During the holiday season children all around the world make Christmas lists. But why is it a custom to give your friends and family gifts? Some parents participate in a “Three-gift Christmas” to avoid clutter and it’s a good way to link the presents back to the Christian faith. This idea started because when Jesus was born; the Wise Men gave him three gifts: gold, frankincense and myrrh. There is also the tradition of naughty and nice, however, many families have abandoned this tradition. With all this being said, the main reason gift giving began is because of corporate capitalism in America. This began in New York during the 1800’s. After Christmas shopping became big in New York, it became a competition around the country among upper and middle-class families. When this holiday became established, it worried the upper class because they thought it would be a reason for the lower classes to beg for food.  Because of this concern, a group of men called the “Knickerbockers” invented tradition in order to move Christmas inside homes instead of on the streets. These men practiced in New York and New Amsterdam. Clement Clarke Moore spread Christmas traditions all across America with his poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” AKA “The Night Before Christmas.” Children began to receive gifts as early as the 1700’s, however, those gifts were more than likely homemade treats. By the 1820s people were getting store bought presents. Gift giving was controversial among the lower and middle classes because parents thought that if their kids were just given things, it would reduce their household responsibilities, especially if they are older and are about to be an adult.  Now, nearly two centuries later, gift giving is a very common practice in most American households.

Source: https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/12/why-people-give-christmas-gifts/421908/

Source: https://www.today.com/parents/three-gift-christmas-parents-try-bring-some-reason-season-t75461