity itself, and its origins lie in the fact that the first letter in the Greek word for ‘Christ’ is ‘chi,’ and the Greek letter ‘chi’ is represented by a symbol similar to the letter ‘X’ in the modern Roman alphabet.

Hence ‘Xmas’ is indeed perfectly legitimate abbreviation for the word ‘Christmas’ (just as ‘Xian’ is also sometimes used as an abbreviation of the word ‘Christian’). None of this means that Christians (and others) aren’t justified in feeling slighted when people write ‘Xmas’ rather than ‘Christmas,’ but the point is that the abbreviation was not created specifically for the purpose of demeaning Christ, Christians, Christianity, or Christmas — it’s a very old artifact of a very different language.

SHOPPING DAYS UNTIL CHRISTMAS – American retailer H. Gordon Selfridge (1856-1947) coined this expression ” __ shopping days until Christmas” while working for Marshall Field & Co. in Chicago. Later he coined the slogan “the customer is always right” when he opened Selfridge’s in London.

Marshall Field & Company gained notoriety for a number of unique promotions and features, like the Great Tree, which was a part of the store’s Christmas celebrations. In late fall, the phrase “looking ahead to the holidays” appeared in ads, with a full Christmas promotion following after Thanksgiving. “The Store of the Christmas Spirit,” “A Gift from Field’s Means More,” and “Christmas isn’t Christmas without a day at Marshall Field & Company” were advertising lines used to promote the store during the holidays.

Families lined up to eat under the Great Tree, visit “Cozy Cloud Cottage” and admire elaborate window displays, telling the story of “Uncle Mistletoe” and “Freddy Fieldmouse” which were creations of the store’s promotion department. Notably, one of the store’s windows displayed a beautiful crêche for Christmas, in addition to the commercial promotions that were popular along State Street.



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Published by NebraskaFilly

Army veteran (1976-1979), retired with entirely too much time on my hands

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194 thoughts on “Etymology of Words and Phrases, Part 5: ‘Tis the Christmas Season”

  1. Morning All!
    thanks Filly for all the explanations of wonderful Christmas traditions!!

    I apologize for yesterday…I sat in my chair by the fire to open the mail and fell promptly asleep…didn’t wake up till hubby woke me to go to bed! and again I slept like a log!

    Liked by 1 person

          1. the one in my son’s spare room was one he had for years. when they married, they a new one. the old one you do sink into and it’s way too soft for hubby’s back–sigh…but we are guests.

            Liked by 1 person

  7. Citizen 817
    December 19, 2022 12:26 am

    @realDonaldTrump

    2h
    The highly partisan Unselect Committee is illegally leaking confidential info to anyone that will listen. Adam “Shifty” Schiff is all over T.V. talking about Criminal Referrals, just like he was on the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, which turned out to be the con of the century. How much longer are Republicans, and American Patriots in general, going to allow this to happen. These are the Criminals who spied on my campaign, cheated on the Election, lied to FISA Court & Congress. They are SICK!

    Liked by 1 person

  8. Citizen 817
    December 19, 2022 12:27 am

    @realDonaldTrump

    2h
    You can’t learn much from tax returns, but it is illegal to release them if they are not yours!

    Liked by 1 person

  9. Citizen 817
    Citizen 817
    December 19, 2022 12:30 am

    Open the Books Maps $16 Billion in Congressional Earmarks by State and Member of Congress

    Included in the current bill are 7,510 congressional earmarks totaling $16 billion. Both Democrats and Republicans voted on bring back earmarks, practice that had been banned for almost a decade.

    According to Adam Andrzejewski, founder and CEO of Open the Books, “Bringing back earmarks is the equivalent of bringing back the swine flu.”

    The map provides a way to review every earmark in the year-end omnibus spending bill coming for a vote in Congress this week.

    The map can be accessed at Open the Books.

    https://www.openthebooks.com/maps/

    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/12/open-books-maps-16-billion-congressional-earmarks-state-member-congress/

    Liked by 1 person

  12. Liked by 1 person

  14. Liked by 1 person

  16. replies to the article on cfp about the millions of illegals across the country

    Foxtrot Juliet Bravo

    Why do they not report on it? First, they want to flood of people moving into blue states because even if they never vote when they are counted in the census it will add House seats to blue states. Second there is always a MSM blackout of any story that reflects badly on democrats.

