Santa Claus, Jolly St. Nick, Père Noel, Kris Kringle, Kerstman, Sinterklaas – what is the origin of this mysterious character?
How does he travel around the world to deliver presents to every single child in one single night? Was he invented by the Coca Cola Company? Does he really exist? Is he a Snuffleupagas? What about elves and the North Pole? Rudolph and the reindeer?
Breaking it down: The story of Santa Claus
There have been a multitude of inspirations that have lead to the shaping of the character of Santa Claus.
One main inspiration for Santa Claus was derived from Saint Nicholas, a bishop of Myra in the 4th century (the region later became known as Turkey). He was known by many to have given many generous gifts to the poor. Another inspiration comes from folktales told by Germany, Belgium, and Netherland peoples about the god Odin. He was depicted as an old bearded man who would, once a year, host a large hunting party for other gods and warriors in the realm. Having heard this tale from their parents, once a year children would leave their boots filled with goods for Odin’s flying horse as they passed by on their hunt, and in turn, Odin would reward them with gifts.
Some other folktales, (which are still re-enacted in parts of Italy today) told about a demon that would sneak down the chimneys of houses at night. The demon would steal the children and put them in large sacs to eat at a later time, or would slaughter and disembowel them in the house. The story says that a holy man, sometimes attributed as Saint Nicholas, found the demon and tricked it with magical shackles. The demon, now in shackles and under Saint Nicholas’ control, was thus forced to repay his evil deeds by leaving gifts for children. Some stories even say that the demon became good and then became the first of many of Saint Nicholas’ elves.
Modern day ideas of Santa Claus and Christmas have been derived from Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” story and Clement Clarke Moore’s poem, “A Visit From St. Nicholas.” In the mid through to the late 1800’s, Santa Claus became increasingly depicted in red robes, and the illustration became the norm. Also around that same time, a group of northern indigenous peoples from Finland moved through Norway and went to Alaska with 500 reindeer to teach the Alaskan indigenous peoples how to herd reindeer. This sensational story somehow became fused with an illustration of Santa Claus – and that is how today, Santa Claus appears with his reindeers.
The myth of Santa Claus and the conspiracy of the Coca Cola company
The myth of Santa Claus was once and for all immortalized, thanks to a children’s book by L. Frank Baum, The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus. The Coca-Cola Company was not wholly responsible for “creating” Santa Claus. In fact, the Coca-Cola Company was not the first to use Santa Claus in their advertisements, but have no doubt been a large proponent of Santa since their use.
The names, the costumes, helpers, and other minor details of Santa Claus have been an amalgamation of various cultures’ ideas and beliefs. Even since Baum’s book, Santa Claus has been re-imagined and re-interpreted into new myths told by various cultures today. Perhaps there is some universal human psychological fixation that exists: of a barely fathomable, personal, omniscient (he does, after all, know if you’ve been naughty or nice), immortal, generous and benevolent gift-giving entity- that has been the creator and proponent of the age-old Santa Claus myth. Or just maybe, Santa Claus does exist.
Have a Happy Holidays!