34 | DECEMBER 19 • 2019 

gift guide 2019

H

oliday party invitations seem 
to arrive daily and many 
include two dreaded words: 
gift exchange.
White elephant gift exchange, usu-
ally in the form of a game, are pop-
ular in offices, organizations, friend-
ship groups and even large families.
What is a white elephant? Basically, 
it’
s something you have on hand that 
you don’
t want, but which would 
make a good gift for someone else. 
White elephant exchanges are a great 
way to get rid of nice gifts from 

well-meaning friends and family that 
you just can’
t use.
The term “white elephant” origi-
nally meant a burdensome possession 
that is more trouble than it is worth.
The term came from a custom in 
ancient Thailand. If someone ran 
afoul of the king, he would give the 
offender a rare white (albino) ele-
phant, considered holy. The recipient 
could be bankrupted by the animal’
s 
expensive upkeep.
In the mid-20th century, 
“white elephant sales” were 
a common feature at syn-
agogue, church and school 
bazaars. It’
s hard to determine 
when white elephant exchanges 
became popular, though some organi-
zations, including the Detroit branch 
of Ameinu, have been hosting gift 
swaps at Chanukah for decades.
Today, most white elephant gift 
exchanges involve some variation of a 
game in which participants who don’
t 
like the gift they receive can “steal” 
one they like more from another par-
ticipant. Really good gifts are likely 
to be stolen several times during the 
game.

The game usually goes like this:
• Everyone at the party brings a 
beautifully wrapped holiday gift 
that fits the dollar amount the host 
announces ahead of time. The gifts 
are placed in a central pile.
• Participants pick numbered slips of 
paper and the person holding the 
number 1 chooses a gift, unwraps it 
and shows it to everyone. The guest 
holding number 2 goes next and, if 
he or she likes the first gift better, 
can “steal” it from the previous 
player. Then that player chooses 
another gift from the pile. 
• Each subsequent player in numer-
ical order chooses a gift and, after 
unwrapping it, decides whether to 
keep it or “steal” another already-
opened gift. Those with higher 
numbers have more options of gifts 
to steal. 
• Because the first player doesn’
t have 
the “steal” option, many groups 
decide to let that person steal from 
any of the other players at the end 
of the game.
In large groups, additional rules 
help keep things moving; for example, 
deciding that no gift can be “stolen” 

White elephant gift exchanges are fun and unpredictable.

What’s 
Inside? 

BARBARA LEWIS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

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continued on page 36

Thailand’
s ancient 
kings would punish a 
subject by gifting a holy 
white elephant, whose 
upkeep could bankrupt 
the recipient.