BISMARCK, N.D. (KXNET) — Over the past few weeks at KX News, we have discussed both the history of the figure who inspired Santa Claus and the many companions who join him on his yearly ventures around the world. But despite all this coverage, we haven't answered the big question tying together both the past and future: how did the original character of Saint Nicholas evolve into the modern tradition of the gift-giving man in the big red suit? The answer has its roots in name translations, cultures, and marketing methods throughout the world. Before Santa's next visit to your home, we'd like to tell you the history of the modern depictions of the man, myth, and legend of Christmas celebrations. Put another log on the fire and grab a drink (the big man himself recommends Coca-Cola) as we take an objective look at the origins of the Santa Claus we all know and love. Sinterklaas of the Father Before discussing the modern Santa, it's important to mention the iterations of him around the globe that came before the version we see today. Two of these deserve particular mention as the earliest ideas that cemented the idea of Saint Nicholas as a gift-giver and holiday figure. The notable depiction is Father Christmas, who dates back from 16th century England: a figure depicted by a larger man in green or red robes lined with fur, who represented the spirit of Christmas Cheer, revelry, and the holiday feast. Although this iteration of the figure tends not to be viewed as the biggest inspiration for the current depiction of Santa, there is a chance you have encountered it before — many film adaptations of 'A Christmas Carol' feature a figure that strongly represents Father Christmas as their depiction of the Ghost of Christmas Present. It is worth noting, though, that this figure was the first to be celebrated on what we now refer to as Christmas Day, mainly because most stopped celebrating the Feast of Saint Nicholas on his holy day of December 6th. The second figure of interest in these early years is Sinterklaas, hailing from Belgium and The Netherlands. As the most direct link between the original Saint Nicholas and the name 'Santa Claus'. Many of the ideas we know from Santa's traditions — including a trusty steed (or steeds) of some sort, leaving out offerings, gift-giving, and the classic Nice and Naughty lists — stem from this version of the man. However, as opposed to Father Christmas, the countries that believe in Sinterklaas still celebrate him earlier in the month. One of the most popular depictions of Sinterklaas, portrayed by Dutch actor Bram van der Vlugt. (Image Credit: CrazyPhunk at nl.wikipedia & Gaby Kooiman) In these countries, Sinterklaas rides a white horse, and carries a large red book that records whether children have been good or bad over the past year. St. Nicholas' Eve traditions, too, inspired many of Santa's practices, albeit in a more reserved way. As the tales go, on the night of December 5, children all leave one of their shoes by the chimney, sing a song, and present offerings of treats — which can include water, hay, and sugar cubes for Sinterklaas's horse, a cup of coffee for Sinterklaas himself, and even a bottle of beer for his helper Zwarte Piet (who we've discussed at length in another article). If everything is done right and the kids have been good, they'll awaken to find sweets, fruit, or small presents inside their shoes. Meet Santa’s helpers around the world Fusing the traditions of Sinterklaas and the dates and appearance of Father Christmas gives us a basic idea of what would later form Santa Claus, but this brings up another curious question: how did this saintly man emerge as the rotund, red-suited figure we all dream of on Christmas Eve? Jolly Old Saint Knick-O-Las As many Dutch immigrated from the Netherlands to the United States in 1664, they brought with them their traditions, including Sinterklaas himself. In the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam, which we now know as downtown NYC, he was such a popular figure that he was even named the patron saint of the New York Historical Society. However, as time progressed, many people feared losing their culture thanks to the change in the area and ongoing British occupation —leading to the formation of a group known as "The Knickerbockers" dedicated to protecting and chronicling Dutch traditions. One member of the group, a writer named Washington Irving (best known as the writer of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Winkle among others), placed a large number of these traditions into a collection and published them in a book called A History of New York under the name Diedrich Knickerbocker. Diedrich Knickerbocker, the 'writer' of A History of New York. (Image Credit: Felix O.C. Darley) In this satirical and informative book, multiple references to Sinterklaas were featured, including information stating he flew across the sky in a wagon and dropped presents down to good children. Here, he was portrayed as a smaller, stockier man smoking a pipe, dressed in colonial clothing. The book (and Irving's clever marketing of it) became a tremendous success — so much so that 'Diedrich Knickerbocker' became a staple in Manhattan for some time, and the made-up man is still regarded as a major piece of state history (even New York's NBA team's name, the Knicks, is short for the Knickerbockers). It was also responsible for spreading many of the ideas of Christmas (especially the depiction of a mythical gift-giving figure) around the country. This earlier version of Santa was still rough around the edges, but would later be sharpened