The practice of giving gifts at the beginning of winter traces back to ancient Rome. According to Dennis Green’s article, “The Origins and Practices of Christmas: Christian or Pagan?” written December 8, 2008 and found on the Free Republic website, “Ancient Romans held year end celebrations to honor Saturn, their harvest god; and Mithras, the [sic] god of light…As part of these celebrations, the people prepared special foods, decorated their homes with greenery, and joined in singing and gift giving. These customs gradually became part of gift giving.”
According to The Rise of Western Christendom by Peter Brown, in the period A.D. 200-500, Romans celebrated the feast of the Kalends, which was a New Year’s feast. This feast celebrated the vigor of the Roman order and was renewed with the start of the new year. At the feast the consuls, who “gave” their names to the year, were nominated. Throughout the Roman Empire, the feast involved lavish exchanges of gifts between patrons and their dependents.
Christmas Presents and Their Religious Significance
Sometime after the birth of Jesus, three wise men, also known as Magi, came to visit the newborn. According to the Bible, Matthew 2:1-2, “…Magi came from the east to Jerusalem and asked, ‘Where is the one who has been born the King of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.’”
The wise men brought three gifts with them to honor Jesus, which had prophetic meaning:
- Gold- a gift for a king
- Incense- a gift for a priest
- Myrrh- a burial ointment for one who would die
According to Sarah Dowdey’s article, “How Christmas Works,” dated November 21, 2007 and found on the How Stuff Works website, “[Christmas] gifts were meant to remind people of the Magi’s offerings to Jesus and of God’s gift of Christ.”
St. Nicholas and Christmas Stockings
During the fourth century, St. Nicholas was the bishop of Myra in Asia Minor. St. Nicholas had a reputation for his generosity and kindness, especially toward children. He was known for giving treats and small presents to them. According to the ChristiaNet website, St. Nicholas has evolved into the magical Santa Claus of today.
St. Nicholas’ association with leaving gifts in stockings hung on the mantle has its roots in folklore. According to the story, a poor widower lived in Myra. He had three daughters and could not afford a dowry for them. To save the daughters from being sold by their father, St. Nicholas threw three bags of gold down the chimney. The bags landed in stockings that were hung be the fire to dry. This began the tradition of hanging stockings by the fireplace. This folklore was a key part in St. Nicholas’ eventual evolution into the gift giving Santa Claus.
Christmas Stocking Treats Evolve Into Christmas Presents
By the 10th Century, it is believed that nearly every country was participating in the gift giving custom started by St. Nicholas in the fourth century, per the WikiAnswers website.
Common gifts were homemade foods and sweets, oranges (which were a special treat as they were rare), handcrafted gifts and other useful handmade items.
These types of gifts were most common up until the industrial revolution when there was a shift from homemade to manufactured Christmas gifts in America, according to Ben Best’s article “History of Christmas,” found at Ben Best.com.
Along with the industrial revolution came the advent of advertising, which, by the 1840’s, was an integral part of society. The coalition of these two entities eventually revolutionized the simple custom of Christmas gift giving into the commercialized sensation that it is today.
Christin Aitchison - Christin is a freelance writer who has targeted the children's market for the past five years. Her publishing credits include Highlights ...
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