How sending Christmas greeting cards came to be so popular and why it continues to this day to hold such a special place in our hearts and minds

1. WHY DO WE SEND CHRISTMAS GREETING CARDS?
Today's Christmas greeting cards date back to the mid nineteen hundreds and their story begins with a
man called Sir Henry Cole. However, the story of Christmas cards has its roots in cultures much older
still and many have contributed to the tradition as we know it today. So what is it about Christmas
cards and these traditions which remains such an important part of our celebration and why is it we
still send them?
Looking through the sands of time at the history of Christmas greeting cards can help us to understand
and appreciate their place in today’s world and gives a new layer of meaning to the tradition.
Exploring the History of Greeting Cards
The Chinese and The Egyptians had the original idea of sharing greetings via written messages –
mainly around New Year’s celebration at first (not New Year as we know it now of course!). It is
thought those ancient greetings were only sent to ward off evil spirits across both cultures and not sent
at other times of the year. Of course, they also bore no similarities to the types of cards we are all used
to these days!
Sending of cards really started to evolve once printing presses became mechanized as well as the later
arrival of postage stamps and an industrial postal system.
This is where Sir Henry Cole came into it – he is widely credited with inventing the commercial
Christmas card, as well as being involved in many other innovative things for the era, such as the Great
Exhibition – which helped (through its surplus funds), to found the V&A Museum in London, along
with driving forward the introduction of the Penny Post.

2. The First Christmas Greetings Card
Already the idea of sending cards on certain days like New Year’s and Valentine’s Day had occurred,
therefore it made sense to start thinking about creating a commercial industry based on Christmas
greeting cards alone.
And whilst clearly designs and styles of cards have changed since then, the principal hasn’t changed
much at all in over 150 years!
Studies Prove Emotional Connection
In light of technological advances in those 150 years, it might seem a bit silly to some, to still be
sending proper physical Christmas cards, yet a study commissioned by the Royal Mail showed that
there are still numerous reasons why cards continue to stick around.
The study showed that an overwhelming 72% of people would prefer to
receive Christmas Greeting Cards rather than an electronic greeting or
message through e-mail or social media. In fact, 27% of people said that
would actively ignore or delete an e-card, with even more saying they
thought an e-greeting was “silly” or “too generic”.
The positive feelings generated by receiving any type of card, but particularly Christmas cards, are
good for health and wellbeing, according to comments from cognitive neuroscientist Dr Lynda Shaw.
She said: “I firmly believe that receiving cards increases self-esteem, helps to stave off feelings of
loneliness and isolation and even to ward off the early stages of depression.”

3. How Do You Feel When You Get a Card?
I don’t know about you, but when a card is sent to me it reminds me of the person and it shows me how
much they care. They took time to communicate their feelings, instead of sending a text, using
Facebook, Twitter, or other electronic methods. They went out, spent the time to select a card, and
spent their hard earned cash to buy and send it.
Back to Dr Shaw – “time is the most precious thing we have to give, so if we spend time choosing,
writing and sending a card we are helping people feel valuable and worthwhile.”
What this amounts to is that sending greeting cards is much more than simply staying in touch with a
person or exchanging pleasantries. The act of giving a christmas greetings card is in letting that person
know you are thinking of them and how much they mean to you. You are sending them a pocket of your
time and that is something which has the effect of making that person feel special and loved and
Christmas is the perfect time to share this with your friends and loved ones.