I posted that link earlier to the latest Google creation that scans years, and years worth of books and measures usage over that time (maybe too simplistic an explanation).

Since it is almost Christmas, let’s take a look at how the “holiday spirit” has fared over time.  There seems to be some good news, as Humbug usage has enjoyed a steady decrease since a high around 1870.  Lot’s of Scrooge activity around then?

In other Christmas news, the phrase “Happy Holidays” has beaten “Merry Christmas” soundly since the dawn of time (or at least what’s being measured for our purposes).  During World War 2 there was a definite uptick in usage which is interesting.

There you have it.