Santa Claus

"Santa" redirects here. For other uses, see Santa (disambiguation).
This article is about the legendary character. For other uses, see Santa Claus (disambiguation).

1881 illustration by Thomas Nast who, along with Clement Clarke Moore's poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas", helped to create the modern image of Santa Claus
The modern portrayal of Santa Claus frequently depicts him listening to the Christmas wishes of children.

Santa Claus, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle, Santy, or simply Santa is a mythical figure with historical origins who, in many Western cultures, brings gifts to the homes of well-behaved, "good" children on Christmas Eve (24 December) and the early morning hours of Christmas Day (25 December).[1] The modern Santa Claus is derived from the British figure of Father Christmas, the Dutch figure of Sinterklaas, and Saint Nicholas, the historical Greek bishop and gift-giver of Myra. During the Christianization of Germanic Europe, this figure may also have absorbed elements of the god Odin, who was associated with the Germanic pagan midwinter event of Yule and led the Wild Hunt, a ghostly procession through the sky.

Santa Claus is generally depicted as a portly, joyous, white-bearded man—sometimes with spectacles—wearing a red coat with white collar and cuffs, white-cuffed red trousers, and black leather belt and boots and who carries a bag full of gifts for children. Images of him rarely have a beard with no moustache. This image became popular in the United States and Canada in the 19th century due to the significant influence of the 1823 poem "A Visit From St. Nicholas" and of caricaturist and political cartoonist Thomas Nast.[2][3][4] This image has been maintained and reinforced through song, radio, television, children's books and films.

Santa Claus has been believed to make lists of children throughout the world, categorizing them according to their behavior ("naughty" or "nice") and to deliver presents, including toys, and candy to all of the well-behaved children in the world, and sometimes coal to the naughty children, on the single night of Christmas Eve. He accomplishes this feat with the aid of the elves who make the toys in the workshop and the flying reindeer who pull his sleigh.[5][6] He is commonly portrayed as living at the North Pole and saying "ho ho ho" often.

Predecessor figures

Father Christmas

"Ghost of Christmas Present", an illustration by John Leech made for Charles Dickens's festive classic A Christmas Carol (1843).
Main article: Father Christmas

Father Christmas dates back as far as 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.[7] He typified the spirit of good cheer at Christmas, bringing peace, joy, good food and wine and revelry.[7] 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.[7] The Victorian revival of Christmas included Father Christmas as the emblem of 'good cheer'.[8] His physical appearance was variable,[9] with one famous image being John Leech's illustration of the "Ghost of Christmas Present" in Charles Dickens's festive classic A Christmas Carol (1843), as a great genial man in a green coat lined with fur who takes Scrooge through the bustling streets of London on the current Christmas morning, sprinkling the essence of Christmas onto the happy populace.[7][8]

Father Christmas is now widely seen as synonymous with the Santa Claus figure.

Saint Nicholas

A 13th-century depiction of St. Nicholas from Saint Catherine's Monastery, Sinai
Main article: Saint Nicholas

Saint Nicholas of Myra was a 4th-century Greek Christian bishop of Myra (now Demre) in Lycia, a province of the Byzantine Empire, now in Turkey. Nicholas was famous for his generous gifts to the poor, in particular presenting the three impoverished daughters of a pious Christian with dowries so that they would not have to become prostitutes.[10] He was very religious from an early age and devoted his life entirely to Christianity. In continental Europe (more precisely the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria and Germany) he is usually portrayed as a bearded bishop in canonical robes.

The remains of Saint Nicholas are in Italy. In 1087, the Italian city of Bari mounted an expedition to locate the tomb of the Saint. The reliquary of St. Nicholas was conquered by Italian sailors and his relics were taken to Bari[11][12] where they are kept to this day. A basilica was constructed the same year to store the loot and the area became a pilgrimage site for the devout. Sailors from Bari collected just half of Nicholas' skeleton, leaving all the minor fragments in the grave. These were collected by Venetian sailors during the First Crusade and taken to Venice, where a church to St. Nicholas, the patron of sailors, was built on the San Nicolò al Lido. This tradition was confirmed in two important scientific investigations of the relics in Bari and Venice, which revealed that the relics in the two Italian cities belong to the same skeleton. Saint Nicholas was later claimed as a patron saint of many diverse groups, from archers, sailors, and children to pawnbrokers.[10][13] He is also the patron saint of both Amsterdam and Moscow.[14]

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 the Reformation and its opposition to the veneration of saints in many countries on the 24 and 25 December. So Saint Nicholas changed to Santa Claus. The custom of gifting of children at Christmas has been propagated by Martin Luther as an alternative to the previous very popular gift custom on St. Nicholas, to focus the interest of the children to Christ instead of the veneration of saints. Martin Luther first suggested the Christkind as the bringer of gifts. But Nicholas remained popular as gifts bearer for the people.[15][16][17]

Dutch and Belgian folklore

Sinterklaas, Netherlands (2009) on his horse called Slecht Weer Vandaag or Amerigo

In the Netherlands and Belgium the character of Santa Claus has to compete with that of Sinterklaas, Santa's presumed progenitor. Santa Claus is known as de Kerstman in Dutch ("the Christmas man") and Père Noël ("Father Christmas") in French. But for children in the Netherlands Sinterklaas remains the predominant gift-giver in December; 36% of the Dutch only give presents on Sinterklaas day, whereas Christmas is used by another 21% to give presents. Some 26% of the Dutch population gives presents on both days.[18] In Belgium, Sinterklaas day presents are offered exclusively to children, whereas on Christmas Day, all ages may receive presents. Sinterklaas' assistants are called "Zwarte Pieten" (in Dutch, "Pères Fouettard" in French), so they are not elves.[19]

Germanic paganism, Odin, and Christianization

An 1886 depiction of the long-bearded Germanic god Odin by Georg von Rosen

Prior to Christianization, the Germanic peoples (including the English) celebrated a midwinter event called Yule (Old English geola or guili).[20] With the Christianization of Germanic Europe, numerous traditions were absorbed from Yuletide celebrations into modern Christmas.[21] During this period, supernatural and ghostly occurrences were said to increase in frequency, such as the Wild Hunt, a ghostly procession through the sky. The leader of the wild hunt is frequently attested as the god Odin and he bears the Old Norse names Jólnir, meaning "yule figure" and the name Langbarðr, meaning "long-beard" (see list of names of Odin).[22]

The god Odin's role during the Yuletide period has been theorized as having influenced concepts of St. Nicholas in a variety of facets, including his long white beard and his gray horse for nightly rides (see Odin's horse Sleipnir), which was traded for reindeer in North America.[23] Margaret Baker comments that "The appearance of Santa Claus or Father Christmas, whose day is 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 with St Nicholas and the Christchild became a leading player on the Christmas stage."[24]

History

Origins

Pre-modern representations of the gift-giver from Church history and folklore, notably St Nicholas (known in Dutch as Sinterklaas), merged with the English character Father Christmas to create the character known to Americans and the rest of the English-speaking world as "Santa Claus" (a phonetic derivation of "Sinterklaas").

