The popular conception of Santa Claus originates fromfolklore traditions surrounding the 4th-century Christian bishopSaint Nicholas, thepatron saint of children. Saint Nicholas became renowned for his reported generosity and secret gift-giving. The image of Santa Claus shares similarities with the English figure ofFather Christmas, and they are both now popularly regarded as the same person.[4]
Santa is generally depicted as a portly, jolly, white-bearded man, often with glasses, wearing a red coat with white fur collar and cuffs, white-fur-cuffed red trousers, a red hat trimmed with white fur, a black leather belt and boots, carrying a bag full of gifts for children. He is popularly associated with a deep, hearty laugh, frequently rendered inChristmas literature as "ho, ho, ho!"
This image originated in the United States during the 19th century, after Dutch settlers brought the legend ofSinterklaas ("Saint Nicholas") to 17th-centuryNew Amsterdam (present-dayNew York City). The 1823 American poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas", written by an anonymous author, recounts Saint Nicholas arriving at the author's home on Christmas Eve in a sleigh pulled by flying reindeer. The poem laid the foundation for modern depictions of Santa Claus, strengthening the association between Santa Claus and Christmas. Over time, this connection has been maintained and reinforced through song, radio, television, children's books, familyChristmas traditions, films, and advertising.[5][6]
Saint Nicholas was a4th-century Greek Christian bishop ofMyra (nowDemre) in the region ofLycia in theRoman Empire, today in Turkey. Nicholas was known for his generous gifts to the poor, in particular presenting the three impoverished daughters of a pious Christian withdowries so that they would not have to become prostitutes.[7] He was very religious from an early age and devoted his life entirely to Christianity. In continental Europe (more precisely the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, the Czech Republic and Germany), he is usually portrayed as a bearded bishop in canonical robes.[citation needed]
In 1087, while theGreek Christian inhabitants of Myra were subjugated by the newly arrived MuslimSeljuq dynasty, and soon after theirGreek Orthodox church had been declared to be inschism by the Catholic Church (AD 1054), a group of merchants from the Italian city ofBari removed the major bones of Nicholas's skeleton from his sarcophagus in the Greek church in Myra. Over the objection of the monks of Myra the sailors took the bones of Saint Nicholas to Bari, where they are now enshrined in theBasilica di San Nicola. Sailors from Bari collected just half of Nicholas's skeleton, leaving all the minor fragments in the church sarcophagus. These were later taken by Venetian sailors during theFirst Crusade and placed inVenice, where a church dedicated to Saint Nicholas, the patron of sailors, was built on theSan Nicolò al Lido. Saint Nicholas's vandalised sarcophagus can still be seen in theSt. Nicholas Church in Myra. This tradition was confirmed in two important scientific investigations of the relics inBari and Venice, which revealed that the relics in the two Italian cities belong to the same skeleton. Saint Nicholas was later claimed as apatron saint of many diverse groups, fromarchers, sailors, and children topawnbrokers.[7][8] He is also the patron saint of both Amsterdam and Moscow.[9]
During the Middle Ages, often on the evening before his name day of 6 December, children were bestowed gifts in his honour. This date was earlier than the original day of gifts for the children, which moved in the course of theReformation and its opposition to the veneration of saints in many countries on 24 and 25 December. The custom of gifting to children at Christmas was propagated byMartin Luther as an alternative to the previous very popular gift custom attention on Saint Nicholas, to focus the interest of the children to Christ instead of the veneration of saints. Luther first suggested theChristkind as the bringer of gifts. But Nicholas remained popular as gifts bearer for the people.[10][11]
Father Christmas dates to 16th-centuryEngland during the reign ofHenry VIII, when he was pictured as a large man in green or scarlet robes lined with fur.[12] He typified the spirit of good cheer atChristmas, bringing peace, joy, good food and wine and revelry.[12] As England no longer kept thefeast day of Saint Nicholas on 6 December, the Father Christmas celebration was moved to 25 December to coincide with Christmas Day.[12] TheVictorian revival of Christmas included Father Christmas as the emblem of good cheer.[13] His physical appearance was variable,[14] with one image beingJohn Leech's illustration of the "Ghost of Christmas Present" inCharles Dickens's novellaA Christmas Carol (1843), as a great genial man in a green coat lined with fur who takesEbenezer Scrooge through the bustling streets of London on the current Christmas morning, sprinkling the essence of Christmas onto the happy populace.[12][13]
Dutch, Belgian and Swiss folklore
Sinterklaas, Netherlands (2009) on his horse namedAmerigo
In the Netherlands and Belgium, the character of Santa Claus competes with that ofSinterklaas, based on Saint Nicolas. Santa Claus is known asde Kerstman in Dutch ("the Christmas man") andPère Noël ("Father Christmas") in French. For children in the Netherlands, Sinterklaas remains the predominant gift-giver in December; 36% of the Dutch only give presents on Sinterklaas evening or the day itself, 6 December,[15] while Christmas, 25 December, is used by another 21% to give presents. Some 26% of the Dutch population gives presents on both days.[16] In Belgium, presents are offered exclusively to children on 6 December, and on Christmas Day all ages may receive presents. Saint Nicolas/Sinterklaas' assistants are called "Pieten" (in Dutch) or "Père Fouettard" (in French), and they are not elves.[17]
In Switzerland,Père Fouettard accompanies Père Noël in the French speaking region, while the sinister Schmutzli accompanies Samichlaus in theSwiss German region. Schmutzli carries a twig broom to spank the naughty children.[18]
Prior totheir Christianisation, theGermanic peoples (including the English) celebrated a midwinter event calledYule (Old Englishgeola orgiuli).[19] With theChristianisation of Germanic Europe, numerous traditions were absorbed from Yuletide celebrations into modern Christmas,[20] such as theWild Hunt, frequently attested as being led by the godOdin (Wodan), bearing (amongmany names) the namesJólnir, meaning "Yule man", andLangbarðr, meaning "long-beard", inOld Norse.[21]
Odin's role during the Yuletide period has been theorised as having influenced concepts of Saint Nicholas and Santa Claus in a variety of facets, including his long white beard and his grey horse for nightly rides (compare Odin's horseSleipnir) or his reindeer in North American tradition.[22] The folklorist Margaret Baker maintains that "the appearance of Santa Claus or Father Christmas, whose day is the 25th of December, owes much to Odin, the old blue-hooded, cloaked, white-bearded Giftbringer of the north, who rode the midwinter sky on his eight-footed steed Sleipnir, visiting his people with gifts. Odin, transformed into Father Christmas, then Santa Claus, prospered withSt Nicholas and theChristchild, became a leading player on the Christmas stage."[23]
In northern Europe, theYule goat was an earlier bearer of gifts, which has to some degree become conflated with Santa Claus, for instance in the FinnishJoulupukki tradition.[24]
History
Origins
Early representations of the gift-giver from Church history and folklore, especially Saint Nicholas, merged with the English character Father Christmas to create the mythical character known to the rest of the English-speaking world as "Santa Claus" (a phonetic derivation of "Sinterklaas" inDutch).
