Xmas

"Xmas" and "X-mas" are common abbreviations of the word "Christmas". They are sometimes pronounced /ˈɛksməs/, but they, and variants such as "Xtemass", originated as handwriting abbreviations for the correct pronunciation /ˈkrɪsməs/. The "-mas" part came from the Latin-derived Old English word for "mass". The "X" in Xmas is from the Greek letter Chi, which is the first letter of Χριστός, Christ in Greek (see below).

Style guides and etiquette

"Xmas" is frowned upon in modern guides for writing styles. Style guides at the New York Times, The Times, The Guardian and the BBC all rule out its use, where possible. Millicent Fenwick, in the 1948 Vogue's Book of Etiquette states that "'Xmas' should never be used" in greeting cards.

The Cambridge Guide to Australian English Usage states that the spelling should be considered informal and restricted to contexts where concision is valued, such as headlines and greeting cards.

The Christian Writer's Manual of Style, while acknowledging the ancient and respectful use of "Xmas" in the past, states that the spelling should never be used in formal writing.

History

Today, with knowledge of classical languages being less widespread than formerly, some erroneously believe that the term Xmas is part of an effort to "take Christ out of Christmas" or to literally "cross out Christ"; it is seen as evidence of the secularization of Christmas, as a symptom of the commercialization of the holiday (as the abbreviation has long been used by retailers).

In the United Kingdom, The former Church of England Bishop of Blackburn, Alan Chesters, once recommended to his clergy that they avoid the spelling.

Usage of X for Christ in ancient languages

For the article about the "ΧΡ" symbol see Chi Rho.

The word "Christ" and its compounds, including "Christmas", have been abbreviated in English for at least the past 1,000 years, long before the modern "Xmas" was commonly used. "Christ" was often written as "XP" or "Xt"; there are references in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle as far back as AD 1021. This X and P arose as the uppercase forms of the Greek letters χ and ρ used in ancient abbreviations for Χριστος (Greek for "Christ"), and are still widely seen in many Eastern Orthodox icons depicting Jesus Christ. The labarum, an amalgamation of the two Greek letters rendered as ☧, is a symbol often used to represent Christ in Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox Christian Churches.

The occasionally held belief that the "X" represents the cross on which Christ was crucified also 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, since the cross as a Christian symbol developed later. (The Greek letter Chi Χ stood for "Christ" in the ancient Greek acrostic ΙΧΘΥΣ ichthys.) While some see the spelling of Christmas as Xmas a threat, others see it as a way to honor the martyrs. The use of X as an abbreviation for "cross" in modern abbreviated writing (e.g. "King's X" for "King's Cross") may have reinforced this assumption.

In ancient Christian art, χ and χρ 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.

Usage in English

The Oxford English Dictionary and OED Supplement have cited usages of "X-" or "Xp-" for "Christ-" in 1485 ("Xpian"), 1598 ("Xpian"), and "Xtian" in 1845, 1915 and 1940. It cites "Xtianity" usage in 1634, 1811 and 1966. "Most of the evidence for these words comes from educated Englishmen who knew their Greek," according to Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage, referring to the OED citations.

In the United Kingdom and among the English, use of "Xmas" is found in a letter from January 13, 1753 (George Woodward to George London: "I find by ye News:papers that several People have shewed a great Aversion to ye Alteration of ye Style; particularly with regard to ye Observation of Xmas Day"). Lord Byron used the term in 1811 ("If you won't come here before Xmas, [...]", letter, September 9, 1811). Samuel Coleridge used it ("On Xmas Day I breakfasted with Davy", 1801) as did Lewis Carroll ("[...] which I hope to get published before Xmas", letter, June 10, 1864). In the United States, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. also wrote it ("I expect about Xmas a visit", October 11, 1923).

Since at least the late 19th century, "Xmas" has been in use in various other English-language nations. Quotations with the word can be found in texts written in Canada, and the word has been used in Australia, and in the Caribbean

Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage stated that modern use of the term is largely limited to advertisements, headlines and banners, where its conciseness is valued. The association with commerce "has done nothing for its reputation", according to the dictionary.

Other uses of "X" for "Chris-"

The proper names containing the name "Christ" other than aforementioned are rarely abbreviated in this way (e.g. Hayden Xensen for the actor name "Hayden Christensen"). This apparent usage of "X" to spell the syllable "kris" (rather than the sounds "ks") 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" comes from Greek words meaning "golden flower", while "Christ" comes from a Greek word meaning "anointed").

In the 17th and 18th Centuries, "Xene" and "Exene" were common spellings of the given name Christene. Christina Aguilera has at times gone by the name Xtina (the "t" should not be considered redundant as, as is noted above, "Christ" was often shortened historically to "Xt" not just X).

In popular culture

In the animated television show Futurama, which is set in the 31st century, Xmas, pronounced /ˈɛksməs/, is the official name for the day formerly known as Christmas (which has become an "archaic pronunciation").

Translation

The word "Xmas" occurs as such in the following languages: English, Italian, Chinese.

Translation(s) in other languages: German: X-mas, Tagalog: X'mas.