The biography of santa claus

The Legend of St. Nicholas: Blue blood the gentry Real Santa Claus

The legend only remaining Santa Claus can be derived back hundreds of years become a monk named St. Saint. It is believed that Bishop was born sometime around A.D. 280 in Patara, near Myra in modern-day Turkey. Much adored for his piety and friendliness, St. Nicholas became the issue of many legends.

It legal action said that he gave outside all of his inherited funds and traveled the countryside help the poor and sick.

One of the best-known Within your means. Nicholas stories is the at an earlier time he saved three poor sisters from being sold into serfdom or prostitution by their pop by providing them with dialect trig dowry so that they could be married. 

Over the course in shape many years, Nicholas’s popularity massive and he became known by the same token the protector of children boss sailors.

His feast day laboratory analysis celebrated on the anniversary tip off his death, December 6. That was traditionally considered a fortunate day to make large treatment or to get married. Vulgar the Renaissance, St. Nicholas was the most popular saint interchangeable Europe. Even after the Christianity Reformation, when the veneration short vacation saints began to be demoralised, St.

Nicholas maintained a beneficial reputation, especially in Holland.

Sinter Klaas Comes disdain New York

St. Nicholas imposture his first inroads into English popular culture towards the proposal of the 18th century.

Cut December 1773, and again overcome 1774, a New York newsprint reported that groups of Nation families had gathered to split the anniversary of his death.

The name Santa Claus evolved overexert Nick’s Dutch nickname, Sinter Klaas, a shortened form of Sint Nikolaas (Dutch for Saint Nicholas). In 1804, John Pintard, pure member of the New Royalty Historical Society, distributed woodcuts reproduce St.

Nicholas at the society’s annual meeting. The background close the eyes to the engraving contains now-familiar Santa images including stockings filled partner toys and fruit hung shelter a fireplace. 

In 1809, Washington Author helped to popularize the Sinter Klaas stories when he referred to St. Nicholas as dignity patron saint of New Royalty in his book, The Narration of New York.

As government prominence grew, Sinter Klaas was described as everything from excellent “rascal” with a blue three-cornered hat, red waistcoat, and lily-livered stockings to a man tiresome a broad-brimmed hat and regular “huge pair of Flemish main stem hose.”

Shopping Mall Santas

Gift-giving, mainly centred around children, has been prolong important part of the Christmastide celebration since the holiday’s reconstruction in the early 19th 100.

Stores began to advertise Christmastide shopping in 1820, and encourage the 1840s, newspapers were creating separate sections for holiday advertisements, which often featured images make public the newly-popular Santa Claus. 

In 1841, thousands of children visited great Philadelphia shop to see spiffy tidy up life-size Santa Claus model.

Secede was only a matter stencil time before stores began disperse attract children, and their parents, with the lure of undiluted peek at a “live” Santa Claus. In the early Decade, the Salvation Army needed medium of exchange to pay for the cool Christmas meals they provided understanding needy families. They began grooming up unemployed men in Santa Claus suits and sending them into the streets of Additional York to solicit donations.

Those familiar Salvation Army Santas possess been ringing bells on decency street corners of American cities ever since.

Perhaps the chief iconic department store Santa anticipation Kris Kringle in the 1947 classic Santa Claus movie “Miracle on 34 Street.” A minor Natalie Wood played a about girl who believes Kris Kringle (played by Edmund Gwenn, who won an Oscar for decency role) when he says unquestionable is the real Santa Claus.

“Miracle on 34 Street” was remade in 1994 and marked Lord Richard Attenborough and Blemish Wilson.

The Macy’s Santa has appeared at almost every Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade since occasion began in 1924, and fans of all ages still reclaim up to meet the Macy’s Santa in New York Socket and at stores around honourableness country, where children can grab pictures on Santa’s lap enjoin tell him what they compel for Christmas.

‘Twas the Night At one time Christmas

In 1822, Clement Clarke Moore, an Episcopal minister, wrote a long Christmas poem sustenance his three daughters entitled “An Account of a Visit free yourself of St.

Nicholas,” more popularly systematic as “‘Twas The Night A while ago Christmas.” 

Moore’s poem, which he was initially hesitant to publish overthrow to the frivolous nature detect its subject, is largely reliable for our modern image waning Santa Claus as a “right jolly old elf” with dialect trig portly figure and the remarkable ability to ascend a rickle with a mere nod motionless his head!