In theEnglish and laterBritish colonies of North America, and later in the United States, British and Dutch versions of the gift-giver merged further. For example, inWashington Irving'sHistory of New York (1809),Sinterklaas was Anglicised into "Santa Claus" (a name first used in the U.S. press in 1773)[25] but lost his bishop's apparel, and was at first pictured as a thick-bellied Dutch sailor with a pipe in a green winter coat. Irving's book was aparody of the Dutch culture of New York, and much of this portrait is his joking invention.[26] Irving's interpretation of Santa Claus was part of a broader movement to tone down the increasingly wild Christmas celebrations of the era, which included aggressive home invasions under the guise ofwassailing, substantial premarital sex (leading toshotgun weddings in areas where thePuritans, waning in power and firmly opposed to Christmas, still held some influence) and public displays of sexual deviancy; the celebrations of the era were derided by both upper-class merchants and Christian purists.[26]
In 1821 the bookA New-year's present, to the little ones from five to twelve was published in New York. It contained "Old Santeclaus with Much Delight", an anonymous poem describing Santeclaus on a reindeer sleigh, bringing rewards to children.[27] Some modern ideas of Santa Claus seemingly becamecanon after the anonymous publication of the poemA Visit From St. Nicholas (better known today asThe Night Before Christmas) in theTroy, New YorkSentinel on 23 December 1823;Clement Clarke Moore later claimed authorship, though others have argued that the author wasHenry Livingston Jr., although he had never claimed authorship of the piece and died nine years before Moore revealed himself as the author.[7][28] Saint Nicholas is described as being "chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf" with "a little round belly", that "shook when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly", in spite of which the "miniature sleigh" and "tiny reindeer" still indicate that he is physically diminutive.The reindeer were also named: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Dunder and Blixem (Dunder and Blixem came from the old Dutch words for thunder and lightning, which were later changed to the more German sounding Donner and Blitzen).[29]
By 1845 "Kris Kringle" (from "Christkindl(e)", German for "Christ-child") was a common variant of Santa in parts of the United States.[30] A magazine article from 1853, describing American Christmas customs to British readers, refers to children hanging up theirstockings on Christmas Eve for "a fabulous personage" whose name varies: in Pennsylvania he is usually called "Krishkinkle", but in New York he is "St. Nicholas" or "Santa Claus". The author[31] quotes Moore's poem in its entirety, saying that its descriptions apply to Krishkinkle too.[32]
As the years passed, Santa Claus evolved into a large, heavyset person. One of the first artists to define the modern image of the modern image of Santa Claus wasThomas Nast, a German-born Americancartoonist of the 19th century who immortalised Santa Claus with an illustration for the 3 January 1863 issue ofHarper's Weekly in which Santa was dressed in anAmerican flag, and had a puppet with the name "Jeff" written on it, reflecting itsAmerican Civil War context. Nast was inspired by theBelsnickel, part of the folklore in southwestern Germany, where he was born.[33] In this drawing, Santa is also in a sleigh pulled by reindeers.[citation needed]
The story that Santa Claus lives at the North Pole may also have been a Nast creation. His Christmas image in theHarper's issue dated 29 December 1866 was a collage of engravings titledSanta Claus and His Works, which included the caption "Santa Claussville, N.P."[34] A colour collection of Nast's pictures, published in 1869, had a poem also titled "Santa Claus and His Works" byGeorge P. Webster, who wrote that Santa Claus's home was "near the North Pole, in the ice and snow".[35] The tale had become well known by the 1870s. A boy fromColorado writing to the children's magazineThe Nursery in late 1874 said, "If we did not live so very far from the North Pole, I should ask Santa Claus to bring me a donkey."[36]
The idea of a wife for Santa Claus may have been the creation of American authors, beginning in the mid-19th century. In 1889, the poetKatharine Lee Bates popularisedMrs Claus in the poem "Goody Santa Claus on a Sleigh Ride". "Is There a Santa Claus?" is the title of an iconic editorial byFrancis Pharcellus Church in the 21 September 1897 edition ofThe New York Sun that became the most reprinted in the US and included the famous reply, "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus".[37][38]
L. Frank Baum'sThe Life and Adventures of Santa Claus, achildren's book, was published in 1902. Much of Santa Claus's mythos was not firmly established at the time, leaving Baum to give his "Neclaus" (Necile's Little One) a variety of immortal support, a home in the Laughing Valley of Hohaho, andten reindeer—who could not fly, but leapt in enormous, flight-like bounds. Claus'simmortality was earned, much like his title ("Santa"), decided by a vote of those naturally immortal. This work also established Santa's motives: a happy childhood among immortals. When Ak, Master Woodsman of the World, exposes him to the misery and poverty of children in the outside world, Santa strives to find a way to bring joy into the lives of all children, and eventually invents toys as a principal means. Santa later appears inThe Road to Oz as an honored guest at Ozma's birthday party, stated to be famous and beloved enough for everyone to bow even before he is announced as "The most Mighty and Loyal Friend of Children, His Supreme Highness – Santa Claus".