    Chriswallace

    Where do all of these illegals eventually live? How do they afford rent?
    1 Reply
    December 19, 2022 6:26 am
    Tommy
    Tommy

    They’re being resettled in republican congressional districts mostly.
    The country is being seeded with unpatriotic foreigners who have no idea about America’s history/founding.
    They’re given money by NGO’s that get money from the US govt.
    You pay their rent.

    Liked by 1 person

  20. “The GOP’s Crack-Up Is Finally Here — American voters now understand: all the Democrats are Democrats, and most Republicans are Democrats too.”

    Emerald Robinson
    2 hr ago
    ENTIRE ARTICLE: “A well-known senator appeared on TV recently to discuss the omnibus bill to fund the federal government, and delivered the following remarks: “Republicans are emasculated. They have no power, and they are unwilling to gain that power back. The Republicans do not have the intestinal fortitude. They always collapse, and they fear shutting government down — so no policy objectives ever get added.”

    Now the question is: which liberal Senator pointed out that the GOP has completely collapsed as a party since the 2020 election? The answer: Rand Paul.

    A GOP senator was willing to state publicly — on Fox News no less! — that his own party has become a joke. That was Thursday. Two days earlier, Kevin McCarthy had taken the extraordinary step of appearing on a prime-time Fox News show to openly criticize Mitch McConnell and GOP Senate leadership for trying to pass the omnibus bill with Democrats. Fox News host Laura Ingraham even took to Twitter to open fire on McConnell’s chief budget negotiator Richard Shelby.

    Rep. Chip Roy took to the House floor to denounce Mitch McConnell and Richard Shelby by name — even pointing out that the retiring Shelby was getting $656 million in earmarks for himself in the omnibus bill. That’s an obscene retirement gift. Richard Shelby said a tearful goodbye to the Senate, and so the Senate wiped his tears with America’s checkbook.

    Chip Roy was not alone in his condemnation of GOP Senate leadership. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Byron Donalds, Lauren Boebert, and Mike Lee all took to TV (or social media) to denounce the omnibus bill. The conservative pundit class also went ballistic: Lou Dobbs, Mark Levin, and many more were throwing lead at Mitch McConnell last week. Needless to say, this kind of inter-party fighting is quite rare — and a clear sign of the GOP’s ideological crack-up.

    If GOP House members have to go public with their disapproval of GOP Senate members, then you know that private discussions did not go well. In other words, McConnell and his gang are going to pass the omnibus anyway — and only the American public’s outrage can stop them.

    As for Richard Shelby, he made sure to note that McCarthy was running for House Speaker — which seemed to be a nod to the idea that McCarthy was merely pretending to dislike the omnibus bill.

    The civil war between the GOP House and GOP Senate over the omnibus bill follows — by a few days! — the GOP’s not-so-secret attempt to negotiate a mass amnesty bill, which followed the capitulation of the GOP on the gay marriage bill, which followed the capitulation of the GOP on endless aid for Ukraine, which followed the capitulation of the GOP on restricting gun rights a few months ago.

    In truth, the term “capitulation” is too kind a word for what the GOP actually did in most of these cases. That word assumes that some sort of fight took place when, in fact, “enthusiastic embrace” might be the more accurate phrase. The GOP has simply abandoned every one of its core principles in the last two years — the entire party platform! — and done so in such a flagrant fashion that even a transparent charlatan like Kevin McCarthy is concerned.

    And he should be — most of our Republican senators resemble the weepy buffoon John Boehner at Nancy Pelosi’s portrait unveiling this week.

    Let’s be clear: John Boehner has no game. He never had any game. Does anyone seriously believe that Nancy Pelosi thinks this effeminate marijuana lobbyist is her political equal? Or that she would show up to gush over a portrait of John Boehner?

    Don’t be absurd. Sure, Nancy Pelosi’s 82 year old husband might have been caught by police with a 42 year old friend in his underwear holding a hammer in the living room of Nancy Pelosi’s San Francisco house at 2 in the morning but that’s nothing compared to the humiliation of watching old GOP leaders like John Boehner kiss the ring in ritual surrender to Democrats at Capitol ceremonies.

