People call it “Xmas” because the “X” comes from an old Christian abbreviation for Christ , not from trying to remove Christ from Christmas.

Where “Xmas” Comes From

  • The word “Christmas” originally means “Christ’s Mass,” a church service celebrating Jesus’ birth.
  • In early Christian writing, Christ’s name in Greek is “Χριστός” (Christos), which starts with the Greek letter chi (Χ) that looks like the English letter X.
  • Scribes began using that letter as a sacred shorthand for Christ, which later turned into writing “Xmas” as an abbreviation of “Christmas.”

How Old Is “Xmas”?

  • Abbreviating “Christ” with an X goes back many centuries in Christian manuscripts.
  • Forms like “X’temmas” and “Xmas” are recorded in English from at least the 1500s–1700s, long before texting or modern advertising.

Is “Xmas” Disrespectful?

  • Some people dislike “Xmas” because they think it “takes Christ out of Christmas,” but historically the X was actually a respectful Christian symbol linked to Christ’s name.
  • Modern use is often just for convenience (short signs, cards, or messages), even though many users are unaware of the Greek and church-history background.

TL;DR: People call it “Xmas” because X is an ancient Christian abbreviation for Christ from the Greek word “Χριστός,” so “Xmas” literally means “Christmas,” not something different.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.