9 Christmas Words with Surprising Histories

A toe plays part in ‘mistletoe,’ but there’s no bread in ‘gingerbread’ Sugarplum ‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house / Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; / The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, / In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there; / The children were nestled all snug in their beds; / While visions of sugarplums danced in their heads… After reading these lines from Clement Moore’s 1823 poem “A Visit From Saint Nicholas,” more commonly known as “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas,” have you ever wondered why the children would be dreaming of a sugar-coated fruit – as opposed to candy canes or chocolates – on Christmas Eve? Truth be told, a sugarplum is not a plum at all – it is a small round or oval hard candy made from sugar. Traditionally, it is made by hardening sugar around seeds, nuts, or spices in successive layers, and it likely got its name by the end result being similar to the size and shape of a plum. The candy was especially popular during the 17th through the 19th centuries. Knowing that a sugarplum is essentially a mass […]