by the aid of one of Irving's friends. Another key figure behind the modern depiction of Santa Claus was Clement Clarke Moore, who just so happened to be a friend of Irving inspired by his tales of Dutch traditions. As a gift to his children, Moore wrote a Christmas poem called A Visit from St. Nicholas — but nowadays, we know it by the name 'Twas the Night Before Christmas. Although many believe it was never meant to be shown to the public, it was submitted anonymously to the New York Sentinel in 1823, and would later become one of the hallmarks of the season and the first real idea of Santa Claus himself. Christmas at KX: Christmas Songs- Our favorite holiday hits In this poem, many of the Dutch traditions were given a different look to make the story more relatable to other readers. The shoes became stockings, and the wagon was replaced with a sleigh pulled by reindeer (who made their first appearance in the legend as well). Most important, however, was St. Nick himself, who was described thusly: He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack. His eyes -- how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow; The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;He had a broad face and a little round belly,That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly. He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread. The wild popularity of the poem only furthered this idea of Santa as a plump, jolly figure as opposed to a tall and slender saint, and most works depicting the icon at this point would continue to portray him as such. It wasn't until the American Civil War that Santa would finally be depicted as the man we know today. Nast Christmas, I Gave You My Art Up until the early 1860s, while the short and stocky image of Santa popularized by the works of Irving and Moore was well-ingrained in popular culture, his outfit was a stark contrast to what we know now. In the olden days, this pudgy Saint Nicholas was usually portrayed in bishop's robes or a typical pointed hat and coat. However, in 1863, political magazine Harper's Weekly (which was the most widely-read journal in the United States at the time) asked cartoonist Thomas Nast (who also created the ideas of the Republican elephant and Democratic donkey) to draw a picture of Santa Claus delivering gifts to troops on the front lines of the Civil War, which was currently underway. The result fused both the pudgy holiday icon with American pride, and gave him a star-spangled outfit while retaining his jolly past depictions. Thomas Nast's first depiction of Santa Claus, giving gifts to Union soldiers. (Image Credit: Thomas Nast and Harper's Weekly) Interestingly enough, Nast, a staunch Union supporter, also used Santa for several instances of Civil War propaganda. In this image, Nast's most famous artwork of Saint Nicholas as we know him, historians have pointed out that the pro-military Nast included many symbols in the piece relating to the government's flip-flopping on increasing the wages of military members (including the belt buckle representing the army, the toy horse being a Trojan Horse, and the pocket watch implying the government is running out of time). The most obvious example of this is that the sack of toys Santa is carrying here isn't a typical bag at all, but a military backpack. "Merry Old Santa Claus" by Thomas Nast. (Image Credit: Thomas Nast) This drawing of Santa was so popular that the magazine asked Nast to draw Santa Claus during the holidays for 40 years — at some point dropping the patriotic attire and replacing it with a simple red wool suit, which has over time become the de facto appearance of Mr. Claus in most forms of media around the world. To some, though, an entirely different entity who would come much later was behind this spread of Santa's popularity. And if you've seen the ads, or even visited a place that sells soda, you've probably heard of them before. Cola Claus There is a surprisingly widespread belief that the Coca-Cola Company first depicted Santa Claus in the red outfit we all know today. Their relationship is so close that even the company itself has put out a statement denying it and crediting earlier iterations (particularly Moore's). However, it can be said that Coke was vastly important in popularizing and refining the version of Santa that is most often seen in modern times — and all of it is due to a particularly effective marketing campaign by the company in the last century. Santa Claus's history with Coke (the soda, to be specific) stems from the 1920s, when designs similar to the ones created by Thomas Nast made their appearances in advertisements for the soft drink. While these did their fair share of bringing in sales, he didn't take off until 1930, when artist Fred Mizen painted a picture of Santa enjoying a Coca-Cola at Famous Barr Co. in St. Louis (home to the world's largest soda fountain). This image, when used in a December edition of the Saturday Evening Post, became a major hit. (Image Credit: Fred Mizen) Following the popularity of Mizen's depiction, in 1931, the company aimed to create another depiction of Santa who was a figure who could be used for holiday advertising while still capturing the essence of the warmth and goodwill the holiday stood for. The artist commissioned for the job of creating this new marketable Claus was Haddon Sundblom, who at the time worked at the D'Arcy Advertising Agency. At first, Sundblom looked back to Moore's interpretation of the round jolly man from A Visit from St. Nicholas for his inspiration — but while that did a good job of describing his