In the English and later British colonies of North America, and later in the United States, British and Dutch versions of the gift-giver merged further. For example, in Washington Irving's History of New York (1809), Sinterklaas was Americanized into "Santa Claus" (a name first used in the American 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 a lampoon of the Dutch culture of New York, and much of this portrait is his joking invention.

19th century

1850 illustration of Saint Nicolas with his servant Père Fouettard
Zwarte Piet

"December 24, 1864. This has usually been a very busy day with me, preparing for Christmas not only for my own tables, but for gifts for my servants. Now how changed! No confectionary, cakes, or pies can I have. We are all sad; no loud, jovial laugh from our boys is heard. Christmas Eve, which has ever been gaily celebrated here, which has witnessed the popping of firecrackers … and the hanging up of stockings, is an occasion now of sadness and gloom. I have nothing even to put in 8-year-old daughter Sadai's stocking, which hangs so invitingly for Santa Claus. How disappointed she will be in the morning, though I have explained to her why he cannot come. Poor children! Why must the innocent suffer with the guilty?"

Diary of Dolly Lunt Burge, a Maine native, widow of Thomas Burge, and resident living c. 40 miles southeast of Atlanta near Covington, Georgia. This entry from Mrs. Burge's diary was five weeks after most of General T. Sherman's U.S. Army forces had passed on their blackened-earth "march across Georgia" toward Savanna, after the army's destruction of Atlanta in mid-November 1864. U.S. Army mop-up companies and stragglers during those intervening weeks continued to "forage", loot, burn, and liberate slaves, hence, the concern of Mrs. Burge and her household.[26]

In 1821, the book A New-year's present, to the little ones from five to twelve was published in New York. It contained Old Santeclaus, an anonymous poem describing an old man on a reindeer sleigh, bringing presents to children.[27] Some modern ideas of Santa Claus seemingly became canon after the anonymous publication of the poem "A Visit From St. Nicholas" (better known today as "The Night Before Christmas") in the Troy, New York, Sentinel on 23 December 1823; the poem was later attributed to Clement Clarke Moore.[10] Many of his modern attributes are established in this poem, such as riding in a sleigh that lands on the roof, entering through the chimney, and having a bag full of toys. St. Nick 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).[28]

A magazine article from 1853, describing American Christmas customs to British readers, refers to children hanging up their stockings 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[29] quotes Moore's poem in its entirety, saying that its descriptions apply to Krishkinkle too.[30]

As the years passed, Santa Claus evolved in popular culture into a large, heavyset person. One of the first artists to define Santa Claus's modern image was Thomas Nast, an American cartoonist of the 19th century. In 1863, a picture of Santa illustrated by Nast appeared in Harper's Weekly.

Thomas Nast immortalized Santa Claus with an illustration for the 3 January 1863 issue of Harper's Weekly. Santa was dressed in an American flag, and had a puppet with the name "Jeff" written on it, reflecting its Civil War context. The story that Santa Claus lives at the North Pole may also have been a Nast creation. His Christmas image in the Harper's issue dated 29 December 1866 was a collage of engravings titled Santa Claus and His Works, which included the caption "Santa Claussville, N.P."[31] A color collection of Nast's pictures, published in 1869, had a poem also titled "Santa Claus and His Works" by George P. Webster, who wrote that Santa Claus's home was "near the North Pole, in the ice and snow".[32] The tale had become well known by the 1870s. A boy from Colorado writing to the children's magazine The 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."[33]

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 poet Katharine Lee Bates popularized Mrs. Claus in the poem "Goody Santa Claus on a Sleigh Ride".

"Is There a Santa Claus?" was the title of an editorial appearing in the 21 September 1897 edition of The New York Sun. The editorial, which included the famous reply "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus", has become an indelible part of popular Christmas lore in the United States and Canada.

20th century

L. Frank Baum's The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus, a 1902 children's book, further popularized Santa Claus. Much of Santa Claus's mythos was not set in stone at the time, leaving Baum to give his "Neclaus" (Necile's Little One) a wide variety of immortal support, a home in the Laughing Valley of Hohaho, and ten reindeer—who could not fly, but leapt in enormous, flight-like bounds. Claus's immortality was earned, much like his title ("Santa"), decided by a vote of those naturally immortal. This work also established Claus'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.

Images of Santa Claus were further popularized through Haddon Sundblom's depiction of him for The Coca-Cola Company's Christmas advertising in the 1930s.[10][34] The popularity of the image spawned urban legends that Santa Claus was invented by The Coca-Cola Company or that Santa wears red and white because they are the colors used to promote the Coca-Cola brand.[35] Historically, Coca-Cola was not the first soft drink company to utilize the modern image of Santa Claus in its advertising—White Rock Beverages had already used a red and white Santa to sell mineral water in 1915 and then in advertisements for its ginger ale in 1923.[36][37][38] Earlier still, Santa Claus had appeared dressed in red and white and essentially in his current form on several covers of Puck magazine in the first few years of the 20th century.[39]

A man dressed as Santa Claus fundraising for Volunteers of America on the sidewalk of street in Chicago, Illinois, in 1902. He is wearing a mask with a beard attached.

The image of Santa Claus as a benevolent character became reinforced with its association with charity and philanthropy, particularly by organizations such as the Salvation Army. Volunteers dressed as Santa Claus typically became part of fundraising drives to aid needy families at Christmas time.

In 1937, Charles 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.[40]

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 by George Melachrino, "Mrs. Santa Claus", and the 1963 children's book How Mrs. Santa Claus Saved Christmas, by Phyllis McGinley, helped standardize and establish the character and role of Mrs. Claus in the popular imagination.

Seabury Quinn's 1948 novel Roads draws from historical legends to tell the story of Santa and the origins of Christmas. Other modern additions to the "story" of Santa include Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, the 9th and lead reindeer immortalized in a Gene Autry song, written by a Montgomery Ward copywriter.