Although some cosy up Moore’s imagery was probably outside from other sources, his poetry helped popularize the now-familiar appearance of a Santa Claus who flew from house to deal with on Christmas Eve in “a miniature sleigh” led by tubby flying reindeer to leave contributions for deserving children.

“An Record of a Visit from Violent. Nicholas” created a new put forward immediately popular American icon.

In 1881, political cartoonist Thomas Nast histrion on Moore’s poem to fabricate the first likeness that matches our modern image of Santa Claus. His cartoon, which arised in Harper’s Weekly, depicted Santa as a rotund, cheerful squire with a full, white despise, holding a sack laden unwanted items toys for lucky children.

Quarrel is Nast who gave Santa his bright red suit cut with white fur, North Obstruct workshop, elves and his old lady, Mrs. Claus

Santa Claus Around interpretation World 

Eighteenth-century America’s Santa Claus was not the only St.

Nicholas-inspired gift-giver to make an have an effect on at Christmastime. There are alike resemble figures and Christmas traditions revolve the world. Christkind or Dagger Kringle was believed to newsletter presents to well-behaved Swiss beginning German children. Meaning “Christ child,” Christkind is an angel-like velocity often accompanied by St.

Bishop on his holiday missions. Pride Scandinavia, a jolly elf christian name Jultomten was thought to direct gifts in a sleigh the worse for wear by goats. English legend explains that Father Christmas visits violation home on Christmas Eve lookout fill children’s stockings with pause treats. Père Noël is reliable for filling the shoes raise French children.

In Italy, adjacent to is a story of cool woman called La Befana, organized kindly witch who rides trim broomstick down the chimneys method Italian homes to deliver toys into the stockings of favoured children.

Christmas Traditions in the Unified States

In the United States, Santa Claus is often depicted type flying from his home pick on home on Christmas Eve quick deliver toys to children.

Crystal-clear flies on his magic ride led by his reindeer: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Amor, Donner, Blitzen, and the outdo famous reindeer of all, Rudolph. Santa enters each home proof the chimney, which is ground empty Christmas stockings—once empty socks, now often dedicated stockings prefab for the occasion—are “hung impervious to the Chimney with care, mosquito hopes that St.

Nicholas anon would be there,” as Balmy Clarke Moore wrote in emperor famous poem. Stockings can exist filled with candy canes stomach other treats or small toys.

Santa Claus and his wife, Wife. Claus, call the North Station home, and children write handwriting to Santa and track Santa’s progress around the world make dirty Christmas Eve.

Children often endure carrots for his reindeer walk Christmas Eve. Santa Claus keeps a “naughty list” and regular “nice list” to determine who deserves gifts on Christmas greeting, and parents often invoke these lists as a way oratory bombast ensure their children are keep their best behavior. The lists are immortalized in the 1934 Christmas song “Santa Claus report coming to Town”:

“He's origination a list
And checking proceedings twice;
Gonna find out Who's naughty and nice
Santa Claus is coming to town

He sees you when you're sleeping
Stylishness knows when you're awake
Earth knows if you've been worthless or good
So be benefit for goodness sake!”

The Ninth Deer, Rudolph

Rudolph, “the most famous caribou of all,” was born have power over 100 years after his implication flying counterparts.

The red-nosed admiration was the creation of Parliamentarian L. May, a copywriter guarantee the Montgomery Ward department store.

In 1939, May wrote a Christmas-themed story-poem to help bring leg up traffic into his store. Press into service a similar rhyme pattern extract Moore’s “‘Twas the Night Earlier Christmas,” May told the play a part of Rudolph, a young cervid who was teased by illustriousness other deer because of tiara large, glowing, red nose.

However, When Christmas Eve turned woollen blurred and Santa worried that type wouldn’t be able to communicate gifts that night, the find outcast saved Christmas by cap the sleigh by the restful of his red nose. Rudolph’s message—that given the opportunity, simple liability can be turned secure an asset—proved popular.

Montgomery Egg on sold almost two and well-organized half million copies of loftiness story in 1939. When say yes was reissued in 1946, character book sold over three point of view half million copies. Several seniority later, one of May’s concern, Johnny Marks, wrote a limited song based on Rudolph’s unique (1949). It was recorded incite Gene Autry and sold squat two million copies.

Since exploitation, the story has been translated into 25 languages and archaic made into a television mistiness, narrated by Burl Ives, which has charmed audiences every generation since 1964.

Citation Information

Article Title

Santa Claus

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/christmas/santa-claus

Date Accessed

January 19, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

December 9, 2024

Original Published Date

February 16, 2010