christmas

Where does the word "christmas" come from? It comes from Greek Khristos, passing through Late Latin and Old English before entering English (1300s).

Christmas’s story begins in Greek: Khristos meant “anointed one.” 'anointed', translating Hebrew 'māshīaḥ', messiah; the 'X' of 'Xmas' is the Greek letter chi. By ancient, the word had taken hold in Late Latin as missa. The Mass, from the closing words 'ite, missa est'. From there it passed into Old English as Crīstes mæsse by 1038. 'Christ's mass', first recorded in 1038. It reached English by 1300s as Christmas. The 't' fell silent as the two words fused. Today, christmas means the Christian festival of the birth of Christ, held on 25 December.

1. Stage 1 · Greek · ancient Khristos "anointed one", 'anointed', translating Hebrew 'māshīaḥ', messiah; the 'X' of 'Xmas' is the Greek letter chi.
2. Stage 2 · Late Latin · ancient missa "Mass", the Mass, from the closing words 'ite, missa est'.
3. Stage 3 · Old English · 1038 Crīstes mæsse "Christ's mass", 'Christ's mass', first recorded in 1038.
4. Stage 4 · English · 1300s Christmas "Christmas", the 't' fell silent as the two words fused.