In popular culture

See also: SantaCon

By the end of the 20th century, the reality of mass mechanized production became more fully accepted by the Western public. That shift was reflected in the modern depiction of Santa's residence—now often humorously portrayed as a fully mechanized production and distribution facility, equipped with the latest manufacturing technology, and overseen by the elves with Santa and Mrs. Claus as executives and/or managers.[41] An excerpt from a 2004 article, from a supply chain managers' trade magazine, aptly illustrates this depiction:

Santa's main distribution center is a sight to behold. At 4,000,000 square feet (370,000 m2), it's one of the world's largest facilities. A real-time warehouse management system (WMS) is of course required to run such a complex. The facility makes extensive use of task interleaving, literally combining dozens of DC activities (putaway, replenishing, order picking, sleigh loading, cycle counting) in a dynamic queue...the DC elves have been on engineered standards and incentives for three years, leading to a 12% gain in productivity...The WMS and transportation system are fully integrated, allowing (the elves) to make optimal decisions that balance transportation and order picking and other DC costs. Unbeknownst to many, Santa actually has to use many sleighs and fake Santa drivers to get the job done Christmas Eve, and the transportation management system (TMS) optimally builds thousands of consolidated sacks that maximize cube utilization and minimize total air miles.[42]

Santa has been described as a positive male cultural 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.

— TV producer Jonathan Meath who portrays Santa, 2011[43]

Many television commercials, comic strips and other media depict this as a sort of humorous business, with Santa's elves acting as a sometimes mischievously disgruntled workforce, cracking jokes and pulling pranks on their boss. For instance, a Bloom 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 "short broads,” with the elves then going on strike. President Reagan steps in, fires all of Santa's helpers, and replaces them with out-of-work air traffic controllers (an obvious reference to the 1981 air traffic controllers' strike), resulting in a riot before Santa vindictively rehires them in humiliating new positions such as his reindeer.[44] In The Sopranos episode, "...To Save Us All from Satan's Power", Paulie Gualtieri says he "Used to think Santa and Mrs. Claus were running a sweatshop over there... The original elves were ugly, traveled with Santa to throw bad kids a beatin', and gave the good ones toys."

2009 Liverpool Santa Dash

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.[45]

The Guinness World Record for the largest gathering of Santa Clauses is held by Thrissur, Kerala, India where on 27 December 2014, 18,112 Santas came overtaking the current record of Derry City, Northern Ireland. On 9 September 2007 where a total of 12,965 people dressed up as Santa or Santa's helper which previously brought down the record of 3,921, which was set during the Santa Dash event in Liverpool City Centre in 2005.[46] A gathering of Santas in 2009 in Bucharest, Romania attempted to top the world record, but failed with only 3939 Santas.[47]

Traditions and rituals

Chimney tradition

Steen's The Feast of Saint Nicholas

The tradition of Santa Claus entering dwellings through the chimney is shared by many European seasonal gift-givers. In pre-Christian Norse tradition, Odin would often enter through chimneys and fire holes on the solstice. In the Italian Befana tradition, the gift-giving witch is perpetually covered with soot from her trips down the chimneys of children's homes. In the tale of Saint Nicholas, the saint tossed coins through a window, and, in a later version of the tale, down a chimney when he finds the window locked. In Dutch artist Jan Steen's painting, The Feast of Saint Nicholas, adults and toddlers are glancing up a chimney with amazement on their faces while other children play with their toys. The hearth was held sacred in primitive belief as a source of beneficence, and popular belief had elves and fairies bringing gifts to the house through this portal. Santa's entrance into homes on Christmas Eve via the chimney was made part of American tradition through the poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas" where the author described him as an elf.[48]

Christmas Eve rituals

Santa Claus waves to children from an annual holiday train in Chicago.

In the United States and Canada, children traditionally leave Santa a glass of milk and a plate of cookies; in Britain and Australia, he is sometimes given sherry or beer, and mince pies instead. In Denmark, Norway and Sweden, it is common for children to leave him rice porridge with cinnamon sugar instead. In Ireland it is popular to give him Guinness or milk, along with Christmas pudding or mince pies.

In Hungary, St. Nicolaus (Mikulás) 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 colored birch switch if not. On Christmas Eve "Little Jesus" comes and gives gifts for everyone.

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.

Hanging up stockings for Santa Claus, Ohio, 1928

New Zealander, British, Australian, Irish, Canadian, and American children also leave a carrot for Santa's reindeer, and were traditionally told that if they are not good all year round, that they will receive a lump of coal in their stockings, although this practice is now considered archaic. Children following the Dutch custom for sinterklaas will "put out their shoe" (leave hay and a carrot for his horse in a shoe before going to bed, sometimes weeks before the sinterklaas avond). The next morning they will find the hay and carrot replaced by a gift; often, this is a marzipan figurine. Naughty children were once told that they would be left a roe (a bundle of sticks) instead of sweets, but this practice has been discontinued.

Other Christmas Eve Santa Claus rituals in the United States include reading A Visit from St. Nicholas or other tale about Santa Claus, watching a Santa or Christmas-related animated program on television (such as the aforementioned Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town and similar specials, such as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, among many others), and the singing of Santa Claus songs such as "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town", "Here Comes Santa Claus", and "Up on the House Top". Last minute rituals for children before going to bed include aligning stockings at the mantelpiece or other place where Santa cannot fail to see them, peeking up the chimney (in homes with a fireplace), glancing out a window and scanning the heavens for Santa's sleigh, and (in homes without a fireplace) unlocking an exterior door so Santa can easily enter the house. Tags on gifts for children are sometimes signed by their parents "From Santa Claus" before the gifts are laid beneath the tree.

Ho, ho, ho

Main article: Ho ho ho

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-throated laugh or chuckle, most associated today with Santa Claus and Father Christmas, it was connected in the 17th century with the English mythological figure of Puck.

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. The traditional 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

Home

Santa Claus's home traditionally includes a residence and a workshop where he creates—often with the aid of elves or other supernatural beings—the gifts he delivers to good children at Christmas. Some stories and legends include a village, inhabited by his helpers, surrounding his home and shop.

