Why Do We Hang Christmas Stockings?

The Christmas stocking tradition mixes St Nicholas legends with the simple delight of a small container waiting to be filled.

The best-known legend links stockings to St Nicholas secretly providing money for a poor family, with coins or gold ending up in stockings left to dry. Like many Christmas customs, the exact historical path is messier than the neat story.

The part worth keeping

A stocking is wonderful because it makes room for tiny things: fruit, chocolate, pencils, ridiculous toys and notes. It is the opposite of needing every present to be impressive.

Filed under: Christmas traditions · family Christmas