_Banbha_
November 25th, 2006, 08:45 PM
I posted this reply (edited a bit) in another thread (http://www.mysticwicks.com/showthread.php?t=145270) about Christmas customs and realized Santa is going to need his own thread. This post covers some more traditional aspects. Feel free to add to add to it. I'm sure there's lots of interesting European pre-Christain folkore about him as well. :)
Santa's suit: an Urban Legend from Snopes (http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/santa.asp)
Originally Posted by Snopes
...The Santa Claus figure, although not yet standardized, was ubiquitous by the late 19th century. Santa was portrayed as both large and small; he was usually round but sometimes of normal or slight build; and he dressed in furs (like Belsnickle) or cloth suits of red, blue, green, or purple. A Boston printer named Louis Prang introduced the English custom of Christmas cards to America, and in 1885 he issued a card featuring a red-suited Santa. The chubby Santa with a red suit (like an "overweight superhero") began to replace the fur-dressed Belsnickle image and the multicolored Santas....
:santasmil Some Santa Claus History :santasmil
Origin and History of Santa/St. Nicholas/Father Christmas on Religious Tolerance.org (http://www.religioustolerance.org/santa1.htm)
...Some religious historians and experts in folklore believe that there is no valid evidence to indicate that St. Nicholas ever existed as a human. In fact, there are quite a few indicators that his life story was simply recycled from those of Pagan gods. Many other ancient Pagan gods and goddesses were similarly Christianized in the early centuries of the Church. His legends seems to have been mainly created out of myths attributed to the Greek God Poseidon, the Roman God Neptune, and the Teutonic God Hold Nickar. "In the popular imagination [of many Russians] he became the heir of Mikoula, the god of harvest, 'who will replace God, when God becomes too old.' " 8
When the church created the persona of St. Nicholas, they adopted Poseidon's title "the Sailor." They seem to have picked up his last name from Nickar. Various temples of Poseidon became shrines of St. Nicholas. 1 "In medieval England... in tiny sea ports we find the typical little chapel built on an eminence and looking out to sea." 8 St. Nicholas also adopted some of the qualities of "The Grandmother" or Befana from Italy. She was said to have filled children's stockings with gifts. Her shrine at Bari was also converted into a shrine to St. Nicholas.
The Christian church created a fictional life history for St. Nicholas. He was given the name Hagios Nikolaos (a.k.a. St. Nicholas of Myra)....
More here:
Based on Panati's occasionally reliable _Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things_ on his red suit:
1. Santa's red and white robes predate the turn of the century and actually date back to the historical personage St. Nicholas who was the basis for Santa Claus.
2. The red and white robes were the colors of the robes of bishops of the Roman Catholic church.
3. St. Nicholas was born in the ancient Turkish town of Lycia in the fourth century.
4. St. Nicholas was not commonly referred to during the Protestant Reformation in most European countries. However, the stories were passed on by the Dutch and the term "Santa Claus" evolves from the Dutch term for St. Nicholas.
5. The modern image of Santa Claus in the United States comes from a poem entitled "The Night Before Christmas" written by Dr. Clement Clarke Moore in 1822, which spread widely in newspapers and magazines throughout the country.
6. Moore's Santa was still a little different from the modern rolypoly version. This final version was popularized in a series of Christmas drawings that the famed cartoonist, Thomas Nast did for _Harper's Weekly_ between 1863 and 1886.
http://tafkac.org/misc/santa_claus_origins.html
Links:
History from a an interesting St. Nicholas site (http://www.stnicholascenter.org/Brix?pageID=35) :)
History of Santa Claus (http://www.garsondesign.com/holidays/xmas/referencepages/santaclaus_history1.html)
Where did the red suit come from? (http://www.lone-star.net/mall/main-areas/xmas-santa-origin2.htm)
Santa FAQ from SantaClaus.com (http://www.santaclaus.com/santa-claus-christmas-faq.php)
The True Sory of Santa from Holland (http://www.thehollandring.com/truestory.shtml#top)
If anyone would like to ask him personally, write this to this address:
Santa Claus Park
Arctic Circle
999 Finland
Europe
I wonder if he has e-mail? :santasmil
Irreverent:
The Devil is in your chimney!: Is Satan Stanta Claus? (http://www.landoverbaptist.org/news1299/santy.html) A Special Report from the folks at Landover Baptist Church. :lol:
Snopes: Did a Japanese store nail Santa to a Cross in a missed cross-cultural Christmas display? (http://www.snopes.com/holidays/christmas/cross.asp):foh: Snopes does not discount this but Religious Tolerence.Org does.
