Santa Claus

is one of the central symbols of the Christmas holiday, but what do we

know about him and his origins?

We know that

he enjoys cookies, travels by a flying reindeer-drawn sleigh, delivers

toys around the world and lives in the North Pole, but where did these

stories originate. Who was Santa Claus before he became the legend that

he is today?

According to

many sources, the story begins toward the end of the third century in

Myra, what is now known as Turkey. The bishop of Myra was a man who went

to children and the poor each year. One famous story claims that three

daughters wished to get married but their widowed father did not have

enough money for dowries. After hanging their stockings to dry by the

fireplace one night, St. Nicholas arrived and dropped enough gold in each

of the stockings so that the girls could marry.

St. Nicholas

died in 340 A.D. but his remains were taken to Italy in the 11th century

all over the world to worship at the church and stories of Saint Nicholas

spread. In the 12th century Germany, France and Holland started to celebrate

St. Nicholas Day on Dec. 6 of each year. It was a religious holiday in

which the children and the poor would receive gifts.

When Dutch

settlers arrived in America, they brought with them tales of Sinterklaas,

a man dressed in a red bishop uniform that rode a white horse. Over the

years, the story evolved, borrowing parts of the St. Nicholas legend as

well as some new creations.

Clement Moore's

1823 poem "A Visit From St. Nicholas," more affectionately known

as "'Twas the Night Before Christmas," gives a description of

the blending of the two characters. An 1860 illustration makes the man

appear more plump and kindly and the story started to spread around the

world again.

Each nation

has its own name for the man and, though some parts of the story are different,

most of it is the same. Santa Claus rewards good children with gifts and

punishes bad children with coal or a few whacks with a switch.

Some countries

hang stockings out on Christmas Eve while others leave out shoes to collect

gifts.

Whether it

is Pere Noel in France, England's Father Christmas, Italy's La Befama

or the U.S.'s plump and jolly old St. Nick, the story of a magical, gift-giving,

benevolent man that can see all is a comforting one for children of all

ages.

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