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Have you ever wondered about the origins of the Christmas stocking? All of our Christmas traditions have various origins from countries both near and far. Knowing about those traditions adds a special joy the holiday because they give us a deeper understanding of why we do what we do. Unfortunately, the origins of the Christmas stocking are not definitively known. There are plenty of legends that tell stories of how this practice began, but each of us is free to believe whichever one we like.

Although Christmas stockings somewhat resemble Hunter Welly Socks, it's not likely that the Hunter company had anything to do with starting the tradition. One of the most popular stories involves St. Nicholas, a poor man, and his three daughters. As the story goes, the poor man worried about the future of his daughters as he advanced in age. He had very little money to provide for their future, and they were as yet unmarried. The townspeople knew of his concern and wanted to help, but didn't know how.

One day, while St. Nicholas was passing through town, he overheard the townspeople speaking of the plight of the poor man. Being a man with means, St. Nicholas want to help as well, but he knew the poor man would not accept charity. Under the cover of darkness he entered the poor man's house through the chimney, with three bags of gold coins. He noticed the girl's stockings hanging from the mantle and decided to put a bag of coins in each one. When the girls took down the stockings the next morning, they found the gold coins yet didn't know where they came from.

This story, and other variations of it, somehow led to the tradition of Christmas stockings. In some cultures, the Christmas stocking has been replaced with a shoe which is left outside of the bedroom door on Christmas Eve. St. Nicholas enters the house just as he did in the first story, leaving the small gifts for the children in their shoes.

A German tradition is based upon a mythical character Odin who travelled with a flying horse. Children would leave carrots or straw in their shoes or stockings as food for the horse, and Odin would repay their kindness by replacing the food with candy and gifts.

Today, there are many different practices relating to the Christmas stocking. In some cultures the stocking is used for small items and trinkets, while in other cultures the only Christmas gifts children will get will be those contained in the stocking. Regardless of your particular tradition, while you're opening your stocking and pulling out your gifts, just remember that Hunter Welly Socks have nothing to do with it. Unless of course, that's your gift!