The original Santa Claus, St. Nicholas, was born in the ancient southeastern Turkish town of Lycia early in the fourth century. His generosity was legend, and he was particularly fond of children. We know this primarily through Roman accounts of his patronage of youth, which eventually led to his becoming the patron saint of children. Throughout the Middle Ages, and well beyond, he was referred to by many names none of them Santa Claus.

　　Children today would not at all recognize the St. Nick who brought gifts to European children hundreds of years ago except perhaps for his cascading white beard. He made his rounds in full red-and-white bishop's robes, complete with twin peaked miter and crooked crozier. He was pulled by no fleet footed reindeer, but coaxed in indolent donkey. And he arrived not late on Christmas Eve, but on his Christian feast day, December 6. The gifts he left beside the hearth were usually small: fruit, nuts, hard candies, wood and clay figurines.

　　During the Protestant Reformation of the sixteenth century, St. Nicholas was banished from most European countries. Replacing him were more secular figures, who in general were not at center stage at that point in history..The Dutch kept the St. Nicholas tradition alive. As the "protector of sailors," St. Nicholas graced the prow of the first Dutch ship that arrived in America. And the first church built in New York City was named after him. The Dutch brought with them to the New World two Christmas items that were quickly Americanized.

　　In sixteenth century Holland, children placed wooden shoes by the hearth the night of St. Nicholas's arrival. The shoes were filled with straw, a meal for the saint's gift laden donkey. In return, Nicholas would insert a small treat into each clog. In America, the shoe was replaced with the stocking, hung by the chimney.

　　The Dutch spelled St. Nicholas "Saint Nikolass," which in the New World became "Sinterklass". later changed to "Santa Claus".

　　Much of modern day Santa Claus lore, including the reindeer drawn sleigh, originated in America. Dr. Clement Clarke Moore composed "The Night Before Christmas" in 1822, to read to his children on Christmas Eve. The poem might have remained privately in the Moore family if a friend had not mailed a copy of it (without authorial attribution) to a newspaper and became part of the Santa legend.

　　It was in America that Santa put on weight. The rosy-cheeked, roly-poly Santa is credited to the influential nineteenth-century cartoonist Thomas Nast. From 1863 until 1886, Nast created a series of Christmas drawings for Harper's Weekly. These drawings, executed over twenty years, exhibit a gradual evolution in Santa from the pudgy, diminutive, elf-like creature of Dr. Moore's immortal poem to the bearded, potbellied, life-size bell ringer familiar on street corners across America today. Nast's cartoons also showed the world how Santa spent his entire year constructing toys, checking on children's behavior, reading their requests for special gifts. His images were incorporated into the Santa lore.

　　Santa is known throughout the world in many different names, such as:

　　Saint Nikolaas (Sinter Klaas), from the Dutch Father Christmas, from the English Kris Kringle, from the Germans Befana, from the Italians Bobouschka, from the Russians (a grand motherly figure instead of a male)

　　圣誕老人的傳說在數千年前的斯堪的納維亞半島即出現。北歐神話中司智慧，藝術，詩詞，戰爭的奧丁神，寒冬時節，騎上他那八腳馬坐騎馳騁于天涯海角，懲惡揚善，分發禮物。與此同時，其子雷神著紅衣以閃電為武器與冰雪諸神昏天黑地惡戰一場，最終戰勝寒冷。據異教傳說，圣誕老人為奧丁神后裔。也有傳說稱圣誕老人由圣·尼古拉而來，所以圣誕老人也稱St.Nicholas.因這些故事大多弘揚基督精神，其出處，故事情節大多被淡忘，然而圣誕老人卻永駐人們精神世界。

　　每年圣誕日，圣誕老人騎在白羊星座上，圣童手持圣誕樹降臨人間，隨著世事變遷，作家和藝術家開始把圣誕老人描述成我們今日熟悉的著紅裝，留白胡子的形象。同時不同的國度和文化對圣誕老人也有了不同的解釋。在德國，傳說他扮成圣童把堅果和蘋果放在孩子們鞋里。他乘雙輪馬車四處漫游，觀察人們的行為，尤其是小孩，如果表現好，將會得到蘋果、堅果、糖等諸多獎品。壞孩子則得一鞭子。家長們靈機一動紛紛采用此傳說來鼓勵孩子們聽話。大大超過了新年，成為一個全民的節日。圣誕老人已經成為圣誕節最受喜愛的象征和傳統。他趕 著馴鹿，拉著裝滿玩具和禮物的雪橇挨家挨戶給每個孩子送禮物的快樂老精靈的形象已深深地留在人們的記憶中。

　　11世紀末來自意大利的宗教士兵將Nicholas圣人的遺物帶回意大利，并在港口城市Bari建造了一座教堂來紀念他。很快世界各地的基督教徒紛至沓來朝圣這位圣人。這些朝圣者將圣人Nicholas的故事帶回他們的本土，所以有關圣誕老人的傳說在各個國家都各具特色。

　　12世紀歐洲出現了圣人Nicholas紀念日，以互贈禮物和慈善活動為主。德國、法國、荷蘭則將12月6日作為宗教紀念日，給孩子和窮人們贈送禮物。

　　荷蘭殖民者來到美洲時，將他們的Sintirklass主教也帶了去，Sintirklass身著紅袈裟，騎著一匹白馬。Sintirklass的美國形象后來逐漸演變成一個快樂的老精靈。起初美國作家華盛頓.歐文在他的喜劇《紐約的歷史》中將他描述成一個又圓又胖的荷蘭老人。1823年，詩人Clement Moore在他的詩歌《St.Nicholas印象》中繼續將Sintirklass/Saint Nicholas的形象戲劇化，這就是各位在本篇開頭看到的圣誕老人。

　　19世紀60年代卡通制作者Thomas Nash畫了一幅胖胖的、慈祥的圣誕老人作為《Harper的一周》的插圖。這個圣誕老人的形象開始深深地扎根于美國人民的腦海中。隨著時間的推移，圣誕老人的形象傳回歐洲，傳到南美洲，傳遍世界各地。

　　許多國家都保存了他們自己有關圣誕老人的風俗和傳說。在荷蘭的傳說中，圣誕老人Sintirklass還帶了一個叫Black Peter的助手，乘著一艘船于12月6日來到。他帶著一本大書，書中描述了所有荷蘭小孩在過去一年中的表現。表現好的小孩就送禮物給他們，不好的小孩便讓他的助手帶走。

　　德國的圣誕老人也帶著一個叫做Knecht Ruprecht、Krampus或Pelzebock的助手，肩上背著個裝著禮物的大袋子，手上拿著一根棍子。好孩子可收到他的禮物，頑皮的孩子卻要給教訓幾棍子。

　　意大利的圣誕老人叫La Befana ；法國的圣誕老人叫Father Christmas或Pere Noel ；瑞士的圣誕老人叫Christkindl或Christ Child；斯勘的納維亞地區的圣誕人叫julenisse 或 juletomte ；而英國的圣誕老人和法國一樣也叫Father Christmas（圣誕之父），他的形象比其它圣誕老人更莊嚴，更清瘦一些。北美的圣誕老人便是乘著馴鹿拉的雪橇來給孩子們送禮物的。

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