Cultural expectations and meaning laden the tendency of giving a gift to another person. In fact, western culture debates the fact that gifts lack an attachment in the future where the recipient has an obligation to reciprocate and emulate the actions of the person who gave the gift in the first place. The assertion in western culture and many other cultures around the world is that gifts are symbolic of sincere appreciation and gratitude in light of the varying relationships that people have. In fact, the culture of giving and receiving gifts began early in the history of intercultural exchanges such as between the Hindu and the British.
For instance, the relationships between the British and the Indians in New England was marked by an occasional exchange of gifts in spite of the nature of the relationship between the two groups. It dates back as early as 1764, and the visitors understood that they had to reciprocate the gifts they received from the natives as a gesture of good manners. The “Indian Gift” was one of the common phrases at the time to an extent that it was identified as a proverbial expression (Cronk, 1)