    As Rand Paul said: the GOP is emasculated. They always collapse. The only place that Mitch McConnell and Kevin McCarthy and Ronna McDaniel have led the Republican Party is to a complete surrender to the Democrat Party. Naturally, they all want to be re-elected to leadership anyway — and they probably will get their wish. That’s the GOP for you.”

    Liked by 1 person

  25. IF this is all true…..Dana Perino is interviewing the brother (who is here in the US) of an Afghan soldier who helped the US in Afghanistan who was left behind – it got to the point where there was nowhere for him to hide there, so he travelled with others to the southern border. He expected that once he proved his identity, he would be welcomed. The opposite happened – he went via Brazil, Panama, etc. and was arrested at one point by Panama police, who proceeded to torture him, calling him a terrorist, stripped him naked, and threw insect repellant on his open wounds.

    Once he was released, he continued the journey and, not knowing where the entry points were, crossed the US border with about 100 other illegal immigrants [she said migrants – nope!] Apparently, all the rest of the group were released but he was handed over to some other agency and put in prison where he was interrogated and investigated…”basically, he received the worst treatment that he was never expecting from a country that he fought alongside.”

    “Have you heard from any people in the Federal administration who could get this resolved and give him a visa….?” “Unfortunately, no-one has contacted me. I have reached out to congressmen in Texas and I’ve reached out to everyone I could; basically, I’ve been ignored by so many.”

    “What would you like to say to President Biden right now, the Commander in Chief of the US?”

    “I would like to basically send a message to him saying, ‘My brother fought alongside the same troops you sent to Afghanistan and now he is facing deportation.’

    The people that come to the borders without any vetting…they’re being released but my brother comes with a background – a clear background – that he fought alongside the same troops that you gave a mission to go to Afghanistan and free Afghanistan from the terrorists that are now in power. He deserves recognition for his service, not to be imprisoned and not to be tortured by a country he stood alongside, he fought alongside.”

    Liked by 1 person

  27. Special Article: The Finchem Dismissal Disaster in Arizona – Where is the Rule of Law?
    Corruption in AZ Requires the Judiciary to Fulfill its Constitutional Role

    Tom Renz
    4 hr ago

    EXCERPT: “Until recently I have not had time to delve into election cases with much depth. With the recent upheaval in Arizona, I took the time to look into Kari Lake’s case and was shocked at the depth and quality of evidence. This should be a slam dunk. Kari’s case also led me to look into the other statewide cases in AZ and, while all were different, all had merits and I was looking forward to seeing the litigation process play out.

    What I did not expect to find was corruption on a level that seemed to verify the outrage many people expressed after 2020. If the corruption of 2020 was as bad as the 2022 Arizona election people should have been outraged. Further, if the courts did anything similar to what was done with the Finchem dismissal it is not a surprise that people were claiming that there are issues with the courts.

    As a disclaimer, I am an attorney licensed in Ohio but am not licensed in Arizona. I am also a commentator and am writing in that capacity. Disclaimers aside, I want to discuss the dismissal and why people have every right to be upset over this.”

    https://tomrenz.substack.com/p/special-article-the-finchem-dismissal

    Liked by 1 person

  28. Bear in mind, this is a primarily leftist site that Barri Weiss writes for…..he is counting on them in 2024, I’ll bet……

    “The Rise of the DeSantis Democrats — Like Reagan Democrats once upon a time, these voters have already reshaped the political landscape in Florida. Can they do the same nationally in 2024?

    By Olivia Reingold
    Monday, Dec 19, 2022

    EXCERPT: “Williams is one of the DeSantis Democrats: Florida voters who, until recently, identified as Democrats but in November opted to reelect Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis—he who resisted the Covid lockdowns, tangled with Disney, and governed with a record budget surplus—in a landslide.

    It’s unclear how many DeSantis Democrats there are: DeSantis’ vote count jumped from roughly 4 million in 2018 to 4.6 million in 2022. Lots of those voters are presumably independents or Republicans who didn’t vote last time.

