What People Are Misunderstanding This Week: These Common Christmas Myths
Happy holidays! In honor of this special time of year, I’ve decided to explore common Christmas myths and misconceptions. A couple of weeks ago, I debunked numerous myths about Jesus , then moved on to secular topics, and finally revealed the truth about Santa Claus . So this week, I’m reviewing seasonal misinformation, both religious and secular.
Religious Christmas myths
Jesus was born in a manger.
The Gospels don’t give a specific location for Jesus’s birth other than “Bethlehem.” This is how Luke 2:4–7 is traditionally translated: “And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.” But this isn’t entirely accurate, because, as it turns out, the Greek word καταλυμα (kataluma) doesn’t mean “inn.” It means something closer to “spare room,” and since the Holy Family was in Bethlehem because it was Joseph’s hometown, it seems more likely that they were staying with a friend or relative; all the upstairs bedrooms were occupied, so they slept downstairs, where the animals were kept—hence the manger. The manger idea likely caught on because it is visually simple, well-suited to nativity scenes, and fits the story’s meaning: Jesus was born in humble circumstances.
Three wise men were present at the birth of Jesus.
The Gospel of Matthew tells us that King Herod commanded an unspecified number of “wise men” (or Magi) to go to Bethlehem because a star had appeared, announcing the birth of the Messiah. They set out to find him and bring him gifts. We don’t know how many of these wise men went to Bethlehem or how long it took them to get there, but Matthew 2:11 says they visited a house . The Bible also says they brought gold, frankincense, and myrrh, so at least that part is accurate.
To call it “Christmas” is to try to take the “Christ” out of the word “Christmas.”
It’s a strange occurrence, but many Christians believe that the use of the word “Xmas” is part of an ongoing secular war against Christmas , but this is not true. In the Greek New Testament , the word for Christ is “XRISTOS.” The use of XP or X to refer to Christ dates back to the early Christians who wrote in Greek, and the word has also been used in English writing. Something like Xmas (Xp̄es mæsse) was used as early as 1100 AD to refer to “Christ’s Mass” or Christmas. This was centuries before the secular Christmas emerged.
Secular Christmas Myths
“Jingle Bells” is a Christmas song.
“Jingle Bells” isn’t a Christmas song, to be precise. While it’s probably the song most often associated with the holiday, the lyrics don’t mention Christmas. It’s simply a song about the fun of riding in a one-horse sleigh. (Another common misconception about “Jingle Bells” is that it was written for Thanksgiving . This isn’t true either.)
Like much history, the song “Jingle Bells” is far more disturbing than it might first appear. It was written by James Pierpont and first performed at a minstrel show in 1857. Sleigh rides are a great subject for songs, so there was an entire subgenre of minstrel songs on the subject, some more racist than others, and “Jingle Bells” is the only one that has survived to this day.
Other Christmas songs that don’t mention the holiday include “Let It Snow,” “Winter Wonderland,” “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,” “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” “Home for the Holidays,” and “Frosty the Snowman.” Technically, none of these are Christmas songs by the strictest definition of “Christmas song,” but on the other hand, they’re songs everyone sings at Christmas, and they’re typically about winter fun, holidays, and the like, so there’s a good chance they’re still Christmas songs. That’s something you can decide for yourself.
Boxing Day is the day to wrap the gifts you are going to return.
December 26th is known as “Boxing Day,” and many believe this name comes from the fact that on this day we wrap unwanted gifts and return them to the store. However, the holiday originated in England , when wealthy people gave their servants the day off and a box of gifts, and/or simply gave gifts or donated to local needy people.
Mrs. Klaus’s name
We know Santa Claus’s name is “Santa,” but what about his wife? It turns out she doesn’t have a name. The original image of Santa, Saint Nicholas, was a Catholic bishop, so he didn’t have a wife. The collective unconscious has augmented the image of Santa Claus as a mythical figure (a house at the North Pole, worker elves, etc.), but no one has ever given Mrs. Claus a name that sticks.
Here are a few examples: in the 1985 film The Santa Clause: The Movie, Mrs. Claus is named “Anya.” In the 2011 film Arthur Christmas , she’s named “Margaret.” In the Santa Claus films, she’s named “Carol” (but in this mythology, her name is changed after her death). These are all isolated instances, but there is one Mrs. Claus name that is supported by several facts: Jessica.
The makers of the 1970s stop-motion animated film Santa Claus Is Coming to Town reportedly called the character Mrs. Claus “Jessica,” though she’s not called that in the film. Ryan Reynolds called Mrs. Claus “Jessica” on Instagram . And most importantly, some girl in 1974 said Mrs. Claus’s name was Jessica, so I’m leaning toward that.