In a message dated 11/30/2005 9:57:55 PM Eastern Standard Time, 
[log in to unmask] writes:
I don't like "happy holidays"
or "xmas" (where did that come from, anyway?) 
Stephen, 

"Happy Holidays" speaks for itself.  And I believe some have already 
addressed the "holy days" that has contracted into "holidays" over the centuries.  

Xmas is a very different kind of contraction.  Having had seven years of 
formal study in  classical, koine and byzantine Greek, I use _alot_ of Greek 
abbreviations.  X is the letter "chi" which is the traditional abbreviation for 
"christos," and comes into English as "christ," usually capitalized for 
theological reasons.  It is one of very few abbreviations left in the English language 
that were common in the seventeenth and eighteenth century written English.  
If you've ever encountered "Xian" in an eighteenth century English letter or 
diary, I can assure they were not speaking of a friend from Asia.  

I'd go on, but I could bore you to tears...

Holly
in Virginia

...whose husband helped fold laundry today, and asked me if I realized that I 
had two identical red sweaters...

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