Stamping Out Santa from Jew Eat Yet (http://dannymiller.typepad.com/blog/2005/12/stamp_out_santa.html) A protest. :lol:
Fright Christmas! (http://www.thesleaze.co.uk/frightxmas.html) :yikess:
Santa's suit: an Urban Legend from Snopes (http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/santa.asp)
Originally Posted by Snopes
...The Santa Claus figure, although not yet standardized, was ubiquitous by the late 19th century. Santa was portrayed as both large and small; he was usually round but sometimes of normal or slight build; and he dressed in furs (like Belsnickle) or cloth suits of red, blue, green, or purple. A Boston printer named Louis Prang introduced the English custom of Christmas cards to America, and in 1885 he issued a card featuring a red-suited Santa. The chubby Santa with a red suit (like an "overweight superhero") began to replace the fur-dressed Belsnickle image and the multicolored Santas....
:santasmil Some Santa Claus History :santasmil
Origin and History of Santa/St. Nicholas/Father Christmas on Religious Tolerance.org (http://www.religioustolerance.org/santa1.htm)
...Some religious historians and experts in folklore believe that there is no valid evidence to indicate that St. Nicholas ever existed as a human. In fact, there are quite a few indicators that his life story was simply recycled from those of Pagan gods. Many other ancient Pagan gods and goddesses were similarly Christianized in the early centuries of the Church. His legends seems to have been mainly created out of myths attributed to the Greek God Poseidon, the Roman God Neptune, and the Teutonic God Hold Nickar. "In the popular imagination [of many Russians] he became the heir of Mikoula, the god of harvest, 'who will replace God, when God becomes too old.' " 8
When the church created the persona of St. Nicholas, they adopted Poseidon's title "the Sailor." They seem to have picked up his last name from Nickar. Various temples of Poseidon became shrines of St. Nicholas. 1 "In medieval England... in tiny sea ports we find the typical little chapel built on an eminence and looking out to sea." 8 St. Nicholas also adopted some of the qualities of "The Grandmother" or Befana from Italy. She was said to have filled children's stockings with gifts. Her shrine at Bari was also converted into a shrine to St. Nicholas.
The Christian church created a fictional life history for St. Nicholas. He was given the name Hagios Nikolaos (a.k.a. St. Nicholas of Myra)....
More here:
Based on Panati's occasionally reliable _Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things_ on his red suit:
1. Santa's red and white robes predate the turn of the century and actually date back to the historical personage St. Nicholas who was the basis for Santa Claus.
2. The red and white robes were the colors of the robes of bishops of the Roman Catholic church.
3. St. Nicholas was born in the ancient Turkish town of Lycia in the fourth century.
4. St. Nicholas was not commonly referred to during the Protestant Reformation in most European countries. However, the stories were passed on by the Dutch and the term "Santa Claus" evolves from the Dutch term for St. Nicholas.
5. The modern image of Santa Claus in the United States comes from a poem entitled "The Night Before Christmas" written by Dr. Clement Clarke Moore in 1822, which spread widely in newspapers and magazines throughout the country.
6. Moore's Santa was still a little different from the modern rolypoly version. This final version was popularized in a series of Christmas drawings that the famed cartoonist, Thomas Nast did for _Harper's Weekly_ between 1863 and 1886.
http://tafkac.org/misc/santa_claus_origins.html
Links:
History from a an interesting St. Nicholas site (http://www.stnicholascenter.org/Brix?pageID=35) :)
History of Santa Claus (http://www.garsondesign.com/holidays/xmas/referencepages/santaclaus_history1.html)
Where did the red suit come from? (http://www.lone-star.net/mall/main-areas/xmas-santa-origin2.htm)
Santa FAQ from SantaClaus.com (http://www.santaclaus.com/santa-claus-christmas-faq.php)
The True Sory of Santa from Holland (http://www.thehollandring.com/truestory.shtml#top)
If anyone would like to ask him personally, write this to this address:
Santa Claus Park
Arctic Circle
999 Finland
Europe
I wonder if he has e-mail? :santasmil
Irreverent:
The Devil is in your chimney!: Is Satan Stanta Claus? (http://www.landoverbaptist.org/news1299/santy.html) A Special Report from the folks at Landover Baptist Church. :lol:
Snopes: Did a Japanese store nail Santa to a Cross in a missed cross-cultural Christmas display? (http://www.snopes.com/holidays/christmas/cross.asp):foh: Snopes does not discount this but Religious Tolerence.Org does.
Stamping Out Santa from Jew Eat Yet (http://dannymiller.typepad.com/blog/2005/12/stamp_out_santa.html) A protest. :lol:
Fright Christmas! (http://www.thesleaze.co.uk/frightxmas.html) :yikess: