Fun Facts About Christmas
Author: Gary Tallon
1. Christmas (believe it or not) is not festival celebrating gluttony, drunkeness or consumerism. The festival now often referred to by busy people as 'Xmas' is an annual holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. Jesus of Nazareth (7-2 BC/BCE-26-36 AD/CE), also known as Jesus Christ, is the central figure of the religion of Christianity and is revered by most Christian churches as the Son of God and the incarnation of God. Islam considers Jesus a prophet, while many Hindus see him as an Avatar.
2. A gift or present is the transfer of something, without the need for compensation that is involved in trade (also know as commerce). A gift is a act which is voluntary does not require anything in return. Even though it may involve a social expectation of reciprocity, or a return in the form of prestige or power, a gift is meant to be free.
In many human cultures and societies, the act of mutually exchanging goods, money etc may contribute to enhancing social cohesion. Economists have elaborated the economics of gift-giving into the notion of a gift economy.
The term gift can also refer to anything that makes the other happier or less sad, especially as a favour, including forgiveness and kindness. Gifts aren't always material objects!
3. There are several alternative names for Christmas. Crimbo is a slang term which first appeared in print in 1928. The variant 'Crimble' was first used by John Lennon in a Beatles' Fan Club Christmas single in 1963. Xmas is an established abbreviation, though it is involved in the secularization of Christmas debate. Yule is used in Northern Europe. In the US, the term(s) "holiday" and / or "season" may be used.
4. Saint Nicholas is the common name for Nicholas of Myra, a Christian saint who was Bishop of Myra in Lycia of Anatolia (now known as Antalya province in Turkey, though at the time it was a Greek-speaking Roman Province). Because of the many miracles attributed to him, he is known as Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker. He had a reputation for secret gift-giving, and is now commonly identified with Santa Claus. Saint Nicholas Day is a festival in early December for children in much of Europe related to surviving legends of the saint, and particularly his reputation as a bringer of gifts.
Images of Santa Claus were popularised through Haddon Sundblom's depiction of him in The Coca-Cola Company's Christmas advertising in the 1930's. The popularity of the image has since spawned urban legends that Santa Claus was himself an invention of Coca-Cola or that Santa wears red and white because those are the colors of the Coca-Cola brand. In fact, Coca-Cola was not the first soft drinks company to utilize the modern image of Santa in its advertising - White Rock Beverages used Santa to sell mineral water in 1915 and then later in ads for ginger ale in 1923. The massive advertising campaign by Coca-Cola simply popularised the depiction of Santa wearing red and white, in contrast to the variety of colours he wore prior to that campaign; red and white was originally given by the 19th century caricaturist and political cartoonist Thomas Nast. The modern depiction of Santa Claus as a fat, jolly man (or gnome) in a red coat and trousers with white cuffs and collar, black leather belt and boots, first became popular in the United States due to Nash's work.
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About the Author:
Gary Tallon wrote this article about Gifts .
