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Santa ClausA jolly, fat man with a red cloak and a beard who rides a sleigh pulled by reindeer and delivers presents. Who else could it be but Santa Claus? Or, in the UK, Father Christmas.The image of Santa with his white beard and red suit is so much a part of our modern Christmas/Xmas that we tend to assume he's always been there as part of history. It's hard to imagine Christmas without him. In fact, although the roots of the tradition go back centuries, the details are relatively recent.
Saint NicholasThe origin of Santa appears to be Saint Nicholas. Nicholas lived in the 4th century CE and was the Bishop of Myra. He was a rich but generous man who had a reputation for giving gifts, often secretly. He is, amongst other things, the patron saint of children. His feast day is December 6th, which is close enough to the winter solstice to make him an appropriate Christmas figure.Saint Nicholas was especially popular with the Dutch where he was known as "Sint Nikolaas" which later became contracted to "Sinterklaas". According to Dutch legend, Sinterklaas would arrive in Amsterdam by ship on December 6th then ride across the country leaving gifts for the good children. It's believed that Dutch settlers took the legend of Sinterklaas with them to the US where he became the modern Santa Claus.
Is Santa Real?All of which leaves one important question: is Santa Claus real?All I can say is that I leave a mince pie out on Christmas Eve and it's always gone by morning.
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