How Christmas Stockings Came to Be
Christmas stockings are one of the most symbolic icons of Christmas. The most common are the red stockings with white trim. These days, stockings are usually commercialized versions of the real ones and are specifically made for the sole purpose of hanging near the chimney or any other place to fill with goodies. The stockings also come in many different sizes but always in the shape of a stocking. There are many legends and origins of the Christmas stockings.
Brief History of the Christmas Stocking
One of the more striking legends of the Christmas stockings is that there was a nobleman who was so poor that he despaired of ever being able to marry off his three daughters without any dowries. One the nights before Christmas, his daughters each washed their stockings and hung them near the fireplace to dry. Saint Nicholas who was passing through town that day heard of the gentleman's plight and contrived a plan to drop a bag of gold through the chimney in order to help them. The bags of gold found their way into the girls' stockings and the custom was created.
Another theory regarding Christmas stockings is from the Dutch children who used to place their wooden clogs near the fireplace to dry and to use these wooden clogs as containers of straw for reindeer. Eventually, the clogs changed into stockings which were hung in the mantle shelf of chimneys.
Modern Day Theories of Christmas Stockings
As for American theories regarding the tradition of hanging out Christmas stockings on the chimney mantelshelf, many have theorized that it is a mixture of cultures from the different migrants who finally settled in the United States of America from their homelands. They brought their traditions with them and further mixed these with other traditions from other migrants and eventually evolved into what we believe Christmas stockings to be.
No matter how the Christmas stocking came to be, it is one of the most enjoyed traditions in a household because even if the children are already grown up enough to not believe in Santa Claus, they still get to receive stocking stuffers from members of their family. The more recent tradition for Christmas stockings is to stuff them with at least five gifts for each of the person's five senses. This is supposed to stimulate the person and to give him luck for the coming year.
