Question:
Why does X-mas stand for Christmas?
2006-01-16 07:23:43 UTC
Where/how did it start?
Twelve answers:
txgurl
2006-01-16 07:32:42 UTC
Xmas (or X-mas) is an abbreviation for Christmas. It is derived from the word ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ, transliterated as Christos, which is Greek for Christ. Greek is the language in which the whole New Testament was written.



Originally, in "Xmas", X represented the Greek letter χ. It was pronounced with a hard [kh], which is the first letter of Christ's name in Greek. However, because of the modern interpretations of the letter X, many people do not know this and assume that this abbreviation is meant to drop Christ from Christmas as a means of secularization or a vehicle for political correctness.



The occasionally seen belief that the X represents the cross Christ was crucified on has no basis in fact; St Andrew's Cross is X-shaped, but Christ's cross was probably shaped like a T or a †. Indeed, X-as-chi was associated with Christ long before X-as-cross could be. The use of X as an abbreviation for cross in modern abbreviated writing (e.g. "Kings X" for "Kings Cross") may have reinforced this assumption.



In ancient Christian art χ and χρ (Chi Ro--the first two letters in Greek of Christos) are abbreviations for Christ's name. In many manuscripts of the New Testament and icons, X is an abbreviation for Christos, as is XC (the first and last letters in Greek, using the lunate sigma); compare IC for Jesus in Greek. The Oxford English Dictionary documents the use of this abbreviation back to 1551, 50 years before the first English colonists came to North America and 60 years before the King James Version of the Bible was completed. At the same time, Xian and Xianity were in frequent use as abbreviations of "Christian" and "Christianity".



The abbreviation is widely but not universally accepted; some view it as demeaning to Christ, whilst others find it helpful to use in text messages and emails to save space. Similarly, Xianity is sometimes used as the abbreviation for Christianity (although this usage is much less common than "Xmas"). This usage has extended to "xtal" for "crystal", and on florists' signs "xant" for "chrysanthemum" (though these words are not etymologically related to "Christ" — crystal comes from a Greek word meaning "ice", and chrysanthemum from a Greek word meaning "golden flower", while Christ comes from a Greek word meaning "anointed").
kuhlmann
2016-09-24 15:35:46 UTC
Mas Stand For
2016-03-16 04:18:13 UTC
X is Greek for Christos which is where Christ comes from. Christ is actually a title, not a given name like Peter or John. So Xmas is the same thing as Christmas, regardless of what most people believe.
beemerharley2
2006-01-18 18:48:12 UTC
It was a marketing ploy to save advertising space. It's ALL about the Benjamins, not about Christ. No disrespect to the good people who went with Greek answers, but I believe that it has been WAY too recent that the contraction has come about, for any REAL answer to be attributed to history.
gettenjim
2006-01-16 07:26:38 UTC
It's an example of people that are:



1. non-Christian

2. Too lazy to write it out



Don't know when it started. Probably the 60's.
jayyman7
2006-01-16 07:26:43 UTC
I think it's because X sometimes stands for the words "Criss" or "Cross", like some may call thesport Cross Country 'x-Country for short'



'Criss-mas'?
loligo1
2006-01-16 07:37:19 UTC
I thought it was because some people can't spell Christmas
Lilo
2006-01-16 07:26:45 UTC
I believe because 'X' looks a lot like a cross sign.
danae_rachelle
2006-01-16 07:25:27 UTC
X means "unknown" in greek...and it started in the very early days.



I believe it was started by pagans who did not believe in Christ.
2006-01-16 07:25:51 UTC
i think the word christ or chross can be substituted witth X like pedestrians Xing instead of crossing
2006-01-20 22:43:11 UTC
I think X signifies the cross.
2006-01-16 07:27:57 UTC
hmmmmmmmm lets see i dont know!!!!!!!!


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