I always see these words everywhere. It seems as if the whole word is so hard to type that you have to write, “Merry Xmas”. Christ with an X. It’s just like those shortened version of text messages that sometimes you cannot understand. How long will it take one to write the proper word with six letters compared to the four-letter word?
Accordingly, X can mean so many things. For example, when we want to denote an unknown quantity, we use the symbol X. It can refer to an obscene level of films, something that is X-rated. People seem to express chagrin about seeing Christ’s name dropped and replaced by this symbol for an unknown quantity X. Every year you see the signs and the bumper stickers saying, “Put Christ back into Christmas” as a response to this substitution of the letter X for the name of Christ.
There’s no X in Christmas
First of all, you have to understand that it is not the letter X that is put into Christmas. We see the English letter X there, but actually what it involves is the first letter of the Greek name for Christ. Christos is the New Testament Greek for Christ. The first letter of the Greek word Christos is transliterated into our alphabet as an X. That X has come through church history to be a shorthand symbol for the name of Christ.- (Legonier Ministries)
I still prefer writing the word Christ though in Christmas, no abbreviations for me. It seems the meaning is lost when you just write X. Same thing with greeting someone with “Happy Holidays”. Of course we know it is a holiday but for us Catholics, it’s a Holy Day.
So X is just the first letter of the Greek name for Christ. Cristes Maesse or “Christ’s Mass” is an old English term for “celebration of Christ”.
Beyond the traditional festivities that we observe during December, Christmas reminds us of Jesus’ birth. We start our nine-day Novena masses on the night of December 15 (for anticipated mass) and dawn masses early morning of December 16. It’s a tradition for us. We call them Simbang Gabi or Misa de Gallo. It is a unique Filipino celebration of Christmas.
I am one of the few who write a text message with full words and never use abbreviations. Hate them! 🙂 x
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Same here Julie. I don’t like to read abbreviated words even in text messages and my friends know about it. Thanks for dropping by.
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I have never written abbreviations in text messages, but I confess that I sometimes write ‘Happy Xmas’ in cards.
Nobody does Christmas better than you, Arlene. I think you should be The Queen of Christmas. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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Haha Pete. They’re just observations. I am glad to know you don’t write abbreviated words in text messages.
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Your explanation of the X is quite correct, but I wonder how many who use it are aware of that
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Maybe perhaps not everyone is aware of it Derrick. Like in using texts, I have never abbreviated the word Christmas.
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Nor me
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hi arlene i usually use short forms but not for ‘Christmas’ cause Christ is the reason for the christmas season!!!
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I don’t shorten words when texting Vanessa. I hate it 🙂
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I never knew the X was the first letter of the Greek name for Christ. It makes it a little easier for me to accept Xmas now that I have learned the origin. I still much prefer to keep the word Christ in Christmas.
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Like you, I still prefer writing Christmas and greeting everyone ‘Merry Christmas’ instead of happy holidays.
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for me, christmas is a very important word. i always spell it out right 🙂
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Most of us do I think Wilma.
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I appreciate the explanation, but I certainly always write out the word Christmas.
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Yes, I do also appreciate those who write the whole word Christmas instead of writing an X on Christ,
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