This time of year, we toss around a phrase that’s kind of odd. We’d never talk like this the rest of the year, but during this season, we wish each other a “Merry Christmas.” A couple of years ago, I saw a quote that I shared on social media, and it popped up again in my Facebook memories on Christmas Eve.
The word “merry” is from an old Anglo-Saxon word which literally means “valiant,” “illustrious,” “great,” or “gallant.” Thus, to be merry is not merely to be mirthful, but to be mighty. In Shakespeare we read of fiercely courageous soldiers who are called “merry men.” Strong winds are “merry gales.” Fine days are marked by “merry weather.” So when we say “Merry Christmas,” we are really exhorting one another to take heart and to stand fast! Merry Christmas! —Judson Heartsill
Heartsill makes an excellent point, even if his etymology is off. According to Merriam-Webster, “merry” comes from the “Middle English mery, from Old English myrge, merge; akin to Old High German murg short.”
Etymonline notes that the word comes from the “Middle English mirie, from Old English myrge ‘pleasing, agreeable, pleasant, sweet, exciting feelings of enjoyment and gladness’ (said of grass, trees, the world, music, song); also as an adverb, ‘pleasantly, melodiously,’ from Proto-Germanic *murgijaz, which probably originally meant ‘short-lasting’ (compare Old High German murg ‘short,’ Gothic gamaurgjan “to shorten”)…”
“The connection to pleasure likely was via the notion of ‘making time fly, that which makes the time seem to pass quickly’ (compare German Kurzweil ‘pastime,’ literally ‘a short time;’ Old Norse skemta ‘to amuse, entertain, amuse oneself,’ from skamt, neuter of skammr ‘short’),” Etymonline continues.
So pairing “merry” with “valiant,” “illustrious,” “great,” or “gallant” is more of a connotation, but that doesn’t make it any less true. In English usage, merry often carries a sense of lively strength (merry men, merry gales, etc.) — not “fragile happiness,” more like robust cheer. It may not stem from the origins of “merry,” but Heartsill gets the Shakespearean luster that “merry” gets.
English speakers started using “Merry Christmas” not long before Shakespeare’s day. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first recorded example of “merry Christmas” was a Dec. 22, 1534, letter from Bishop John Fisher to Thomas Cromwell in which Fisher wrote, “And thus our Lord send yow a mery Christenmas, and a comfortable, to yowr heart desyer.”
The phrase “Merry Christmas” grew in popularity during Charles Dickens’ day. Mental Floss explains that pop culture — especially modern Christmas songs and movies — firmly embedded “merry” within the Yuletide context, while “happy” sticks around our other celebrations.
Our British cousins mix “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Christmas.” Mental Floss suggests that “Happy Christmas” came about among a British connotation of “merry” as being joyful because of the influence of alcohol and teetotalers not wanting to mix the holiness of the holiday with debauchery.
Related: Christmas Was a Declaration of War
Nevertheless, I love where Heartsill tracks with his thesis. “Merry Christmas” is more than a twinkly little Hallmark greeting. It’s a stance. We can use that connotation of “merry” as robust cheer to encourage each other at Christmastime.
When we look at the greeting that way, “Merry Christmas” becomes “take heart,” “don’t surrender,” and “stand firm.” Christmas means that we have Immanuel — God with us — so why shouldn’t we be bold, firm, and strong?
What can that look like? Call someone who is lonely. Forgive somebody. Speak the truth in love. Put your phone down, and pick your Bible up. Pray a simple prayer: “Lord, make my joy sturdy.”
We live in a difficult, fallen world, but “Merry Christmas” isn’t asking you to fake it. It’s an invitation to receive courage because Christ has come.
Jesus reminded us, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33, NIV).
So take heart. Stand fast. Merry Christmas!
Christmas is here, but the gift that keeps on giving lasts all year.
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