Etymograph

English

Xmas

Xmas comes from Old English Χp̃es mæssa ‘Xmas, Christmas’, and goes back to Aramaic ܡܫܺܝܚܳܐ.

  1. Aramaicc. 1000 BCE–700 CEܡܫܺܝܚܳܐm'šīḥāʿ‘Messiah, Christ’
  2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEΧριστόςKhristós‘Christ’
  3. Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEΧ
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150Cristes
  5. Old English, derivedc. 450–1150Χp̃es mæssa‘Xmas, Christmas’
  6. Englishearliest quotation c. 1755Xmas

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Aramaicc. 1000 BCE–700 CEܡܫܺܝܚܳܐm'šīḥāʿ‘Messiah, Christ’
  2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEΧριστόςKhristós‘Christ’
  3. Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEΧ
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150Cristes
  5. Old English, derivedc. 450–1150Χp̃es mæssa‘Xmas, Christmas’
  6. Englishearliest quotation c. 1755Xmas

Earliest quotation: c. 1755, Bernard Ward, History of St. Edmund's college: “In ye Xmas and Whitsuntide Vacations, ye Scholars study…”

Equivalent to X ‘Christ’ + -mas ‘holiday’

The story

Attested in this form since 1755, and preceded by earlier forms such as X'temmas (1551) and Old English Χp̃es mæssa (1100), from Cristes mæsse, with abbreviation of Cristes by the symbol X, orthographic borrowing from Ancient Greek Χ (Kh, letter chi), from Χριστός (Khristós, “Christ”). In popular use since late 19th century.

Linked words

through Aramaic ܡܫܺܝܚܳܐ ‘Messiah, Christ’

messiah, messianic, 6 more

Today it means

name —

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Aramaic ܡܫܺܝܚܳܐ / Xmas

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