How have we derived to the word Christmas. Something I am interested in. I have heard that it was derived from the catholic mass anyone know for sure and can give something historical?
The suffix -mas is a combining form for Mass meaning a (specified) festival or celebration.
Other examples include: Martinmas, the church feast held on November 11 in honor of St. Martin. Michaelmas, the church feast held on September 29 in honor of St. Michael the Archangel. Candlemas, the church feast held on February 2 in honor of the presentation of Christ in the Temple and the purification of the Virgin Mary, a day on which candles for sacred use are blessed.
In the part of the world that speaks a Romance language, they don’t use the term Christmas but rather a derivative of *nativity,
*since the Church officially refers to Jesus’ birth as The Nativity of Our Lord.
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