Christmas is unthinkable without Santa Claus, not just for little kids, but for adults as well. For kids, Father Christmas or Santa Claus is this lovable figure, who brings gifts for them; for adults Santa is somebody who makes the celebrations really special and memorable, even though they know that this is just a myth. In various parts of the world, he is known by different names such as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, Sinterklaas, Kris Kringle or simply Santa. Children believe that he comes to their homes on the night of Christmas Eve, when everybody is asleep and brings gifts for them.
Today, Santa Claus is accepted as a secular symbol of the Christmas celebrations, of the birth of Christ. However, there are many Christians who oppose the concept of introducing Santa to their kids. According to them, they would not like to tell the children, about something, which is not true. On the other hand, some people are of the view that since Santa is modeled on Saint Nicholas, a real person; it is ok to tell children about him and encourage them, to believe in the concept of Santa Claus.
History of Santa Claus
The history of Santa dates back to the 14th century. It is believed that Santa is modeled on St. Francis of Assisi. He is a benevolent character, who is popular for giving gifts to the poor and needy, mainly women and children. There are many legends, which speak about the kindness he had shown to people. According to one such legend, he filled up the stockings of a poor girl with gold coins, to take care of her dowry. It is said that the practice of hanging stocking by the fireplace, to be filled up with gifts by Santa originated from this.
Saint Nicholas is said to be the patron saint, for many groups of people including children, orphans, thieves, sailors, students, pawnbrokers and countries like Russia and Greece. He did a lot of work to spread Christianity and its values, among the people of Rome. People in many parts of the world revere him, and his feast day is commemorated in many places. His stories grew in popularity and even after his death; the concept of Santa Claus developed, and grew even more popular. The name Santa Claus is derived from the Sinter Klass, which is the Dutch pronunciation for St. Nicholas.
The Story of Santa Claus
Santa Claus, also known by many other nicknames such as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Sinterklaass, is the fabled deliverer of gifts who typically wears a red suit and long white beard.
Santa Claus lives in the North Pole with his wife, Mrs. Claus, and toy-making elves who spend the year building toys for children all over the world. Santa keeps a list of all the children, noting whether they have been naughty or nice. Children often write Santa letters, telling him what they would like for Christmas. Then, on Christmas Eve, Santa fills a sack with all the toys and loads them into his sleigh. His 9 flying reindeer, Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, and Rudolph (the red-nosed reindeer), are hitched to the sleigh, and lead him around the world.
On that night, Santa delivers gifts to all the good children, and leaves a lump of coal for the naughty children. His sleigh lands on rooftops, and he climbs down the chimney and leaves leaves gifts beneath the Christmas tree. Families traditionally hang stockings above the fireplace, which Santa fills with small gifts. Some children leave milk, cookies, and sometimes carrots as snacks for Santa and his reindeer. Children wake up Christmas morning to discover their stockings filled and presents under the tree.
Santa Claus Letter
Children write letters to Santa and tell him about the gifts, presents, which they want at Christmas. In fact, writing letter to Santa is a favorite activity for many kids, around this time of the year. It is said that Santa will give gifts, to only those kids, who are well behaved; and those who do not behave well will get coal, instead of nice presents. While writing a letter to Santa, some children make it a point to mention if they have been naughty or nice. Other than listing the gifts which they want, they also thank Santa about the last year’s gift and tell him about the happenings in the family.
Santa Claus Address
It is believed that Santa lives in North Pole, with Mrs. Claus and a number of elves. There is a toy factory, where all the toys are made; the elves work in this factory throughout the year, to prepare the toys in time for Christmas. There are many addresses, in which children can send their letters to Santa. However, the Santa in Finland receives the most number of letters in a year. Santa’s address in Finland is as follows:
Santa Claus,
Santa Claus Village,
FIN-96930 Arctic Circle,
Finland
In many places, there are postal volunteers who answer the letters to Santa. Some children also write emails to Santa instead of writing him letters.
Santa Claus Costume
Earlier was portrayed to be wearing the robe of a bishop, but later on it changed very much. Today, he is portrayed as a jolly fellow with white beard, glasses and wearing red clothes. Santa’s costume consists of a red coat with white cuff and collar, red trouser with white cuffs and black leather belt and boots. Santa's costume is easily available these days, for all those who want to wear the costume during the holiday season, or at any other time. Those who are playing the role of Santa must remember to get the costume, in a size that fits them comfortably.
Santa Claus Picture
Santa Claus coloring picture is another thing, which is pretty popular among kids. During the holiday season, filling up the coloring page with colors of their choice is a favorite hobby for kids. Once they have finished color the pages, they can use the Santa Claus picture in different ways. While some of them may prefer to encase it in a lovely frame and hang it in their house, other like to use the picture to make a card at home and there are others who like to use it in the ornament, which they make at Christmas time to be used for the decorations.
Santa Claus Screensaver
Decking up your computer screens, with some of the screensaver is a nice way of getting a feel of the holiday season. The good thing about the Santa Claus wallpaper and screen saver is that, whether it is Christmas time or not, one can easily use these pictures. There are several sites on the web, form which you can download a wallpaper of your choice and use it on your computer.
Santa Claus Movie
Directors and filmmakers have been inspired by Santa, to a great extent and they have come up with several movies on this theme. There are various aspects related to Santa and the movies have explored them aptly. Some of the genres in which movies have been made include comedy, horror, animation and drama among others. Popular Santa Claus movie includes:
Bad Santa
Santa's Slay
The Santa Clause
Santa with Muscles
Santa Claus Conquers the Martians
Categories Of Santa Claus
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