Greeting Card

greeting card, an illustrated message that expresses, either seriously or humorously, affection, good will, gratitude, sympathy, or other sentiments. Greeting cards are usually sent by mail in observance of a special day or event and can be divided into two general classifications: seasonal and everyday. Seasonal cards include those for Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Easter, graduation, Halloween, and St. Patrick’s Day. Everyday cards include those commemorating birthdays, anniversaries, or births; cards of condolence, congratulations, or friendship; as well as get-well cards, gift cards, bon voyage cards, and thank you cards.

Modern greeting cards are usually of stiff paper or cardboard, but some are made of cloth, leather, celluloid, vellum, metal, or even wood, clay, cork, or other materials. Size is determined by common usage, the availability of suitable envelopes, ease of mailing, and the system of grading according to price and quality. Extreme exceptions include an inscribed grain of rice presented in 1929 as a Christmas greeting to the prince of Wales and a Christmas card sent to Pres. Calvin Coolidge in 1924 that was 21 by 33 inches (53 by 84 cm). The imprinted messages on cards may vary in length from a brief word or two to 100 words or more in prose or verse.