Gooding Day: A Forgotten Christmas Tradition
Today is Gooding Day! Observed on 21st December, St. Thomas’s Day, this traditional custom was prevalent in parts of Sussex and other regions of England. On this day, it was customary for poorer parishioners to visit wealthier neighbours to receive gifts or ‘doles’ of food or money. In return, they might offer sprigs of holly or mistletoe as a gesture of thanks, creating a more reciprocal exchange and softening the sense of receiving charity.
This practice was known as ‘going a-gooding’, leading to the day’s name, Gooding Day. In other areas, similar customs were referred to as Mumping (Begging) Day, as those who begged were said to be ‘on the mump’, which originates from the Saxon word to beg (mompen). It was also known as ‘Thomasing’.
This tradition provided an opportunity for the less fortunate to seek assistance during the winter season, fostering a sense of community and mutual support. While such customs have largely faded, they highlight historical practices of charity and neighbourliness in Sussex and beyond.
In her book, Folklore of Sussex (2002), Jacqueline Simpson mentions a passage written by M.A. Lower in 1861:
“Formerly, the old women of every parish went from house to house to beg something wherewith to provide for the festivities of Christmas. The miller gave each dame a little flour, the grocer a few raisins, the butcher an odd bit of beef, and so on. From persons in trade, a donation of money was expected.”
Simpson asserts that ‘going-a-gooding’ was a more serious custom, coming from real hardship, compared to the more light-hearted ‘clemmening’ or carolling.
While the exact date when this Christmas tradition faded is unclear, Simpson notes that it persisted in Mayfield as late as 1903. There, an elderly gentleman maintained a lifelong practice of saving every fourpenny piece he received throughout the year, distributing them to the village’s elderly women on Gooding Day.