Whatever the case, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first usage of X’s to mean “kisses” came in a letter by a priest, Gilbert White in 1763: It is thought that perhaps the X made the jump to “kiss” as people sometimes would kiss the X (Christ), in the same way some would kiss the Bible- in this context more or less “sealing it with a kiss”.Īn alternate, somewhat less likely theory that’s popped up very recently is that the X simply looks like someone puckering up for a kiss, or two people kissing… two people with triangular faces apparently. In any event, the X was thus used on documents in this way. The X here is not actually the English X, but rather the Greek letter “Chi”, short for the Greek for Christ. “X” first started being used as a substitute for “Christ” by religious scholars about a millennia ago, which is actually how we ultimately got Xmas as an alternative name for Christmas. Specifically, the X represented a Christian cross/Christ at this time, so by signing X, you’re essentially saying “In Christ’s name, it’s true / I assert.” At this time, many couldn’t read or write, so this was an easy way for someone to sign something and, particularly in legal documents, assert that whatever was said in the document was true. Signing letters with an ‘X’ dates back to the Middle Ages. We can’t be 100% sure why or how XOXO ultimately came to mean “hugs and kisses”, but we do at least have a reasonably good theory to work with on the “X” part. Use the incorrect symbol, and one could get the wrong idea! □ You may have even been torn on whether or not to include both the X and the O, considering one signifies hugs and the other means kisses. You’ve seen XO as a sign-off representing love, affection, or friendship on letters, cards, emails, chat rooms and text messages. Dev asks: Why does XOXO mean hugs and kisses?
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