In North American tradition (in the United States and Canada), Santa lives on the North Pole, which according to Canada Post lies within Canadian jurisdiction in postal code H0H 0H0 (a reference to "ho ho ho", Santa's notable saying, although postal codes starting with H are usually reserved for the island of Montreal in Québec). On 23 December 2008, Jason Kenney, Canada's minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, formally awarded Canadian 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.[49]

There is also a city named North Pole in Alaska where a tourist attraction known as the "Santa Claus House" has been established. The US postal service uses the city's zip code of 99705 as their advertised postal code for Santa Claus. A Wendy's in North Pole, AK has also claimed to have a "sleigh fly through".[50]

Each Nordic country claims Santa's residence to be within their territory. Norway claims he lives in Drøbak. In Denmark, he is said to live in Greenland (near Uummannaq). In Sweden, the town of Mora has a theme park named Tomteland. The national postal terminal in Tomteboda in Stockholm receives children's letters for Santa. In Finland, Korvatunturi has long been known as Santa's home, and two theme parks, Santa Claus Village and Santa Park are located near Rovaniemi. In Belarus there is a home of Ded Moroz in Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park.[51]

Parades, department stores, and shopping malls

Eaton's Santa Claus Parade, 1918, Toronto, Canada. Having arrived at the Eaton's department store, Santa is readying his ladder to climb up onto the building.
Giant Santa Claus, Philippines

Santa Claus appears in the weeks before Christmas in department stores or shopping malls, or at parties. The practice of this has been credited to James Edgar, as he started doing this in 1890 in his Brockton, Massachusetts department store.[52] He is played by an actor, usually helped by other actors (often mall employees) dressed as elves or other creatures of folklore associated with Santa. Santa's function is either to promote the store's image by distributing small gifts to children, or to provide a seasonal experience to children by listening to their wishlist while having them sit on his knee (a practice now under review by some organisations in Britain,[53] and Switzerland[54]). Sometimes a photograph of the child and Santa are taken. Having a Santa set up to take pictures with children is a ritual that dates back at least to 1918.[55]

The area set up for this purpose is festively decorated, usually with a large throne, and is called variously "Santa's Grotto", "Santa's Workshop" or a similar term. In the United States, the most notable of these is the Santa at the flagship Macy's store in New York City—he arrives at the store by sleigh in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on the last float, and his court takes over a large portion of one floor in the store. This was popularized by the 1947 film Miracle on 34th Street with Santa Claus being called Kris Kringle. The Macy's Santa Claus in New York City is often said to be the real Santa. Essayist David Sedaris is known for the satirical SantaLand Diaries he kept while working as an elf in the Macy's display, which were turned into a famous radio segment and later published.

Quite often the Santa, if and when he is detected to be fake, explains that he is not the real Santa and is helping him at this time of year. Most young children accept this explanation. At family parties, Santa is sometimes impersonated by the male head of the household or other adult male family member.

In Canada, malls operated by Oxford Properties established a process by which autistic children could visit Santa Claus at the mall without having to contend with crowds.[56] The malls open early to allow entry only to families with autistic children, who have a private visit with Santa Claus. In 2012, the Southcentre Mall in Calgary was the first mall to offer this service.[57]

Santa Claus portrayed by children's television producer Jonathan Meath

There are schools offering instruction on how to act as Santa Claus. For example, children's television producer Jonathan Meath studied at the International School of Santa Claus and earned the degree Master of Santa Claus in 2006. It blossomed into a second career for him, and after appearing in parades and malls,[58] he appeared on the cover of the American monthly Boston Magazine as Santa.[59] There are associations with members who portray Santa; for example, Mr. Meath is a board member of the international organization called Fraternal Order of Real Bearded Santas.[60]

Letter writing to Santa

"Letters to Santa" redirects here. For the Muppet television film, see A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa. For the Polish film, see Letters to Santa (film).

Writing letters to Santa Claus has been a Christmas tradition for children for many years. These letters normally contain a wishlist of toys and assertions of good behavior. Some social scientists have found that boys and girls write different types of letters. Girls generally write longer but more polite lists and express the nature of Christmas more in their letters than in letters written by boys. Girls also more often request gifts for other people.[61]

Many postal services allow children to send letters to Santa Claus. These letters may be answered by postal workers and/or outside volunteers.[62] Writing letters to Santa Claus has the educational benefits of promoting literacy, computer literacy, and e-mail 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 the structure of a letter, salutations, and the use of an address and postcode.[63]

According to the Universal Postal Union (UPU)'s 2007 study and survey of national postal operations, the United 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 historic James Farley Post Office[64] in New York, and since 1940 has been called "Operation Santa" to ensure that letters to Santa are adopted by charitable organizations, major corporations, local businesses and individuals in order to make children's holiday dreams come true from coast to coast.[62] 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, AK 99530-9998.[65]

In 2006, according to the UPU's 2007 study and survey of national postal operations, France's Postal Service received the most letters for Santa Claus or "Père Noël" with 1,220,000 letters received from 126 countries.[66] France's Postal Service in 2007 specially recruited someone to answer the enormous volume of mail that was coming from Russia for Santa Claus.[62]

Other interesting Santa letter processing information, according to the UPU's 2007 study and survey of national postal operations, are:[62]

Canada Post has a special postal code for letters to Santa Claus, and since 1982 over 13,000 Canadian postal workers have volunteered to write responses. His address is: Santa Claus, North Pole, Canada, H0H 0H0[72] (see also: Ho ho ho). (This postal code, in which zeroes are used for the letter "O" is consistent with the alternating letter-number format of all Canadian postal codes.) Sometimes children's charities answer letters in poor communities, or from children's hospitals, and give them presents they would not otherwise receive. In 2009, 1,000 workers answered 1.1 million letters and 39,500 e-mail on-line request forms from children in 30 different languages, including Braille.[63]

In Britain it was traditional for some to burn the Christmas letters on the fire so that they would be magically transported by the wind to the North Pole. However this has been found to be less efficient than the use of the normal postal service, and this tradition is dying out in modern times, especially with few homes having open fires.[73] According to the Royal Mail website, Santa's address for letters from British children is: Santa/Father Christmas, Santa's Grotto, Reindeerland, XM4 5HQ [74]

In Mexico and other Latin American countries, besides using the mail, sometimes children wrap their letters to a small helium balloon, releasing them into the air so Santa magically receives them.[73]

In 2010, the Brazilian National Post Service, "Correios" formed partnerships with public schools and social institutions to encourage children to write letters and make use of postcodes and stamps. In 2009, the Brazilian National Post Service, "Correios" answered almost two million children's letters, and spread some seasonal cheer by donating 414,000 Christmas gifts to some of Brazil's neediest citizens.[63]

Through the years, the Finnish Santa Claus (Joulupukki or "Yule Goat") has received over eight million letters. He receives over 600,000 letters every year from over 198 different countries with Togo being the most recent country added to the list.[63] Children from Great Britain, Poland and Japan are the busiest writers. The Finnish Santa Claus lives in Korvatunturi, however the Santa Claus Main Post Office is situated in Rovaniemi precisely at the Arctic circle. His address is: Santa Claus' Main Post Office, Santa Claus Village, FIN-96930 Arctic Circle. The post office welcomes 300,000 visitors a year, with 70,000 visitors in December alone.[63]

Children can also receive a letter from Santa through a variety of private agencies and organizations, and on occasion public and private cooperative ventures. An example of a public and private cooperative venture is the opportunity for expatriate and local children and parents to receive postmarked mail and greeting cards from Santa during December in the Finnish Embassy in Beijing, People's Republic of China,[75] Santa Claus Village in Rovaniemi, Finland, and the People's Republic of China Postal System's Beijing International Post Office.[76][77][78][79] Parents can order a personalized "Santa letter" to be sent to their child, often with a North Pole postmark. The "Santa Letter" market generally relies on the internet as a medium for ordering such letters rather than retail stores.

