By Freya Lowe
Do you know the real Santa Claus? What is his actual name? Are you familiar with the evolution of Santa through the ages? How come he wears a red coat? Why does he bring gifts? We’ve got the answers to these questions and more in this special Christmas infographic all about Santa Claus!
Saint Nicholas, a 4th-century monk who lived in a place called Myra (now known as Turkey) was the man behind the concept of Father Christmas. Even back in ancient times, the clothing of saints used to be red. Coca Cola’s Christmas advertising campaigns of the 1930s and 40s popularized Santa Claus as a sleigh riding, gift-giving, jolly old bearded fellow wearing a red suit trimmed with white fur.
Santa could be seen in his modern form decades before Coca Cola’s illustrator Haddon Sundblom got to work. From the description given in Clement Moore’s A Visit from St Nicholas in 1822, to the vision of artist Thomas Nast, throughout the 19th century Mr. Claus gradually became the jolly red-suited white-bearded Santa we know today.
The name of Santa Claus originated from the Dutch nickname of Nicholas; i.e. Sinter Klaas. Santa also has different names around the globe:
United Kingdom: Father Christmas
USA: Santa Claus
France: Pere Noel
Germany: Saint Nikolaus
China: Sheng Dan Lao Ren
Japan: Santa no Ojisan
Netherlands: Kerstman
Italy: Babbo Natale
Learn all about Santa Claus! Below is an infographic showing how Santa has morphed through a variety of different looks. It also explains how the tradition of Santa giving away gifts in Christmas stockings originated, where Santa got his reindeer from, and why he doesn’t abide by the laws of physics – complete with statistics!
So, if you want to know everything about Santa, be sure to check it out below. Merry Christmas!