idealized figure, it would take a human model to create the perfect depiction of Santa. With his friend Lou Prentiss serving as a model (with Sundblom later becoming the model himself after Prentiss passed away), he created an incarnation of Santa who not only served as an advertising vehicle but would go on to become one of the definitive images of Mr. Claus in history. This Santa was wildly popular, and only further cemented the red-suited jolly man in popular culture. Sundblom's version of Kris Kringle spread like wildfire, branching out into not only Coke advertisements but also magazines and newspapers. Although the artist constantly worked on his design for Santa Claus (and in fact didn't create a final version until the 60s), his earlier iterations — and likewise, the other adaptations this version of the holiday mascot inspired — became even huger in advertising than any of the other incarnations of Saint Nicholas, and is effectively the most current popular iteration of the man himself. One of Sundblom's first advertisements featuring his design for Santa Claus. (Image Credit: Haddon Sundblom and the Saturday Evening Post) To this day, Saint Nick and Coca-Cola go hand in hand, as both an effective way to market the product over the holidays and to pay respects to the company that set the boom of modern Santa in motion. As it turns out, the Coca-Cola Company states that people paid so much attention to the ads featuring him that even slight mistakes or omissions in some of their Santa ads would prompt people to send physical letters to their offices pointing them out. The most famous of these stemmed from a piece where Santa was seen without a wedding ring, causing people to contact the company asking if he and Mrs. Claus were having trouble in their relationship. BRB: Santa Claus comes Runnin’ through Bismarck at annual Santa Run Another curious fact is that some of Coca-Cola's early Santa ads in the 40s and 50s featured a sidekick for Santa, known as 'Sprite Boy', who was also created by Sundblom. Interestingly, there was no relation between the child and the lemon-lime soft drink also produced by the company — Sprite Boy predated the release of Sprite by nearly 20 years, and vanished before it hit the shelves in 1961. Alternate Interpretations As with any figure who has remained in popular culture for some time, though, even the famous incarnation of Santa Claus is prone to being portrayed in different genres and lights across all forms of media. This, combined with how people can draw their own ideas of the more bizarre or wholesome aspects from stories of Santa, has led to interpretations of all kinds. We're all familiar with movies like the Santa Clause series or the Rankin/Bass productions that portray not only possible explanations of the jolly old man's existence and his origins — and likewise, what he became as a result. While the typical image of Santa as a jolly gift-giver is prevalent in many adaptations, a few of them like to put the same character in unusual situations, or portray his backstory and existence in more amusing or surprisingly intense tales. More recently, the idea of Santa as an action hero has taken an odd hold in culture, using his magical traits to come out on top of dangerous situations. This can be seen even in modern times, with films like Violent Night (about a cynical Santa, formerly a murderous Viking, who must save a rich family under siege by killing the forces assaulting their home) and 2020's Fatman (about a more downtrodden Santa fighting against an assassin to save his failing business) coming to the big screen as major motion pictures. An earlier CGI film, Rise of the Guardians, pictures him as a kindly, yet mighty warrior who employs Yetis to help with toymaking and leads a band of other holiday heroes in battle with a pair of swords. Some movies have also offered backstories for the character including pasts as a Viking, woodsman, and godlike figure, among other things. Older X-Men comics even imply that Santa is not only a mutant, but one of the most powerful mutants ever discovered — boasting reality-warping abilities, immortality, teleportation, weather control, and a host of other holiday-themed powers. Poster for Rise of the Guardians, depicting a warrior Santa Claus. (Image Credit: DreamWorks Films) In the same vein, the love of more alternative genres of media than typical feel-good holiday specials has given rise to depictions of Santa as a more overworked, aggressive, or even terrifying figure. Typically, this idea is used for comedy (such as in Billy Bob Thornton's Bad Santa), but there are other adaptations that some horror films have even given their own spin on Christmas — including Scandinavian horror film Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale and the old-school American slasher series Silent Night, Deadly Night. It clearly wasn't a straightforward road to creating the Santa Claus of today. Rather, the history of the man is steeped in ideas passed from saints to writers to artists, and eventually, we imagine, further down the road for people to create their unique interpretations of the character. Much like Christmas itself, though, it's key to note that the main aspects of Santa are still there — particularly his generosity and kindness towards children. Even if his appearance changes more in the future, as long as these tenants remain. he'll still be the holiday mascot we all know and love, and the one that will serve as Christmas's most famous mascot for years to come. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Today's Top Stories SIGN UP NOW