Santa tracking, Santa websites and email to and from Santa

The Christmas issue of NOAA's Weather Bureau Topics with "Santa Claus" streaking across a weather radar screen, 1958

Over the years there have been a number of websites created by various organizations that have purported to track Santa Claus. Some, such as NORAD Tracks Santa, the Airservices Australia Tracks Santa Project,[80][81][82] the Santa Update Project, and the MSNBC and Bing Maps Platform Tracks Santa Project[83][84] have endured. Others, such as the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport's Tracks Santa Project,[85][86][87] the Santa Retro Radar – Lehigh Valley Project,[88] and the NASA Tracks Santa Project,[89] have fallen by the wayside.

1955 Sears ad with the misprinted telephone number that led to the creation of the NORAD Tracks Santa program

In 1955, a Sears Roebuck store in Colorado Springs, Colorado, gave children a number to call a "Santa hotline". The number was mistyped and children called the Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) on Christmas Eve instead. The Director of Operations, Colonel Harry Shoup, received the first call for Santa and responded by telling children that there were signs on the radar that Santa was indeed heading south from the North Pole. A tradition began which continued under the name NORAD Tracks Santa when in 1958 Canada and the United States jointly created the North American Air Defense Command (NORAD).[90][91] This tracking can now be done via the Internet and NORAD's website.

In the past, many local television stations in the United States and Canada likewise claimed they "tracked Santa Claus" in their own metropolitan areas through the stations' meteorologists. In December 2000, the Weather Channel built upon these local efforts to provide a national Christmas Eve "Santa tracking" effort, called "SantaWatch" in cooperation with NASA, the International Space Station, and Silicon Valley-based new multimedia firm Dreamtime Holdings.[92] In the 21st century, most local television stations in the United States and Canada rely upon outside established "Santa tracking" efforts, such as NORAD Tracks Santa.[93]

Many other websites are available year-round that are devoted to Santa Claus and purport to keep tabs on his activities in his workshop. Many of these websites also include email addresses which allow children to send email to Santa Claus. Most of these websites use volunteer living people as "elves" to answer email sent to Santa. Some websites, such as Santa's page on Microsoft's Windows Live Spaces, however have used or still use "bots" to compose and send email replies, with occasional unfortunate results.[94][95]

The Santa Claus Museum in Columbus, Texas

In addition to providing holiday-themed entertainment, "Santa tracking" websites raise interest in space technology and exploration,[96] serve to educate children in geography.[97] and encourage them to take an interest in science.[98][99]

Criticism

Calvinist and Puritan opposition

Santa Claus has partial Christian roots in Saint Nicholas, particularly in the high church denominations that practice the veneration of him, in addition to other saints. In addition, he has also become a secular representation of Christmas. In light of these facts, the character has sometimes been the focus of controversy over the holiday and its meanings. Some Christians, particularly Calvinists and Puritans, disliked the idea of Santa Claus, as well as Christmas in general, believing that the lavish celebrations were not in accordance with their faith.[100] Other nonconformist Christians condemn the materialist focus of contemporary gift giving and see Santa Claus as the symbol of that culture.[101]

Condemnation of Christmas was prevalent among the 17th-century English Puritans and Dutch Calvinists who banned the holiday as either pagan or Roman Catholic. The American colonies established by these groups reflected this view. Tolerance for Christmas increased after the Restoration but the Puritan opposition to the holiday persisted in New England for almost two centuries.[102] In the Dutch New Netherland colony, season celebrations focused on New Year's Day.

Excerpt from Josiah King's The Examination and Tryal of Father Christmas (1686), published shortly after Christmas was reinstated as a holy day in England. Folger Shakespeare Library, Washington, D.C.

Following the Restoration of the monarchy and with Puritans out of power in England,[103] the ban on Christmas was satirized in works such as Josiah King's The Examination and Tryal of Old Father Christmas; Together with his Clearing by the Jury (1686) Nissenbaum, chap. 1.

Reverend Paul Nedergaard, a clergyman in Copenhagen, Denmark, attracted controversy in 1958 when he declared Santa to be a "pagan goblin" (translated from Danish) after Santa's image was used on fundraising materials for a Danish welfare organization Clar, 337. A number of denominations of Christians have varying concerns about Santa Claus, which range from acceptance to denouncement.[104][105]

Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of the Christian Science movement, wrote: "the children should not be taught that Santa Claus has aught to do with this [Christmas] 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."[106]

Opposition under state atheism

Under the Marxist-Leninist doctrine of state atheism in the Soviet Union after its foundation in 1917, Christmas celebrations—along with other religious holidays—were prohibited as a result of the Soviet antireligious campaign.[107][108] The League of Militant Atheists encouraged school pupils to campaign against Christmas traditions, among them being Santa Claus and the Christmas tree, as well as other Christian holidays including Easter; the League established an antireligious holiday to be the 31st of each month as a replacement.[109][110]

Symbol of commercialism

In his book Nicholas: The Epic Journey from Saint to Santa Claus, writer Jeremy Seal describes how the commercialization of the Santa Claus figure began in the 19th century. "In the 1820s he began to acquire the recognizable trappings: reindeer, sleigh, bells," said Seal in an interview.[111] "They are simply the actual bearings in the world from which he emerged. At that time, sleighs were how you got about Manhattan."