Images of Santa Claus were conveyed throughHaddon Sundblom's depiction of him forThe Coca-Cola Company's Christmas advertising in the 1930s.[7][39] The image spawnedurban legends that Santa Claus was invented by The Coca-Cola Company or that Santa wears red and white because they are the colours used to promote the Coca-Cola brand.[40] Coca-Cola's competitorPepsi-Cola used similar Santa Claus paintings in its advertisements in the 1940s and 1950s. Historically, Coca-Cola was not the firstsoft drink company to utilise the modern image of Santa Claus in its advertising—White Rock Beverages had used a Santa figure in monochrome advertisements formineral water in 1915, and in 1923–25, the same company used colour images of Santa Claus in adverts for drink mixers.[41] Earlier, Santa Claus had appeared dressed in red and white and essentially in his current form on several covers ofPuck magazine in the first few years of the 20th century.[42]
The image of Santa Claus as a benevolent character became reinforced with its association with charity and philanthropy, particularly by organisations such as theSalvation Army. Volunteers dressed as Santa Claus typically became part offundraising drives to aid needy families at Christmas time.
In 1937Charles W. Howard, who played Santa Claus in department stores and parades, established the Charles W. Howard Santa School, the oldest continuously run such school in the world.[43]
In some images from the early 20th century, Santa was depicted as personally making his toys by hand in a small workshop like a craftsman. Eventually, the idea emerged that he had numerous elves responsible for making the toys, but the toys were still handmade by each individual elf working in the traditional manner.
The 1956 popular song byGeorge Melachrino, "Mrs. Santa Claus", and the 1963 children's bookHow Mrs. Santa Claus Saved Christmas, byPhyllis McGinley, helped to standardise and establish the character and role ofMrs Claus in the US.[44]
Elves had been portrayed as usingassembly lines to produce toys early in the 20th century. That shift was reflected in the modern depiction of Santa's residence—now often humorously portrayed as a fully mechanised production and distribution facility, equipped with the latest manufacturing technology, and overseen by the elves with Santa and Mrs Claus as executives or managers.[45]
In 1912 the actorLeedham Bantock became the first actor to be identified as having playedSanta Claus in a film,Santa Claus, which he also directed. The film includes scenes photographed in a limited, two-tone colour process and featured the use of detailed models.[46] Since then many feature films have featured Santa Claus as a protagonist, includingMiracle on 34th Street,The Santa Clause, andElf.
Santa has been described as a positive malecultural icon:
Santa is really the only cultural icon we have who's male, does not carry a gun, and is all about peace, joy, giving, and caring for other people. That's part of the magic for me, especially in a culture where we've become so commercialized and hooked into manufactured icons. Santa is much more organic, integral, connected to the past, and therefore connected to the future.
Norman Corwin's 1938 comic radio playThe Plot to Overthrow Christmas, set entirely in rhyme, details a conspiracy ofthe DevilMephistopheles and damned figures of history to defeat the good will among men of Christmas, by sending the Roman emperorNero to the North Pole to assassinate Santa Claus. Through a battle of wits, Santa saves himself by winning Nero over to the joys of Christmas, and gives him aStradivarius violin. The play was re-produced in 1940 and 1944.
Many television commercials,comic strips and other media depict this as a sort of humorous business, withSanta's elves acting as a sometimes mischievously disgruntled workforce, cracking jokes and pulling pranks on their boss. For instance, aBloom County story from 15 December 1981 through 24 December 1981 has Santa rejecting the demands of PETCO (Professional Elves Toy-Making and Craft Organization) for higher wages, a hot tub in the locker room, and "Aggressive recruitment of a wider gender spectrum of employee" ("short broads"), with the elves then going on strike.Ronald Reagan steps in, fires all of Santa's helpers, and replaces them with out-of-workair traffic controllers (an obvious reference to the1981 air traffic controllers' strike), resulting in a riot before Santa vindictively rehires them in humiliating new positions such as his reindeer.[48] In the 2001The Sopranos episode, "To Save Us All from Satan's Power",Paulie Gualtieri says he "Used to think Santa and Mrs. Claus were running asweatshop over there. The original elves were ugly, traveled with Santa to throw bad kids a beatin', and gave the good ones toys."
