Christmas Traditions and How They All Began

Christmas traditions from the turkey with all the fixings, to the eggnog shared with gathered friends and family to the beautifully wrapped gifts that are shared on Christmas morning all started somewhere. We know that we do all of these things during this special holiday season and have even started a few traditions of our own but where did some of this traditions come from and how did they begin?

The biggest tradition of Christmas is jolly old Santa Claus. Today we picture him as a fat, jolly old man in a red suit with rosy cheeks and a belly that jiggles when he laughs but that hasn’t always been the case. Saint Nicholas who was the bishop of Myra in the 4th century was known as a man who was devoted to being generous and kind to all the children.

Because of his sweet kindness he earned a reputation of being able to perform miracles and grant wishes. This of course, increased his already growing popularity and devotion from people. He became know in Russia as the patron saint and was recognizable by his long red cape and snow white beard.

Over the many centuries that past many of the Europeans forgot about generous old Saint Nichols but the people in Holland kept his traditions alive. The Dutch children called him Sinterklass and on Christmas Eve they would leave their tiny little shoes outside their doors in hopes that Sinterklass would leave them small gifts and tasty treats for Christmas morning. It was in the 17th century that the Dutch colonist brought their tradition to America and that is how Santa Claus was born in the states.