The History of Santa Claus
by Victoria Bottomley
• Published 13/12/2021
Our modern depiction of Santa Claus, an integral part of our festive season, can be attributed to a combination of historical truths, folklore, poetry and literature, which has developed over hundreds of years, beginning with the most popular Saint in Europe, Saint Nicholas.
Saint Nicholas was a 4th century Greek Christian bishop who was famous for his generous gifts to the poor. He is known for his kindness and generosity, and it is said he gave away almost all of his inherited wealth to the needy and sick during his lifetime. He became known as the protector of children, and during the Middle Ages, and often on the evening before his name day of 6 December, children were bestowed gifts in his honour. He is usually portrayed as a bearded bishop in canonical robes.
Created in the image of Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas dates back as far as the 16th century in England during the reign of Henry VIII, when he was pictured as a large man in green or scarlet robes lined with fur. He typified the spirit of good cheer at Christmas, bringing peace, joy, good food and wine and revelry. As England no longer kept the feast day of Saint Nicholas on 6 December, the Father Christmas celebration was moved to 25 December to coincide with Christmas Day.
At the end of the 18th century, the European figures of Saint Nicholas and Father Christmas began to merge together and make their way into American popular culture through various literary works. An article published in a New York newspaper described families in Holland gathering to celebrate the name day of Sinterklaas (Dutch for Saint Nicholas), when money and gifts would be given to children in his honour. This was later Anglicised to become ‘Santa Claus.’
In 1822, Clement Clarke Moore published the poem “An Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas,” more popularly known as “‘Twas The Night Before Christmas.” Although some of Moore’s imagery was probably borrowed from other sources, his poem helped popularize the now-familiar image of a Santa Claus who flew from house to house on Christmas Eve led by eight flying reindeer to deliver presents to children on Christmas Eve.
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