In Kyrgyzstan, a mountain peak was named after Santa Claus, after a Swedish company had suggested the location be a more efficient starting place for present-delivering journeys all over the world, than Lapland. In the Kyrgyz capital,Bishkek, a Santa Claus Festival was held on 30 December 2007, with government officials attending. 2008 was officially declared the Year of Santa Claus in the country. The events are seen as moves to boost tourism in Kyrgyzstan.[49]
TheGuinness World Record for the largest gathering of Santa Clauses is held byThrissur, Kerala, India, where on 27 December 2014, 18,112 Santas overtook the previous record. Derry City, Northern Ireland had held the record since 9 September 2007, when a total of 12,965 people dressed up as Santa or Santa's helpers. A gathering of Santas in 2009 in Bucharest, Romania attempted to top the world record, but failed with only 3,939 Santas.[50]
Santa Claus has been featured in many video games.[51]
In Brazil, a version of Santa with green clothes instead of red became popular through television commercials for the soft drink brandDolly appearing along with their mascot Dollynho since the 2000s, as a form ofpatriotism adapting the character to the colors of the Brazilian flag and at the same time rivalling Coca-Cola commercials.[52] Another attempt to adapt Santa Claus to the colors of the Brazilian flag occurred in 2024 inBalneário Camboriú,Santa Catarina where a sculpture wearing yellow clothes with green gloves and bag was installed, generating controversy, being accused of making an association with the political extreme right, due to the colours being seen in protests bysupporters of Jair Bolsonaro.[53]
The tradition of Santa Claus being said to enter dwellings through the chimney is shared by many European seasonal gift-givers.[54]
Christmas Eve
In Hungary, Saint Nicolaus (Mikulás) or Father Winter (Télapó) comes on the night of 5 December and the children get their gifts the next morning. They get sweets in a bag if they were good, and a golden-coloured birch switch if not. OnChristmas Eve "Little Jesus" comes and gives gifts for everyone.[55]
In Slovenia, Saint Nicholas (Miklavž) also brings small gifts for good children on the eve of 6 December. Božiček (Christmas Man) brings gifts on the eve of 25 December, and Dedek Mraz (Grandfather Frost) brings gifts in the evening of 31 December to be opened on New Years Day.
An archetypal North American depiction of Santa ClausBenedict XVI wearing a camauro, which has been likened to Santa's hat.
After the children have fallenasleep, parents play the role of Santa Claus and leave their gifts under theChristmas tree, which may be signed as being "from Santa Claus".[56][57][58]
Appearance
A man dressed as Santa Claus waves to children from anannual holiday train in Chicago, 2012.
Santa is generally depicted as a portly, jolly, white-bearded man, often with glasses, wearing a red outfit consisting of jacket, trousers and hat all trimmed with white fur, accessorised with black leather belt and boots, and carrying a bag full of gifts for children. The 1823 poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas" popularised this image in North America during the 19th century. The caricaturist and political cartoonistThomas Nast also played a role in the creation of Santa's image.[59][60][61] Connections have been drawn between thecamauro -- a soft red hat with white fur trim formerly worn by thepope -- and the red-and-white vesture of Santa Claus.[62][63][64]
The traditional 1823 Christmas poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas" relates that Santa has "a little round belly / That shook when he laugh'd, like a bowl full of jelly".
Though most often portrayed aswhite, Santa is also depicted asblack or of other races. His race or colour is sometimes a subject of controversy.[65][66]
Ho ho ho is the way that many languages write out how Santa Claus laughs. "Ho, ho, ho! Merry Christmas!" It is the textual rendition of a particular type of deep-throatedlaugh or chuckle, most associated today with Santa Claus andFather Christmas.
The laughter of Santa Claus has long been an important attribute by which the character is identified, but it also does not appear in many non-English-speaking countries.[citation needed]
TheSanta Claus Village inLapland (Finland), the legendary "North Pole" home of SantaSanta's House at Jerusalem Old City, St. Peter Street
Santa Claus's home is traditionally said to include a residence and a workshop where he is said to create—often with the aid of elves or other supernatural beings—the gifts he is said to deliver to good children at Christmas. Some stories and legends include a village, inhabited by his helpers, surrounding his home and shop.
