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The Dark Origins of Mermaids and Other Mysterious Folk Lore

Khalid Elhassan September 30, 2023 29 min

Odysseus and the sirens. Greek Gods and Goddesses

The Real Life Saint Behind Santa Lore

The lore of Santa Claus is the product of inputs from the folklore of various cultures. However, the single biggest figure behind Santa is probably Saint Nicholas of Myra, also known as Nicholas of Bari (270 – 342 AD). One of the most popular minor saints of both the Western and Eastern churches, he was a generous man known for his gifts.

He became associated with Christmas, and the tradition of gifts given that day. Nicholas was born into wealth, and used his riches to help those less fortunate. He traveled around, went on pilgrimage to the Holy Lands, and became associated with various good deeds, such as saving three innocent soldiers from wrongful execution.

Saint Nicholas resurrecting three butchered children. Wikimedia

Numerous miracles were also attributed to Saint Nicholas. He reportedly calmed the sea, chopped down a demonic tree, and resurrected three kids who lost their lives to a butcher who pickled their remains in brine for sale as pork during a famine. No wonder he became the patron saint of children. So Saint Nick was a good guy, and a worthy foundational figure upon whom to base the lore of the lovable and kindly Santa. However, Nicholas was not nice all the time. As seen below, he was prone to settle debates by beating up those with whom he disagreed.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.