Who is santa clauses

It went a long way toward forming the present Christmas ideal of a family-friendly tradition and turning riotous drunken revelry into a mere ghost of Christmas past.

This conflation of Continental and American customs continued over the next quarter century, contributing such details as where Santa lives and works. By the turn of the 20 th century, America had accepted Christmas widely enough to make it an official holiday, and colored, illustrated Christmas cards already popular in Victorian England became commercially successful. Both factors helped buttress the image of the burly benefactor in red knickers although other colors still appeared on occasion.

By the time the next generation was ready for annual supernatural nocturnal visits, a man-sized, rosy-cheeked, rotund Santa Claus dressed in red with snowy locks and beard had become the norm. This American image of Santa, particularly the iconic illustrations created after by commercial artist Haddon Sundblom for Coca-Cola advertisements, has now been exported worldwide. Today some of the older iterations remain alongside the new and improved commercial versions.

This makes for a peculiar cacophony of interconnected characters. This scary figure made late-night, year-end jaunts before the onslaught of Christianity forced a change. And common to each tradition is a connection with Saint Nicholas.

The fourth-century Nicholas of Myra is one of the most revered saints of the Catholic Church. Though evidence is sketchy at best, he is commonly believed to have been appointed bishop of Myra, in Asia Minor, at a tender age.

Such traditions spring from similar Roman Saturnalia rituals relating to the winter solstice season. Go Further. Animals Climate change is shrinking many Amazonian birds. Animals Wild Cities This wild African cat has adapted to life in a big city. Animals This frog mysteriously re-evolved a full set of teeth. Animals Wild Cities Wild parakeets have taken a liking to London.

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The era of greyhound racing in the U. See how people have imagined life on Mars through history. See More. United States Change. Nicholas became the subject of many legends. It is said that he gave away all of his inherited wealth and traveled the countryside helping the poor and sick. One of the best-known St. Nicholas stories is the time he saved three poor sisters from being sold into slavery or prostitution by their father by providing them with a dowry so that they could be married.

His feast day is celebrated on the anniversary of his death, December 6. This was traditionally considered a lucky day to make large purchases or to get married.

By the Renaissance , St. Nicholas was the most popular saint in Europe. Even after the Protestant Reformation , when the veneration of saints began to be discouraged, St. Nicholas maintained a positive reputation, especially in Holland. Nicholas made his first inroads into American popular culture towards the end of the 18th century. In December , and again in , a New York newspaper reported that groups of Dutch families had gathered to honor the anniversary of his death.

The background of the engraving contains now-familiar Santa images including stockings filled with toys and fruit hung over a fireplace. Stores began to advertise Christmas shopping in , and by the s, newspapers were creating separate sections for holiday advertisements, which often featured images of the newly-popular Santa Claus. In , thousands of children visited a Philadelphia shop to see a life-size Santa Claus model. In the early s, the Salvation Army needed money to pay for the free Christmas meals they provided to needy families.

They began dressing up unemployed men in Santa Claus suits and sending them into the streets of New York to solicit donations. Those familiar Salvation Army Santas have been ringing bells on the street corners of American cities ever since.

It is Nast who gave Santa his bright red suit trimmed with white fur, North Pole workshop, elves and his wife, Mrs. It was so popular, that every year, for 40 years, when the magazine asked Nast to draw Santas, he stuck with the same concept - although he did eventually drop the stars and stripes in favor of a plain wool suit. The poem described Santa as a dwarfish "jolly old elf," dressed in red furs who goes down chimneys to give children their gifts.

Clement's account was so vivid and compelling that it became the standard. In the early days Haddon called upon his friend, retired salesman Lou Prentiss, to act as a live model on which he based his images. When Lou passed away Sundblom used himself as a model and painted while looking into a mirror. From to , Coca-Cola advertising showed Santa delivering toys and playing with them! One year, Santa's large belt was backwards perhaps because Haddon was painting via a mirror. Another year Santa Claus appeared without a wedding ring causing fans to write asking what happened to Mrs Claus.