Is “Xmas” Okay Instead Of “Christmas”?

There's already the "Merry Christmas" vs "Happy Holidays" crowd. But what about the abbreviation for Christmas? What do people who think highly of Christmas think of "Xmas"?

I use Xmas on occasion when typing the holiday out, mainly because running the finest Cedar Valley radio station is a lot of work, plus I am incredibly lazy.

But are we being disrespectful with Xmas?

Technically, no.

While many people get offended by Xmas, mainly because they think you're "taking the Christ out of Christmas" and they associate Xmas with the endless holiday advertising that many feel has devalued the real meaning of the holiday, Xmas has been around a lot longer than you and me.

Xmas started back in the 1500s, way before capitalism took over Jesus' birthday.

The letter X in English is also "chi" in Greek alphabet, chi is the first letter of Christ, and it was a common way to refer to Christmas across many cultures.

In fact, there once was an "XPmas" that was used as far back as 1021, almost 1,000 years ago.