Gift

A group of wrapped gifts.

A gift or present is the transfer of money, goods, etc., without the need for compensation that is involved in trade. A gift is a voluntary act which does not require anything in return. Even though it involves possibly a social expectation of reciprocity, or a return in the form of prestige or power, a gift is meant to be free. In many human societies, the act of mutually exchanging gifts may contribute to social cohesion. Economists have elaborated the economics of gift-giving into the notion of a gift economy.

By extension the term gift can refer to anything that makes the other more happy or less sad, especially as a favour, including forgiveness and kindness (even when the other is not kind).

Presentation

File:800px-The Gift table.jpg

A table with wrapped gifts.

When material objects are given as gifts, in many cultures they are traditionally packaged in some manner. For example, in Western culture, gifts are often wrapped in wrapping paper and accompanied by a gift note which may note the occasion, the giftee's name, and the giver's name. In Chinese culture, red wrapping connotes luck.

Occasions

Gifts under a Christmas tree.

Gift giving occurs in many different situations. Many occasions are simply spontaneous expressions of feelings, others are in response to specific occurrences, and the final category consists of customs in different situations, which vary by culture.

Gift giving as an expression can be a symbol of love or friendship, a sign of gratitude for a gift previously received, alms or charity as an expression of piety or religiosity, or finally as an expression of social solidarity taking the form of mutual aid.

People use gifts to share wealth, offset the misfortune of their loved ones or others, or to give souvenirs of one's travels.

In different societies there are certain habitual events customarily marked by the giving of gifts. These are usually celebrations and include:

• • A birthday (the person who has his or her birthday gives cake, etc. and/or receives gifts)
  • A potlatch, in societies where status is associated with gift-giving rather than acquisition.
  • Christmas (people give each other gifts, often supposedly receiving them from Santa Claus)
  • Saint Nicholas (people give each other gifts, often supposedly receiving them from Saint Nicholas)
  • A wedding (the couple receives gifts and gives food and/or drinks at the wedding reception)
  • A wedding anniversary (each spouse receives gifts)
  • A funeral (visitors bring flowers, the relatives of the deceased give food and/or drinks after the ceremonial part)
  • A birth (the baby receives gifts)
  • Passing an examination (the student receives gifts)
  • Father's Day (the father receives gifts)
  • Mother's Day (the mother receives gifts)
  • Exchange of gifts between a guest and a host, often a traditional practice
  • Giving a round of drinks in a bar.
  • Lagniappe

Kinds of gifts

File:800px-Chocolate gift.jpg

A heart-shaped box of chocolates, which is a common gift on Valentine's Day

A gift may be one of

• an ordinary object,
• an object created for the express purpose of gift exchange, such as the armbands and necklaces in the Trobriand Islands' Kula exchange,
• an alternative gift such as a donation to a charity in the name of the recipient.
• a regift of an unwanted gift previously received by the giver.

International Customs

File:800px-Gift giving ceremony.jpg

Gift giving during a South Indian wedding.

Gift giving customs vary by culture and situation. Many countries have strong traditions of gift giving. Japan in particular places high value on giving gifts.

In some countries, such as China, it is common to refuse gifts one or more times before relenting. This is a sign of humbleness and is seen as polite.

It is important to understand cultural sensitivities when giving gifts as some items are taboo in other cultures. Muslims do not ingest alcohol or pork and Jewish people do not eat pork giving of these items is considered an insult. In other cultures different colors, numbers, or items (e.g. clocks) are associated with death, isolation, or other negative concepts and are therefore rude to be given as gifts. As a rule, gifts across international cultures should be originate from the recipient's country (e.g. one should not give a gift of leather to someone from South America as it is generally seen as the producer of the finest leather).

In business, In some countries where corruption is rampant, gift giving is frowned upon. This includes places such as Malaysia and Paraguay.

In Asia, it is polite to give and accept gives with either the right or both hands, particularly in Japan and Hong Kong.

Religious views

Ritual sacrifices can be seen as return gifts to a deity. Sacrifice can also be seen as a gift from a deity: Lewis Hyde remarks in The Gift that Christianity considers the Incarnation and subsequent death of Jesus to be a "gift" to humankind, and that the Jakata contains a tale of the Buddha in his incarnation as the Wise Hare giving the ultimate alms by offering himself up as a meal for Sakka. (Hyde, 1983, 58-60)

Legal aspects

A gift, in the law of property, has a very specific meaning. In order for a gift to be legally effective, the grantor must have intended to give the gift to the grantee. The gift must actually be delivered to and accepted by the grantee.

Gifts can be inter vivos - during the life of the grantor - or causa mortis - made by the grantor in anticipation of their own death. A gift causa mortis (or donatio mortis causa) is not effective unless the grantor actually dies of the impending peril that he or she had contemplated when giving the gift.

Intention

The grantor (or donor) of the gift must have a present intent to make a gift of the property to the grantee. A promise to make a gift in the future is unenforceable, and legally meaningless, even if the promise is accompanied by a present transfer of the physical property in question.

Suppose, for example, that a man gives a woman a ring and tells her that it is for her next birthday and to hold on to it until then. The man has not made a gift, and could legally demand the ring back on the day before the woman's birthday. In contrast, suppose a man gives a woman a deed and tells her it will be in her best interest if the deed stays in his safety deposit box. The man has made a gift and would be unable to successfully reclaim it.

Delivery

The gift must be delivered to the grantee. If the gift is of a type that can not be delivered in the conventional sense - a house, or a bank account - the delivery can be effected by a constructive delivery, wherein a tangible item allowing access to the gift - a deed or key to the house, a passbook for the bank account - is delivered instead. Symbolic delivery is also sometimes permissible where manual delivery is impractical, such as the delivery of a key that does not actually open anything, but is intended to symbolize the transfer of ownership.

Certain forms of property must be transferred following particular formalities described by statute law. In the United Kingdom, real property must be transferred by a written deed (s. 52 Law of Property Act 1925). The transfer of equitable interests must be performed in writing by the owner or their agent.

Acceptance

The grantee (or donee) must accept the gift. However, because people generally accept gifts, acceptance will be presumed, so long as the grantee does not expressly reject the gift. A rejection of the gift destroys the gift, so that a grantee can not revive a once-rejected gift by later accepting it. In order for such an acceptance to be effective, the grantor would have to extend the offer of the gift again.

Revocation

A donor may revoke a future gift, however a gift delivered and accepted cannot be revoked.

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

• Marcel Mauss and W.D. Halls, Gift: The Form and Reason for Exchange in Archaic Societies, W. W. Norton, 2000, trade paperback, ISBN 0-393-32043-X
• Lewis Hyde: The Gift: Imagination and the Erotic Life of Property, 1983 (ISBN 0-394-71519-5), especially part I, "A Theory of Gifts," part of which was originally published as "The Gift Must Always Move" in Co-Evolution Quarterly No. 35, Fall 19

Credits

New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here:

• Gift  ^history
• Gift_(law)  ^history

The history of this article since it was imported to New World Encyclopedia:

• History of "Gift"

Note: Some restrictions may apply to use of individual images which are separately licensed.