The phrase "the man who invented Christmas" commonly refers to Charles Dickens due to his influential role in shaping the modern celebration of Christmas through his 1843 novella "A Christmas Carol." This story popularized many Christmas traditions and redefined the holiday's spirit as centered on family, compassion, and generosity. A 2017 biographical comedy-drama film titled "The Man Who Invented Christmas" depicts Dickens' journey in creating "A Christmas Carol." The film dramatizes how Dickens, facing financial hardship, wrote the book within six weeks, drawing inspiration from his life and observations of Victorian London. This work had a lasting impact on how Christmas is celebrated, shifting it towards more inclusive and charitable values.
Thus, Charles Dickens is often credited as "the man who invented Christmas" in a cultural and literary sense due to his work reshaping the holiday's meaning and traditions through his storytelling.