Writing in Mothering, writer Carol Jean-Swanson makes similar points, noting that the original figure of St. Nicholas gave only to those who were needy and that today Santa Claus seems to be more about conspicuous consumption:

Our jolly old Saint Nicholas reflects our culture to a T, for he is fanciful, exuberant, bountiful, over-weight, and highly commercial. He also mirrors some of our highest ideals: childhood purity and innocence, selfless giving, unfaltering love, justice, and mercy. (What child has ever received a coal for Christmas?) 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. Here, Santa carries more in his baggage than toys alone![112]

In the Czech Republic, a group of advertising professionals started a website against Santa Claus, a relatively recent phenomenon in that country.[113] "Czech Christmases are intimate and magical. All that Santa stuff seems to me like cheap show business," said David König of the Creative Copywriters Club, pointing out that it is primarily an American and British tradition. "I'm not against Santa himself. I'm against Santa in my country only." In the Czech tradition, presents are delivered by Ježíšek, which translates as Baby Jesus.

In the United Kingdom, Father Christmas was historically depicted wearing a green cloak. As Father Christmas has been increasingly merged into the image of Santa Claus, that has been changed to the more commonly known red suit.[114] One school in the seaside town of Brighton banned the use of a red suit erroneously believing it was only indicative of the Coca-Cola advertising campaign. School spokesman Sarah James said: "The red-suited Santa was created as a marketing tool by Coca-Cola, it is a symbol of commercialism."[115] However, Santa had been portrayed in a red suit in the 19th century by Thomas Nast among others.[116]

Controversy about deceiving children

Various psychologists and researchers have wrestled with the ways that parents collude to convince young children of the existence of Santa Claus, and have wondered whether children's abilities to critically weigh real-world evidence may be undermined by their belief in this or other imaginary figures. For example, University of Texas psychology professor Jacqueline Woolley helped conduct a study that found, to the contrary, 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:

The adults they count on to provide reliable information about the world introduce them to Santa. Then his existence is affirmed by friends, books, TV and movies. It is also validated by hard evidence: the half-eaten cookies and empty milk glasses by the tree on Christmas morning. In other words, children do a great job of scientifically evaluating Santa. And adults do a great job of duping them.[117]

— Jacqueline Wooley

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.[117] However, the criticism about this deception is not that it is a simple lie, but a complicated series of very large lies.[118] Objections include that it is unethical for parents to lie to children without good cause, and that it discourages healthy skepticism in children.[118] With no greater good at the heart of the lie, some have charged that it is more about the parents than it is about the children. For instance, writer Austin Cline posed the question: "Is it not possible that kids would find at least as much pleasure in knowing that parents are responsible for Christmas, not a supernatural stranger?"[118]

Others, however, see no harm in the belief in Santa Claus. Psychologist Tamar Murachver said that because it is a cultural, not parental, lie, it does not undermine parental trust.[119] The New Zealand Skeptics also see no harm in parents telling their children that Santa is real. Spokesperson Vicki 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."[119]

Dr. John Condry of Cornell University interviewed more than 500 children for a study of the issue and found that not a single child was angry at his or her parents for telling them Santa Claus was real. According to Dr. 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".[120] David Kyle Johnson, associate professor of philosophy at King's College (Pennsylvania) disagrees, he wrote

[Consequences can include] everything from the erosion of parental authority and trust to turning a child into an atheist. For example, Jay defended Santa's existence in front of his whole class on the mere basis that his “mother wouldn't lie” to him, only to read the encyclopedia entry on Santa in front of the whole class and simultaneously discover that she indeed would. When little Tennille realized that the reason she didn't always get what she asked Santa for was that he didn't exist, she figured that God's non-existence was the best explanation for why her prayers also went unanswered. (...) But there are even more reasons for not liking the Santa lie--reasons that should resonate quite loudly with everyone (especially atheists). (...) Encouraging your children to literally believe the Santa lie is the last thing that encourages critical thinking and effective reasoning in children. Think about what many parents do to keep kids believing. When a child brings doubts, parents often encourage the child to stifle those doubts and continue believing: “Just believe what you want to. After all, isn't that more fun?” They will sometimes plant false evidence (or show terrible fake “scientific” documentaries that do so), make up faux ad hoc explanations, or—worst of all—just say “he's magic.” But all these things are directly contrary to what parents who want to develop critical thinking in their children should do. Stifling doubt, believing based on desire (instead of evidence), being convinced by bad evidence, being fooled by ad-hoc explanations, and appealing to magic—these are all “bad habits of lazy thinking” that I have to drive out of my critical thinking students every semester. And, not surprisingly, the students in which these bad habits are most deeply entrenched are often those who believed in Santa for too long).[121]