Santa is traditionally said to live at the North Pole, which according toCanada Post lies within Canadian jurisdiction in thepostal code H0H 0H0[67] (a reference to Santa's laugh, "Ho ho ho", although postal codes starting with H are usually reserved for theisland of Montréal inQuébec). On 23 December 2008,Jason Kenney, theMinister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, formally awardedCanadian citizenship status to Santa Claus. "The Government of Canada wishes Santa the very best in his Christmas Eve duties and wants to let him know that, as a Canadian citizen, he has the automatic right to re-enter Canada once his trip around the world is complete," Kenney said in an official statement.[68] There is also a city namedNorth Pole inAlaska where a tourist attraction known as the "Santa Claus House" has been established. TheUnited States Postal Service recommends mail to Santa's workshop are sent to 123 Elf Road, North Pole, 88888.[69]Royal Mail recommends letters are sent to Santa/Father Christmas, Santa's Grotto, Reindeerland, XM4 5HQ.[70]
In France, Santa is believed to reside in 1 Chemin des Nuages, Pôle Nord (1 Alley of Clouds, North Pole). The French national postal service has operated a service that allows children to send letters to Père Noël since 1962.[73] In the period before Christmas, any physical letter in the country that is addressed to Santa Claus is sent to a specific location, where responses for the children's letters are written and sent back to the children.[74]
Eaton's Santa Claus Parade, 1918, Toronto, Canada. Having arrived at theEaton's department store, Santa is readying his ladder to climb up onto the building.Representation of Santa Claus in Italy
Actors portraying Santa Claus are present at various venues in the weeks leading up to Christmas. A concept devised by the retail entrepreneurDavid Lewis, the firstChristmas grotto opened inLewis's department store in Liverpool, England, in 1879.[75] The idea then took hold throughout Britain,[76] before extending to Australian and American department stores in the 1890s, withJames Edgar starting in 1890 in hisBrockton, Massachusetts, department store.[77] Having a Santa actor set up to take pictures with children is a ritual that dates back at least to 1918.[78] An area is often set aside for the actors portraying Santa to use for the duration of the holiday season. It usually features a chair for the actors to sit in surrounded by various holiday-themed decorations. In Canada, malls operated byOxford Properties established a process by whichautistic children could "visit Santa Claus" at the mall without having to contend with crowds.[79] The malls open early to allow entry only to families with autistic children, who have a private visit with the actor portraying Santa Claus. In 2012 theSouthcentre Mall in Calgary was the first mall to offer this service.[80] In the UK, the discount storePoundland changes the voice of itsself-service checkouts to that of Santa Claus throughout the Christmas retail period.[81]
There are schools offering instruction on how to act as Santa Claus. For example, the children's television producerJonathan Meath studied at the International School of Santa Claus and earned the degreeMaster of Santa Claus in 2006. It blossomed into a second career for him, and after appearing in parades and malls,[82] he appeared on the cover of the American monthlyBoston Magazine as Santa.[83] There are associations with members who portray Santa; for example, Mr. Meath was a board member of the international organisation calledFraternal Order of Real Bearded Santas.[84]
Due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, many Santa grottos were not operating for the 2020 Christmas season. Due to this, some companies offeredvideo calls for a fee using apps such asZoom where children could speak to an actor who was dressed as Santa Claus.[85]
Children sometimes write letters to Santa Claus, often with a wish list of presents that they wish to receive.[87][88] Some postal services recognise this tradition, and may accept letters addressed to "Santa Claus".[89] Writing letters to Santa Claus has the educational benefits of promoting literacy, computer literacy, and email literacy. A letter to Santa is often a child's first experience of correspondence. Written and sent with the help of a parent or teacher, children learn about thestructure of a letter, salutations, and the use of an address and postcode.[90]
According to theUniversal Postal Union (UPU)'s 2007 study and survey of national postal operations, theUnited States Postal Service (USPS) has the oldest Santa letter answering effort by a national postal system. The USPS Santa letter answering effort started in 1912 out of the historicJames Farley Post Office[91] in New York, and since 1940 has been called "Operation Santa" to ensure that letters to Santa are adopted by charitable organisations, major corporations, local businesses and individuals in order to fulfill the wishes of children.[89] Those seeking a North Pole holiday postmark through the USPS are told to send their letter from Santa or a holiday greeting card by 10 December to: North Pole Holiday Postmark, Postmaster, 4141 Postmark Dr, Anchorage, Alaska 99530–9998.[92]
In 2006, according to the UPU's 2007 study and survey of national postal operations,La Poste received the most letters for Santa Claus or "Père Noël" with 1,220,000 letters received from 126 countries.[93] In 2007 it specially recruited someone to answer the enormous volume of mail that was coming from Russia for Santa Claus.[89]
Other Santa letter processing information, according to the UPU's 2007 study and survey of national postal operations, include:[89]
Countries whose national postal operators answer letters to Santa and other end-of-year holiday figures, and the number of letters received in 2006: Germany (500,000), Australia (117,000), Austria (6,000), Bulgaria (500), Canada (1,060,000), Spain (232,000), United States (no figure, as statistics are not kept centrally), Finland (750,000), France (1,220,000), Ireland (100,000), New Zealand (110,000), Portugal (255,000), Poland (3,000), Slovakia (85,000), Sweden (150,000), Switzerland (17,863), Ukraine (5,019), United Kingdom (750,000).
In 2006,Finland's national postal operation received letters from 150 countries (representing 90% of the letters received), France's Postal Service from 126 countries, Germany from 80 countries, and Slovakia from 20 countries.
Some national postal operators make it possible to send in email messages which are answered by physical mail. All the same, Santa still receives far more letters than email through the national postal operators, proving that children still write letters. National postal operators offering the ability to use an onlineweb form (with or without a return email address) to Santa and obtain a reply include Canada Post[94] (online web request form in English and French),France's Postal Service (online web request form in French),[95][96] andNew Zealand Post[97] (online web request form in English).[98] In France, by 6 December 2010, a team of 60 postal elves had sent out reply cards in response to 80,000 e-mail on-line request forms and more than 500,000 physical letters.[90]
From 2002 to 2014, Canada Post replied to approximately "one million letters or more a year, and in total answered more than 24.7 million letters";[99] as of 2015, it responds to more than 1.5 million letters per year, "in over 30 languages, including Braille answering them all in the language they are written".[100] The tradition also exists in Great Britain[101] and Finland.[90]
In Latin America, letters are sometimes tied to balloons instead of being sent through the mail.[102]
An example of a public and private cooperative venture is the opportunity forexpatriate and local children and parents to receive postmarked mail and greeting cards from Santa during December in the Finnish Embassy in Beijing,[103] Santa Claus Village inRovaniemi, Finland, and the People's Republic of China Postal System's Beijing International Post Office.[104][105][106]
Tracking
The Christmas issue ofNOAA'sWeather Bureau Topics with "Santa Claus" streaking across a weatherradar screen, 1958
1955Sears ad with the misprinted telephone number that led to the creation of theNORAD Tracks Santa program
NORAD Tracks Santa originated in 1955 when aSears-Roebuck ad incorrectly printed the number for their Santa hotline and theContinental Air Defense Command received the calls intended for the Sears hotline. The program was transferred to NORAD when it was jointly founded by the United States and Canada in 1958.[117][118]
In December 2000, theWeather Channel built upon these local efforts to provide a national Christmas Eve "Santa tracking" effort, called "SantaWatch", in cooperation withNASA, theInternational Space Station, andSilicon Valley–based newmultimedia firm Dreamtime Holdings.[119] Currently, most local television stations in the United States and Canada rely upon outside established "Santa tracking" efforts, such as NORAD Tracks Santa.[120]
In addition to providing holiday-themed entertainment, "Santa tracking" websites raise interest inspace technology andexploration,[121] serve to educate children in geography[122] and encourage them to take an interest in science.[123]
Many websites exist that claim to track Santa and his workshop. One particular website calledemailSanta.com was created when a 1997Canada Poststrike prevented Alan Kerr's young niece and nephews from sending their letters to Santa; in a few weeks, over 1,000 emails to Santa were received, and the site had received 1,000 emails a day one year later.[124][125] Some websites, such as Santa's page onMicrosoft's formerWindows Live Spaces or emailSanta.com, have used or still use "bots" or other automated programs to compose and send personalised and realistic replies.[126][127] Microsoft's website has given occasional profane results.[128][129]
Santa Claus has partial Christian roots inSaint Nicholas, particularly in thehigh church denominations that practise theveneration of him and othersaints. VariousChristian denominations have differing opinions of Santa Claus, ranging from acceptance to denouncement.[130][131] Some Christians, particularlyCalvinists such as thePuritans, disliked the idea of Santa Claus as well as Christmas in general, believing that the lavish celebrations were not in accordance with their faith.[132] Othernonconformist Christians condemn thematerialist focus of contemporary gift-giving and see Santa Claus as the symbol of that culture.[133]
Condemnation of Christmas was prevalent among 17th-century English Puritans and Dutch Calvinists. TheAmerican colonies established by these groups reflected this view. Tolerance for Christmas increased after theRestoration, although Puritan attitudes toward the holiday remained unfavorable.[134] In the DutchNew Netherland colony, season celebrations focused on New Year's Day.
Excerpt from Josiah King'sThe Examination and Tryal of Father Christmas (1686), published shortly after Christmas was reinstated as a holy day in England
Following the Restoration of the monarchy and with Puritans out of power in England,[135] the ban on Christmas was satirised in works such as Josiah King'sThe Examination and Tryal of OldFather Christmas; Together with his Clearing by the Jury (1686).[136]
In 1958 Reverend Paul Nedergaard, a clergyman in Copenhagen, declared Santa a "heathen goblin" (Danish:en hedensk trold) after Santa's image was used on the annual Christmas stamp (Julemærke) for a Danish children's welfare organisation.[137]
Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of theChristian Science movement, wrote: "the children should not be taught that Santa Claus has aught to do with thisChristmas pastime. A deceit or falsehood is never wise. Too much cannot be done towards guarding and guiding well the germinating and inclining thought of childhood. To mould aright the first impressions of innocence, aids in perpetuating purity and in unfolding the immortal model, man in His image and likeness."[138]
Opposition under state atheism
Under theMarxist–Leninist doctrine ofstate atheism in the Soviet Union after its foundation in 1917, Christmas celebrations—along with other religious holidays—were prohibited as a result of the Sovietantireligious campaign.[139][140] TheLeague of Militant Atheists encouraged schoolchildren to campaign against Christmas traditions, among them being Santa Claus and theChristmas tree, as well as other Christian holidays includingEaster; the League established an antireligious holiday to be the 31st of each month as a replacement.[141][142]
In December 2018, the city management office ofLangfang inHebei province, China, released a statement stating that people caught selling Christmas trees, wreaths, stockings or Santa Claus figures in the city would be punished by authorities.[143]
Symbol of commercialism
Santa Claus, Sydney, 1933
Jeremy Seal, author of the 2005 bookNicholas: The Epic Journey from Saint to Santa Claus, said in an interview that Santa's 19th-century elements, like reindeer, a sleigh, and bells, were reminiscent of the real world.[144][relevant?]
Writing inMothering magazine, Carol Jean-Swanson makes similar points, noting that the original figure of Saint Nicholas gave only to those who were needy and that today Santa Claus seems to be more aboutconspicuous consumption: "He [...] mirrors some of our highest ideals: childhood purity and innocence, selfless giving, unfaltering love, justice, and mercy. [...] The problem is that, in the process, he has become burdened with some of society's greatest challenges: materialism, corporate greed, and domination by the media."[145]
In the Czech Republic, a group of advertising professionals started a website against Santa Claus, a relatively recent phenomenon in that country.[146] In the Czech tradition, presents are delivered byJežíšek, which translates asBaby Jesus.[146]
In the United Kingdom,Father Christmas was historically depicted wearing a green cloak.[citation needed] As Father Christmas has been increasingly merged into the image of Santa Claus, that has been changed to the more commonly known red suit.[147] Santa had been portrayed in a red suit in the 19th century byThomas Nast among others.[148][relevant?]
