Regift facts for kids
Regifting (also called regiving) is when someone takes a gift they received and then gives it to someone else. Sometimes, they make it look like a brand-new gift.
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What is Regifting?
Regifting is different from just buying a gift for someone. When you regift, you are giving away something you already owned, which was given to you as a gift. The person receiving the regift usually doesn't know it was originally a gift to someone else.
People regift for different reasons:
- They might want to be helpful or charitable.
- They might have too many of the same item.
- They might simply not want the gift they received.
Regifting is also different from recycling. Recycling usually means breaking down old items to make new products. Regifting means giving an item as it is, without changing it.
Where Did the Word "Regifting" Come From?
The word "regifting" became popular because of a TV show called Seinfeld. In a 1995 episode called "The Label Maker", one of the characters, Elaine, calls another character, Dr. Tim Whatley, a "regifter." This happened after Dr. Whatley gave Jerry Seinfeld a label-maker that Elaine had originally given to Dr. Whatley.
Even though the word became popular then, people were regifting long before the TV show.
Another idea from Seinfeld is "degifting." This is when someone asks for a gift back after they've given it.
Rules for Regifting
People often talk about some unofficial rules for regifting to be polite. These rules include:
- Always rewrap the gift nicely.
- Don't use the gift yourself before you regift it.
- Never give the gift back to the person who originally gave it to you!
Regifting is very common at parties called "white elephant gift exchanges" or "yankee swaps." At these parties, people bring gifts, and everyone gets to pick one. Sometimes, the host of the party might even suggest that people bring regifted items.
However, if the party has a spending limit for gifts, it's usually not polite to regift something instead of buying a new item.
In 2010, a study by Fairleigh Dickinson University found that regifting was "commonplace." A professor involved in the study, Burçak Ertimur, said that many things make regifting popular. She mentioned saving money, dealing with high expectations for gifts, and being aware of how much stuff goes into landfills. She also said that people simply have a lot of things.
Recently, regifting has become more accepted. This is because people who care about the environment and saving money support the idea of Green Gifting. Green Gifting encourages giving gifts that are good for the planet or help save resources.
National Regifting Days
In the United States, December 18 is known as National Regifting Day. This day was created by a group that helps people with debt called Money Management International. Many office holiday parties happen on this day. Studies show that about 40% of gifts given at office parties are regifted without ever being used.
In 2008, the Governor of Colorado, Bill Ritter Jr., even officially declared December 18, 2008, as "National Regifting Day."
In Canada, eBay promoted "National Re-gifting Week" from December 26 to December 30, right after Christmas.
See also
- The Freecycle Network
- Tit for tat
