A gift or present is the transfer of money, goods, etc., without the direct compensation that might be involved in a trade. However, sometimes it could possibly involve a social expectation of reciprocity, or a return in the form of prestige or power. In many societies, the act of mutually exchanging gifts is symbolic to the good will and cohesion for harmony within the society. Economists have structured the economics of gift-giving into the concept of a ‘gift economy’. A gift can refer to anything that makes the gift receiver happier, especially if gifted as a favor, including forgiveness and kindness. Traditionally, in most cultures when material objects are gifted they are packed in some manner. In the Western culture, gifts are often wrapped in wrapping paper and accompanied by a gift note which may note the occasion, the receiver’s name, and the name of the person giving the gift.
In Chinese culture, red wrapping paper denotes good luck and good wishes. The occasions of giving gifts are numerous and so are the expressions with which the gifts are given. Gift-giving happens round the year. Ranging from birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas, other holidays, Mother’s Day, Father's Day, Teacher's Day, Valentine's Day, I'm-sorry days, I-want-to-show-that-I-care days and god knows what other days… the list is ever endless. We tear our hair out wondering what we can possibly come up with as a perfect gift that will bring a smile or a squeal of delight, instead of a polite and automatic “Thank you this is just what I wanted” Expression of love or friendship, Expression of gratitude for a gift received, Expression of piety, in the form of charity, Expression of solidarity, in the form of mutual aid, To share wealth, To offset misfortune, Offering travel souvenirs etc. are some of the reasons and expressions behind giving gifts. Giving a gift is like gifting a token of thoughtfulness as it also spreads a cheer and feeling of good will. Gifting is the ideal way to show that you care. However, it is very important that you give and receive gifts graciously. It is the thought behind the gift that counts and not its worth. Gifts can also be given as tokens of appreciation and you don’t have to wait for an occasion to show your thoughtfulness to someone.
Mythological the tradition of giving gifts seems to have its roots in the story of the wise men – magi – bearing gifts for the baby Jesus. As it is recounted in the Bible's book of Matthew, "On coming to the house they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh." The habit of exchanging elaborate gifts, during Christmas, was not so prominent until late in the 1800s. The story of Santa Claus combined with the retailing phenomena which came about during that time made gift giving a central tradition and focus of the Christmas holidays.
Gift-giving is almost an art in Japan. A gift, which is called an ‘omiyage’ in Japanese, if successfully given honors the recipient. Starting with the quality of the presentation, gifts are traditionally carried in beautiful printed squares of fabric called ‘furoshiki’. They can also be presented as a scarf, for which they double nicely. Quality and attention to detail are hallmarks of a well-chosen ‘omiyage’. The art of gift wrapping in Japanese traditions came about around 600 years ago due to the custom of the ceremonial exchange of gifts. Noble men would use the finest papers to convey their respect to the person receiving the gift. In the Japanese culture, gift wrapping is as important a detail as the gift itself. To ensure that you have truly given a gift from the heart, intricate folds and handmade bows are given the utmost importance. Halloween is considered to be the top candy holiday. It is estimated that Americans purchase almost 20 million pounds of candy corn for Halloween, and 93% of children go trick-or-treating. The tradition of giving candy to children on Halloween originated from the customs of Ireland and England. The initial tradition was of asking of food and fire wood before the winter started, by the poor people and the children during Samahain. This custom was later transformed into giving of souls cakes as the Christian church banned the customs of Samahain proclaiming them to be pagan rituals.
In the Madagascar custom, Lamba which is made out of squares of woven and designed cloth, made from different materials such as cotton, silk, tree bark and palm tree leaves is given as a gift. The leaves of the palm trees are woven into squares then dyed, embroidered with geometric designs after which each of the small squares are sewn together to make a larger piece of cloth. These lambas are then given as gifts by the local people for all aspects of their lives. Traditionally a Lamba given as a gift symbolizes friendship and it is traditionally thought that even if the cloth grows old and fades, the gesture of giving a lamba is symbolic and will last forever.
Today when the world is getting connected by all aspects through the internet it is of little surprise if the gift giving is also a custom favored through the internet. A new term included in currently prevalent Internet vocabulary is "virtual gift-giving". The virtual gifts are generally free and involve 3 parties - the sender, receiver and the provider. The provider is normally the website that provides these virtual gifts which are formatted computer graphics and maybe anything from images of chocolates, flowers, food, pets and jewelry. The reason why we truly give gifts maybe different for each one of us while many of us appreciate what we've been given and want to give back to life something in return, many maybe conscious of human suffering and want to do something to ease it and many of us simply want to keep the world a better place. "Happiness comes from giving, not getting. If we try hard to bring happiness to others, we cannot stop it from coming to us also. To get joy, we must give it, and to keep joy, we must scatter it” - John Templeton
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