A law in theUS state ofOhio prohibits the usage of Santa Claus or his image to sell alcoholic beverages.[149]
Parent-initiated activities, like visiting a Santa actor at a shopping centre, promote belief in Santa Claus by young children.[150]
Psychologists generally differentiate between telling fictional stories that feature Santa Claus and actively deceiving a child into believing that Santa Claus is real.Imaginative play, in which children know that Santa Claus is only a character in a story, but pretend that he is real, just like they pretend that superheroes or otherfictional characters are real, is valuable. Actively deceiving a child into believing in Santa Claus's real-world existence, sometimes even to the extent of fabricating false evidence to convince them despite their growing natural doubts, does not result in imaginative play and can promotecredulity in the face of strong evidence against Santa Claus's existence.[151][152] Children will eventually know that their parents deceived them.[153]
Babies and toddlers do not understand the concept of a fictional character, but most children become developmentally able to "believe in" Santa Claus around age three or four.[154][150] The prevalence of belief in Santa Claus is high at age five, and declines precipitously when children are seven or eight years old.[155][156][157][158] Although the age at disillusionment has been fairly stable for decades – in 1978, 85% of American five year olds believed that Santa was real, but only 25% of eight year olds still did – it may be getting slightly lower over time.[159]Age-inappropriate belief in Santa is seen in some older children and teenagers who haveautism or otherneurodevelopmental disorders.[160]
The psychology professor Jacqueline Woolley helped to conduct a study that found that children seemed competent in their use of logic, evidence, and comparative reasoning even though they might conclude that Santa Claus or other fanciful creatures were real. According to Woolley, the existence of Santa Claus is affirmed to children by "friends, books, TV and movies" and by "hard evidence" of "half-eaten cookies and empty milk glasses".[161]
Typical objections to presenting Santa Claus as a literally real person, rather than a story, include that:
Some have argued that Santa Claus prioritises parents' short-term happiness in seeing children excited about Santa Claus, and their nostalgic willingness to prolong the age ofmagical thinking, over children.[152] The philosopherDavid Kyle Johnson wrote, "It's a lie, it degrades your parental trustworthiness, it encourages credulity, it does not encourage imagination, and it's equivalent to bribing your kids for good behavior."[164]
Others see little harm in the belief in Santa Claus. The psychologist Tamar Murachver said that because it is a cultural, not parental, lie, it does not usually undermine parental trust.[165] Woolley posited that it is perhaps "kinship with the adult world" that causes children not to be angry that they were lied to for so long. In one study, it was found that children did not trust their parents less and adults did not recall an increase in lack of trust.[166] Austin Cline argued that, to get children's belief in Santa Claus, a complicated series of elaborate lies and defenses over time is needed, rather than a few single-time lies.[163] Most children do not remain angry or embarrassed about the deception for very long.[166][167] They are most likely to have a positive feeling about it if they are able to figure it out logically (e.g., by realising the impossibility of one person visiting every home in a single night) and gradually.[166][167] According to the psychologist John Condry, "The most common response to finding out the truth was that they felt older and more mature. They now knew something that the younger kids did not".[167] In other studies, a small fraction of children felt betrayed by their parents, but disappointment was a more common response.[152] Some children have reacted strongly, including rejecting the family'sreligious beliefs on the grounds that if the parents lied about the existence of Santa Claus, then they might lie about theexistence of God as well.[152] TheNew Zealand Skeptics also see no harm in parents telling their children that Santa is real. The spokespersonVicki Hyde said, "It would be a hard-hearted parent indeed who frowned upon the innocent joys of our children's cultural heritage. We save our bah humbugs for the things that exploit the vulnerable."[165]
^abcdWilliam J. Federer (2002). "There Really Is a Santa Claus: The History of St. Nicholas & Christmas Holiday Traditions" p. 39. Amerisearch, Inc., 2002
^abJacqueline Simpson, Steve Roud (2000) "English Folklore". Oxford University Press, 2000
^A children's party given in England on 26 December 1842 featured 'venerable effigies' of Father Christmas and the Old Year; '... Father Christmas with scarlet coat and cocked hat, stuck all over with presents for the guests... ' R. L. Brett, ed., Barclay Fox's Journal, Bell and Hyman, London, 1979
^"Nibud Pers, persberichten" (in Dutch). NIBUD. 2003. Archived fromthe original on 14 December 2009. Netherlands budget institute table showing money spent by households categorised into those that give gifts only on Sint (36%), only on Christmas day (21%), on both days (26%)
^"Last Monday, the anniversary of St. Nicholas, otherwise called Santa Claus, was celebrated at Protestant Hall, at Mr. Waldron's; where a great number of sons of the ancient saintthe Sons of Saint Nicholas celebrated the day with great joy and festivity."Rivington's Gazette (New York City), 23 December 1773.
^Thomas Nast,Santa Claus and His WorksArchived 15 December 2010 at theWayback Machine, 1866. The phrase "Santa Claussville, N.P." is on the curved border to the right of center, above the large word "Claus".
^Jeremy Seal,Nicholas: The Epic Journey From Saint to Santa Claus, Bloomsbury, 2005, p. 199–200.ISBN978-1-58234-419-5.
^Armstrong, Ralph (1875). Seaverns, Fanny P. (ed.)."A letter from Colorado".The Nursery. Vol. 18. John L. Shorey. p. 43.
^McKay, George. "Consumption, Coca-colonisation, Cultural resistance–and Santa Claus". In Whiteley, Sheila (ed.).Christmas, Ideology and Popular Culture. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 57–59.
^Edward B. Colby (3 December 2009)."Town in the spirit: Dedham Square to be filled with song, shopping".Dedham Transcript. Archived fromthe original on 21 July 2011. Retrieved13 November 2010.DEDHAM—The fifth annual Dedham Square Holiday Stroll this ... At 6 p.m., Jonathan Meath – better known as Santa JG, who performs with the Boston Pops – will entertain children and families at Cafe Video Paradiso with a sing-along with Santa. "We booked him months ago because we knew that he's in demand this time of year," Haelsen says.
