XMAS

Xmas

Xmas is a common abbreviation of the word Christmas . It is sometimes pronounced, but it, and variants such as Xtemass, originated as handwriting abbreviations for the typical pronunciation . The "-mas" part is from the Latin-derived Old English word for Mass, while the "X" comes from the Greek letter Chi, which is the first letter of the Greek word Χριστός which comes into English as "Christ".

The above text is a snippet from Wikipedia: Xmas
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

Need help with a clue?
Try your search in the crossword dictionary!