See also

Related figures in folklore

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Krulwich, Robert. "How Does Santa Do It?". ABC News. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
  2. ↑ Coke denies claims it bottled familiar Santa image, Jim Auchmutey, Rocky Mountain News, 10 December 2007.
  3. ↑ "Santa's arrival lights up the Green".
  4. ↑ Penne L. Restad. Christmas in America: A History. ISBN 9780195355093.
  5. ↑ B. K. Swartz, Jr.; THE ORIGIN OF AMERICAN CHRISTMAS MYTH AND CUSTOMS; Retrieved 22 December 2007
  6. ↑ Jeff Westover; The Legendary Role of Reindeer in Christmas; Retrieved 22 December 2007
  7. 1 2 3 4 William J. Federer (2002). "There Really Is a Santa Claus: The History of St. Nicholas & Christmas Holiday Traditions" p. 39. Amerisearch, Inc., 2002
  8. 1 2 Jacqueline Simpson, Steve Roud (2000) "English Folklore". Oxford University Press, 2000
  9. ↑ 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
  10. 1 2 3 4 "Santa Claus: The real man behind the myth". MSNBC. 22 December 2009. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  11. ↑ St. Nicholas of Myra Catholic Encyclopedia
  12. ↑ Saint Nicholas Encyclopædia Britannica
  13. ↑ "Saint Nicholas ::: People". Stnicholascenter.org. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  14. ↑ "Saint Nicholas ::: Places". Stnicholascenter.org. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  15. ↑ Rudolf Öller: 2004 Martin Luthers Christkind; in: Welt der Naturwissenschaften, Ausgabe Dezember 2004
  16. ↑ Wie Abraham Lincoln den Weihnachtsmann erfand – spiegel.de
  17. ↑ manager magazin: Wie Coca-Cola den Weihnachtsmann nicht erfand
  18. ↑ "Nibud Pers, persberichten" (in Dutch). NIBUD. 2003. 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%)
  19. ↑ "Sinterklaas Arrival--Amsterdam, the Netherlands". St. Nicholas Center. 2008. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
  20. ↑ Orchard, Andy (1997). Dictionary of Norse Mythology and Legend, page 187. Cassell.
  21. ↑ Simek, Rudolf (2007) translated by Angela Hall. Dictionary of Northern Mythology, pages 379–380. D.S. Brewer. & Orchard (1997:1987).
  22. ↑ For the wild hunt, Simek (2010:372–373). For Jólnir, see Simek (2010:180) and Orchard (1997:189). For Langbarðr, see Simek (2010:186).
  23. ↑ For example, see McKnight, George Harley (1917). St. Nicholas: His Legend and His Role in the Christmas Celebration and Other Popular Customs, pages 24–26, 138–139. G. P. Putman's sons. & Springwood, Charles Fruehling (2009). "If Santa Wuz Black: The Domestication of a White Myth", pages 243–244. As published in Studies in Symbolic Interaction: Volume 33 of Studies in Symbolic Interactions Series. Emerald Group Publishing. ISBN 9781848557840 archive.org copy
  24. ↑ Baker, Margaret (2007 1962). Discovering Christmas Customs and Folklore: A Guide to Seasonal Rites Throughout the World, page 62. Osprey Publishing.
  25. ↑ "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 saint the Sons of Saint Nicholas celebrated the day with great joy and festivity." Rivington's Gazette (New York City), 23 December 1773.
  26. ↑ A Woman's Wartime Journal, An account of Sherman's devastation of a southern plantation. Dolly Sumner Lunt Burge, 1988 (orig. 1927), Cherokee Publishing, Marietta GA. ISBN 0-87797-149-8.
  27. ↑ "mentioning Don Foster, ''Author Unknown: On the Trial of Anonymous (New York: Henry Holt, 2000 : 221–75) for the attribution of ''Old Santeclaus'' to Clement Clarke Moore". Tspace.library.utoronto.ca. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  28. ↑ Snopes The Donner Party's over; on reindeer name changes.
  29. ↑ The article is signed 'Uneda', an anagrammatic pen-name used by William Duane (1808-1882) of Philadelphia, son of William John Duane.
  30. ↑ 'Notes and Queries', volume 8 (217), 24 December 1853, p.615
  31. ↑ Thomas Nast, Santa Claus and His Works, 1866. The phrase "Santa Claussville, N.P." is on the curved border to the right of center, above the large word "Claus".
  32. ↑ Jeremy Seal, Nicholas: The Epic Journey From Saint to Santa Claus, Bloomsbury, 2005, p. 199–200. ISBN 978-1-58234-419-5.
  33. ↑ Ralph Armstrong, age 6, "A Letter From Colorado", The Nursery, 1875, vol. 18, pp. 42–43.
  34. ↑ "Image Gallery Santa 1931". Press Center. Coca Cola Company. Retrieved 28 October 2011.
  35. ↑ The Claus That Refreshes Snopes.com . Retrieved 7 January 2008.
  36. ↑ The White Rock Collectors Association, "Did White Rock or The Coca-Cola Company create the modern Santa Claus Advertisement?," whiterocking.org, 2001 Retrieved 19 January 2007.
  37. ↑ White Rock Beverages, "Coca-Cola's Santa Claus: Not The Real Thing!," BevNET.com, 18 December 2006.
  38. ↑ White Rock Beverages, "Coca-Cola's Santa Claus: Not The Real Thing!," BevNET.com, 18 December 2006 . Retrieved 19 January 2007.
  39. ↑ thumb|Santa Claus on the 1902 cover of Puck magazine, thumb|Santa Claus on the 1904 cover of Puck magazine, thumb|Santa Claus on the 1905 cover of Puck magazine.
  40. ↑ Tina Susman (30 October 2011). "Claus and effect: The ultimate Santa school". Los Angeles Times.
  41. ↑ Nissenbaum, chap. 2; Belk, 87–100
  42. ↑ The North Pole's Turbo Supply Chain SupplyChainDigest News, 16 December 2004
  43. ↑ Ian Aldrich (November 2011). "The Big Question: Why Should We Believe in Santa? We ask Kris Kringle, a.k.a. Jonathan Meath: Why Should We Believe in Santa?". Yankee Magazine. Retrieved 12 December 2012.  ... Santa is really the only cultural icon we have who's male, does not carry a gun, and is all about peace...
  44. ↑ "High Five! Top Five! – Bizarre Santa Claus Cameos in Comics by Robert Bazz, December 13, 2010". High Five! Comics. Retrieved 25 February 2011.
  45. ↑ Kyrgyzstan: Central Asian Country Welcomes Santa Claus To His New Home. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 30 December 2007
  46. ↑ guinness world records http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/records/amazing_feats/mass_participation/largest_gathering_Santa_Claus.aspx
  47. ↑ "Guiness (sic) World Record Santa Claus Costumes | WebPhotoBlog | imagini, fotografii, pictures, poze, images". Webphoto.ro. 30 November 2009. Retrieved 29 September 2010.
  48. ↑ Walsh, Joseph J.. Were They Wise Men Or Kings?: The Book of Christmas Questions. Westminster John Knox Press, 2001. ISBN 0-664-22312-5.
  49. ↑ Santa Claus declared a Canadian citizen Toronto Sun, 12 December 2008
  50. ↑ "2010–2011 North Pole Visitor Guide" (PDF). webcache.googleusercontent.com. 31 March 2010. Retrieved 29 September 2010.
  51. ↑ http://www.fotobel.by/belovezhskaya-pushha/
  52. ↑ Allegrini, Elaine (15 November 2008). "James Edgar's Santa Claus—the spirit of Christmas". The Enterprise. Brockton, Massachusetts. Retrieved 29 November 2009.
  53. ↑ "New Santa clauses introduced". BBC News. 9 December 2002. Retrieved 23 May 2010.
  54. ↑ Kate Connolly. "Swiss Santas are banned from sitting children on their laps". The Daily Telegraph (Berlin). Archived from the original on 20 July 2006. Retrieved 23 May 2010.
  55. ↑ "A Visit from St. Nick". Squareamerica.com. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  56. ↑ DeMara, Bruce (25 November 2013). "Autistic kids get quiet time with Santa at malls". Toronto Star. Retrieved 21 December 2013.
  57. ↑ "Canadian malls offer quieter, calmer visits with Santa for kids with autism". CTVNews. 24 November 2013. Retrieved 21 December 2013.
