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It is suspected that
Santa Claus is based on a real person – the
patron saint of children who was Saint Nicholas. Saint
Nicholas was renowned for his charitable work and
was a very popular saint,
particularly in the East. Saint Nicholas
lived from 270 to 210 AD and became the Bishop of
Byzantine Anatolia – a town in Turkey. He was renowned for his generosity
and could often be seen in his red bishop’s clothes
giving sweets and gifts to children.
There are many
versions of the origin of Santa Claus (Father
Christmas) so which one do we believe. And
when did the
Santa
Letter originate Well here we
have tried to investigate and come with some
answers.
In early times, many churches were built in honour of Saint
Nicholas. In the 11th century, he was were
enshrined in a church in the Italian city of Bari.
It is told that the first Crusaders visited Bari and
carried stories about Nicholas to their homelands.
The anniversary of his death, 6 December, became a
national holiday and a day to exchange gifts.
Another origin of
Santa Claus is of course from England. Here Santa
Claus is known as Father Christmas. Father
Christmas can be traced back to an old English
festival usually held in midwinter. As far back as
the 17th century pictures of him survive which show
a rotund bearded man dressed in a long, green,
fur-lined robe. The Red-clothed Father Christmas
didn’t make his appearance until the 1870’s.
In Greece, Santa
Claus or Father Christmas is the patron saint of
sailors, in France he was the patron of lawyers, and
in Belgium the patron of children and travellers.
And what about
America. Well it is in America that the Santa Claus
we now know really came alive. It is believed the
American Santa Claus started in Holland where Saint
Nicholas was known as “Sinterklaas” which over time
developed into Santa Claus. And when the Dutch
founded New Amsterdam (now called New York), they
took the name and celebrations with them.
As early as 1773
"St. A. Claus" was mentioned in the American press.
In 1809, Washington Irving (the author of "Tales
from Sleepy Hollow") wrote about Sinterklaas in his
"A History of New York." Irving described
Sinterklaas as a rotund little man in a typical
Dutch costume, with knee breeches and a
broad-brimmed hat, who traveled on horseback on the
Eve of Saint Nicholas. In 1822, Clement Clark Moore,
a poet and professor of theology, published the poem
"A Visit From St. Nicholas" (also known as "The
Night Before Christmas").
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
Moore's Santa is a
jolly old elf who flies around in a miniature sleigh
with eight tiny reindeer. Moore even named the
reindeer by the names we know them today which are
Doner, Blitzen, Cupid, Prancer, Dasher, Dancer,
Comet and Vixen – and of course Rudolph of whom many
songs and rhymes are written.
In the nineteen
thirties an
advertising agent called Haddon Sundblom created
a Santa as a fat human instead of an elf, with a
jolly face and big beard in a Coca Cola
ad. And today, Sundblom's Santa
is the one that children and adults recognize around the world
and which can be seen on the letter and covering
envelope of our
Santa
Letter.
From then on the
story of Santa Claus or Father Christmas continued
to develop. We know he has a “naughty and nice”
list. Children write their letter to Santa every
Christmas asking for toys and games. Nowadays
Santa writes back to the children with a "Letter
from Santa" Children who
have been naughty get a piece of coal from Santa
Claus and children who have been good all year can
expect gifts galore. We know Santa Claus has a
Grotto which was originally at the North Pole but
which has now moved to Lapland.
Letters from Santa from this site still bear
the original North Pole postmark. In his Grotto his
elves work hard making toys for girls and boys
around the globe.
But on the other
side of the coin there has long been opposition to
teaching children to believe in Santa Claus. Not
only can the commercialisation of Santa Claus and
Christmas be detrimental it also detracts from the
religious background, traditional ways and the
underlying hope of peace and goodwill at that time
of year. Indeed their are those who believe
that the
Santa
Letter offered here is a sign of
commercialisation. We on the other hand
believe that it is a "bit of fun" and in keeping
with our motto of "Keeping the Dram Alive". Others state that Santa Claus is a lie, and
that it is wrong for parents to teach their children
to believe in him. Perhaps that is the same for the
Tooth Fairy too…….
Whatever the
history, no matter where you are in the world we all
hope you have a very Happy Christmas
French: JOYEUX NOEL
Cheques and postal orders drawn on a UK bank are welcomed
but we would ask that the
Order ID is written on the rear. Cheques should be
made payable to 'Yours Personally' and forwarded to:
Yours Personally, 76 Chapel Street, Long Lawford, RUGBY,
CV23 9BE
Telephone enquires can be made on 01788 544904
or email us at
request @ yourspersonally.co.uk
Affiliate Interest:
affiliate at yourspersonally.co.uk
Santa
Claus (or is
it Father Christmas) and the
Santa
Letter
That shook when
he laughed, like a bowl full of jelly,
He was chubby
and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed
when I saw him, in spite of myself;
A wink of his
eye and a twist of his head
Soon gave me to
know I had nothing to dread.
Spanish: FELIZ NAVIDAD
German: FROEHLICHE WEIHNACTEN
Swedish: GOD JUL
Welsh: NADOILG LLAWEN
Japanese: KURISUMASU OMEDETO
Chinese (Cantonese): GUN TSO SUN TAN’GUNG HAW SUN
Latin: NATALE HILARE ET ANNUM FAUSTUM