    But some are disaffected Democrats alienated from the party they once belonged to. That’s evident from the longtime Democratic strongholds that DeSantis flipped, including Hillsborough, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade, where DeSantis skyrocketed from a 21-point loss in 2018 to an 11-point win in 2022—a net gain of more than 30 percentage points.”

    https://www.thefp.com/p/the-rise-of-the-desantis-democrats

    Liked by 1 person

  29. Alrighty then – just got the box with the cookies – love, love, love the card! And Reese’s!!! Yeah!!!! I’ll let you know which cookies I like best. Yesssss, more air-pockets – perfect to go underneath the newspapers! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!! Lois, of course, called to let me know I had a box on the porch and we ended up chatting for 20 minutes.

    And LM has now shown up – I’m wondering if he was, indeed, in the box….the way he was stretching is just like they do when they are waking up….gotta bundle up and give him his loving for the day. And check to see if he was, indeed, in the shelter.

    Liked by 1 person

      1. Oh, I’ve got a ton saved so don’t worry about that. Thanks, tho. But that style was perfect for underneath the box – the regular ones are too big – these are nice and slim and flatter.

        Liked by 1 person

  30. Yeah! Success! LM was, indeed, in the shelter! Whoopee!!!! He apparently slept late this morning in his cozy den. Just went out and put the perfect air-pockets underneath, filled his food dish, and gave him his daily loving. He jumped up in my lap and rubbed and rubbed, with his motor running at full throttle. He is one smart cat, I have to say that for him – he kept reaching out and grabbing my slipper socks when I tried to go inside. I smacked him once and he no longer does that. I have not seen him poop or pee on the patio and I would smell it if he had – yes, I can smell cat poop….the one thing I wouldn’t mind not being able to smell! LOL

    Liked by 1 person

  31. H/T M

    Liked by 1 person

  32. “Clown World”

    “The democrats are the Romans, the republicans are the Pharisees!”

    “I hope his guards don’t fall asleep….”

    “He’s a real rebel!”

    “Chucky Schemer and the Turtle”

    Liked by 1 person





  35. NF: OK, I have to comment on this one….when I was looking for the hot knife for the planter, WM had the identical hot knife for $49.95 (Chinese-made) that was only $9.95 at Harbor Freight. Yes, I know it is basically a Chinese company but 90% of what we buy now is made in China! WM is simply gouging people!

    Liked by 1 person

  40. this is interesting…thought on what was in the funeral letters…

    Gail Combs
    Gail Combs(@gailcombs)Online
    Coyote
    Reply to TheseTruths
    December 19, 2022 13:41

    Burning Bright and Just Human mentioned the JFK files indicate the assassination was by the CIA —- THINK BUSH SENIOR, head of the CIA who some think was executed. THAT may be what was in those notes at the funeral….

    Good show by the two (Good to listen to) 2.5 hours

    https://rumble.com/v217gxk-defected-ep-7-sun-900-pm-et-.html

    Liked by 1 person

  44. Liked by 1 person

  45. Oh, fuck me! It’s fricking snowing again!!!! Aaaaaagh……just spent 30 minutes trying to write out the instructions for Lois to read my opens, but especially the Xmas Eve Day open. Since she had the stroke, she gets confused easily. She and Oran have both been sick with the upper respiratory crap so I don’t want to go over there right now. Her kids can help her, tho, and once they are better, I will go over to help her if I need to.

    Oh, and yes, she was feeding LM, too! LOL – no wonder he’s so fat! LOL

    Liked by 1 person

    1. OK, I’ve got it on a delay so they have concluded – of course they voted 9-0 to charge Trump!!!!

      From M: Patriots are in Control

      J6 Cmte votes 9-0 to recommend charges against Trump.

      1) Obstruction of an official proceeding.
      2) Conspiracy to defraud the U.S.
      3) False statements
      4) Inciting an insurrection.

      Narrative deployed.

      Liked by 1 person

  49. According to Jonathan Turley, Trump’s actions were not a criminal act. ” The DOJ could reject this referral and take it nowhere, or they could also take it to trial and look for a favorable jury in places like DC. The problem is, I don’t think these convictions on THIS evidence would likely withstand the judicial scrutiny. The biggest problem are those counts that turn on the President’s speech – that speech – that speech, in my view, was protected under existing SC cases like Brandenburg. It would not meet the standard the SC has set out for the criminalization of speech. That’s my view but I expect that, even if they were able to eke out a conviction, they would have a pretty hard time on appeal.”

    Liked by 1 person

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