^Mary Ann Georgantopoulos (23 December 2007)."Miracle on Mass. Ave.: City Santa takes suit seriously".The Boston Globe.Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved13 November 2010.Santa Claus is coming to town. More accurately, he's from town—Cambridge that is. Jonathan Meath is the perfect fit for a Santa.
^Santa Glen, secretary (October 2010)."Minutes of meeting". San Diego Chapter of F.O.R.B.S. Archived fromthe original on 22 October 2010. Retrieved13 November 2010.Hello fellow Santas, Once again we had an informative and fun gathering. Ten Santas were in attendance and we were happy to welcome Karilyn Curran, the chair person of our up and coming Santa Luncheon for 2011. ... Fashion Show: ... Jonathan Meath ...
^Otnes, Cele; Kim, Kyungseung; Kim, Young Chan (1994). "Yes, Virginia, there is a gender difference: Analyzing children's requests to Santa Claus".Journal of Popular Culture.28 (1): 23.doi:10.1111/j.0022-3840.1994.2801_17.x.
^Ribeiro, Ricky (19 December 2012)."EmailSanta.com: How Santa Claus Went Digital".BizTech Magazine.Archived from the original on 12 November 2021. Retrieved19 July 2020.It now offers kids and parents personalized messages from Santa, which run from an ASP script that Kerr built himself.
^Vnuk, Helen (7 December 2017)."Email Santa and get a reply: the website making my kids believe".MamaMia.com.au/.Archived from the original on 2 November 2021. Retrieved19 July 2020.The one thing that's convinced my daughter, more than anything else, that Santa is real is a website, emailSanta.com.
^Kippenberg, Hans G.; Kuiper, Yme B.; Sanders, Andy F. (1 January 1990).Concepts of Person in Religion and Thought. Walter de Gruyter. p. 363.ISBN978-3-11-087437-2.
^Bowler, Gerry (27 July 2011).Santa Claus: A Biography. Random House.ISBN978-1-55199-608-0.
^Eddy, Mary Baker (1925).Miscellany, p. 261, in Prose Works other than Science and Health. Trustees under the will of Mary Baker G. Eddy, Boston, USA.
^Connelly, Mark (2000).Christmas at the Movies: Images of Christmas in American, British and European Cinema. I.B.Tauris. p. 186.ISBN978-1-86064-397-2.A chapter on representations ofChristmas in Soviet cinema could, in fact be the shortest in this collection: suffice it to say that there were, at least officially, no Christmas celebrations in the atheist socialist state after its foundation in 1917.
^Echo of Islam. MIG. 1993.In the former Soviet Union, fir trees were usually put up to mark New Year's day, following a tradition established by the officially atheist state.
^Luzer, Daniel (26 November 2013)."What a Real War on Christmas Looks Like".Pacific Standard.Archived from the original on 14 November 2022. Retrieved12 November 2014.There were several anti-religious campaigns, the most dramatic of which occurred in the 1920s. According to a piece published by the School of Russian and Asia Studies: In 1925, Christmas was effectively banned under the officially atheist Soviet government, and never returned to Russia until 1992. The New Year celebration usurped the traditions of a Christmas Tree (Ёлка), Santa (known in Russian as "Дед Mopoз" or "Grandfather Frost"), and presents. In the Russian tradition, Grandfather Frost's granddaughter, the Snow Maiden (Снегурочка), always accompanies him to help distribute the gifts. Elves are not associated with the holiday. The state prohibited people from selling Christmas trees. There were even festivals, organized by the League of Militant Atheists, specifically to denigrate religious holidays. Their carnivals were inspired by similar events staged by activists after the French Revolution. From 1923 to 1924 and then again from 1929 to 1930 the "Komsomol Christmases" and Easters were basically holiday celebrations of atheism.
^Ramet, Sabrina Petra (10 November 2005).Religious Policy in the Soviet Union.Cambridge University Press. p. 138.ISBN978-0-521-02230-9.The League sallied forth to save the day from this putative religious revival.Antireligioznik obliged with so many articles that it devoted an entire section of its annual index for 1928 to anti-religious training in the schools. More such material followed in 1929, and a flood of it the next year. It recommended what Lenin and others earlier had explicitly condemned—carnivals, farces, and games to intimidate and purge the youth of religious belief. It suggested that pupils campaign against customs associated with Christmas (including Christmas trees) and Easter. Some schools, the League approvingly reported, staged an anti-religious day on the 31st of each month. Not teachers but the League's local set the programme for this special occasion.
^"Santa Claus won't be coming to this town, as Chinese officials ban Christmas".South China Morning Post. 18 December 2018.Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved23 December 2018.Christmas is not a recognised holiday in mainland China – where the ruling party is officially atheist – and for many years authorities have taken a tough stance on anyone who celebrates it in public. ... The statement by Langfang officials said that anyone caught selling Christmas trees, wreaths, stockings or Santa Claus figures in the city would be punished. ... While the ban on the sale of Christmas goods might appear to be directed at retailers, it also comes amid a crackdown on Christians practising their religion across the country. On Saturday morning, more than 60 police officers and officials stormed a children's Bible class in Guangzhou, capital of southern China's Guangdong province. The incident came after authorities shut down the 1,500-memberZion Church in Beijing in September and Chengdu's 500-memberEarly Rain Covenant Church last week. In the case of the latter, about 100 worshippers were snatched from their homes or from the streets in coordinated raids.
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