The History of Gift Giving

Ancient Greek mythology gives credit to the goddess of love, Aphrodite, as the original bearer of the classic gift of love, a rose, to Eros, the god of love. Elaborate gifts as tokens of political friendship are not exclusively an ancient custom. The Statue of liberty was a gift of friendship from France in 1886. Gifts between nations have continued to be a custom up to our current day. The gift giving culture of Japan: Gift giving has often been associated in Western culture with the celebration of events or holidays. While giving social gifts has gained popularity in recent years it does not compare to the gift giving culture of Japan. In Japan the presentation of a gift is as of much importance as the gift itself. While gift giving is common to most cultures, the act of giving gifts can be quite different from one place to another. Many business people are advised on the appropriateness of giving gifts when doing business in foreign countries since the act of giving gifts is often closely tied to the traditions and cultures of different people worldwide.