  58. ↑ Edward B. Colby (3 December 2009). "Town in the spirit: Dedham Square to be filled with song, shopping". Dedham Transcript. Retrieved 13 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.
  59. ↑ Mary Ann Georgantopoulos (23 December 2007). "Miracle on Mass. Ave.: City Santa takes suit seriously". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 13 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.
  60. ↑ Santa Glen, secretary (October 2010). "Minutes of meeting". San Diego Chapter of F.O.R.B.S. Retrieved 13 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...
  61. ↑ "Understanding What Christmas Gifts Mean to Children" by Jenniina Halkoaho and Pirjo Laaksonnen, pages 248–255 in "Young Consumers" and their reference to the 1994 article by Otnes, Cele, Kyungseung Kim, and Young Chan Kim. "Yes, Virginia, There is a Gender Difference: Analyzing Children's Requests to Santa Claus." in the Journal of Popular Culture, Vol. 28, no. 1 (Summer 1994), pp. 17–29
  62. 1 2 3 4 "Santa Claus receives more than six million letters annually and growing, 20 Dec 2007". Asian Tribune. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
  63. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "No small job for postal elves, 15 Dec 2010". Universal Postal Union – UPU. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
  64. ↑ 15 November 2011 No Comments (15 November 2011). "Operation Santa Claus at James Farley Post Office 2012 | Operation Santa Claus – Santa's Blog". Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  65. ↑ "Santa Mail - Letters to Santa". Retrieved 25 November 2014.
  66. ↑ "France answers the most Santa letters, 21 Dec 2007". http://www.xmas.co.uk/. Retrieved 12 December 2010. External link in |publisher= (help)
  67. ↑ "Canada Post – Holiday – Santa's Corner". Canadapost.ca. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  68. ↑ ": LA POSTE | Père Noël :". Laposte.fr. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  69. ↑ "Father Christmas's French office open, 18 Nov 2010". The Connexion. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
  70. ↑ "Send a letter to Santa | New Zealand Post". Nzpost.co.nz. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  71. ↑ "NZ Post to tighten net for Santa, by Alexis Grant, 30 Nov 2004". New Zealand Herald. 30 November 2004. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
  72. ↑ Canada Post. "Canada Post – Employment Opportunities – Traditions". Web.archive.org. Archived from the original on 8 April 2008. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  73. 1 2 'Letters to Santa Claus'. (2000). In The World Encyclopedia of Christmas. Gerry Bowler, Editor. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart Limited. pp. 131–132.
  74. ↑ "Christmas letters to Santa". Royal Mail. Retrieved 27 December 2013.
  75. ↑ "About this site – Embassy of Finland, Beijing – Consulates General of Finland, Shanghai and Guangzhou : Current Affairs". Finland.cn. 16 May 2007. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  76. ↑ "Beijing Post Office". Beijing Your Way. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  77. ↑ "Beijing International Post Office". Vip.fesco.com.cn. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
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  79. ↑ "Say hello to Santa Claus, November 24, 2010 by Zhao Hongyi". Beijing Today. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
  80. ↑ "Santa 2010 website by Airservices Australia". Mirror.airservicesaustralia.com. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  81. ↑ "Safe Travels Santa! We will Be Watching, 19 Dec 2005". NASA's Canberra Deep Space Communications Complex. Retrieved 4 December 2010.
  82. ↑ "New technology to map Santa's flight, 24 Dec 2009". The Observer. Retrieved 5 December 2010.
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  84. ↑ "Tracking Santa with Bing Maps, by Chris Pendleton, 24 Dec 2009". Microsoft. Retrieved 5 December 2010.
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  86. ↑ "DFW Airport's 'Santa Tracker' Is Operational, by BJ Austin, 24 Dec 2009". PBS KERA. Retrieved 4 December 2010.
  87. ↑ "From NORAD Santa Tracker To Twitter: Santa Tracking For Christmas Eve 2009, by Danny Sullivan, 23 Dec 2009". Search Engine Land. Retrieved 5 December 2010.
  88. ↑ "Frank and Debi DeFreitas of Holoworld". Frank and Debi DeFreitas. Retrieved 4 December 2010.
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  91. ↑ "Norad Santa Tracker: Christmas tradition began with a wrong number". CBC News. CBC. 24 December 2014. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
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  99. ↑ [http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/1210/120810 mm.htm "It's Time for e-Sputnik, by Patrick Gorman, December 8, 2010"]. Government Executive. Retrieved 10 December 2010.
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  101. ↑ Bowler, Gerry (27 July 2011). Santa Claus: A Biography. Random House. ISBN 1551996081.
  102. ↑ "When Christmas Was Banned – The early colonies and Christmas".
  103. ↑ "History – Ten Ages of Christmas". BBC. 13 March 2005. Archived from the original on 13 March 2005. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  104. ↑ Santa Claus: The great imposter, Terry Watkins, Dial-the-Truth Ministries.
  105. ↑ To Santa or Not to Santa, Sylvia Cochran, Families Online Magazine.
  106. ↑ 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.
  107. ↑ Connelly, Mark (2000). Christmas at the Movies: Images of Christmas in American, British and European Cinema. I.B.Tauris. p. 186. ISBN 9781860643972. A chapter on representations of Christmas 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.
  108. ↑ 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.
  109. ↑ Luzer, Daniel (26-11-13). "What a Real War on Christmas Looks Like". Pacific Standard. Retrieved 11-12-14. 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 Soviets, and was not to return to Russian lands 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. Check date values in: |access-date=, |date= (help)
  110. ↑ Ramet, Sabrina Petra (10 November 2005). Religious Policy in the Soviet Union. Cambridge University Press. p. 138. ISBN 9780521022309. 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.
  111. ↑ How St. Nicholas Became Santa Claus: One Theory, interview with Jeremy Seal at the St. Nicholas Center.
  112. ↑ In defense of Santa Claus at the Wayback Machine (archived December 26, 2007), Carol-Jean Swanson, Mothering, Fall 1992.
  113. ↑ Better Watch Out, Better Not Cry at the Wayback Machine (archived January 20, 2007), Hilda Hoy, The Prague Post, 13 December 2006.
  114. ↑ Santa goes green!; BBC.co.uk; 26 November 2007; Retrieved 22 December 2007
  115. ↑ Parents see red over school's green-suited santa, Olinka Koster, The Daily Mail (UK), 22 November 2007.
  116. ↑ "Nast, Thomas: "Merry Old Santa Claus" – Encyclopedia Britannica". Britannica.com. Retrieved 11 June 2013.
  117. 1 2 Do You Believe in Surnits?, Jaqueline Woolley, The New York Times, December 23, 2006.
  118. 1 2 3 Santa Claus: Should Parents Perpetuate the Santa Claus Myth?, Austin Cline, About.com
  119. 1 2 "How to deal with the 'is Santa real?'". The Dominion Post. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
  120. ↑ Lawrence Kutner;Parent & Child; New York Times; 21 November 1991; Retrieved 22 December 2007
  121. ↑ Say Goodbye to the Santa Claus Lie

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