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Now, the Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES. |
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Santa Claus is someone who will remain in the hearts of children forever. |
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He is the make-believe person who brings toys and other gifts to children at Christmas. |
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To grown-ups, he is a special symbol of goodwill and selfless giving. |
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Santa Claus also has some other names: Saint Nicholas, St. Nick, Kris Kringle, Pelznickel. |
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Two of his names -- Santa Claus and Saint Nicholas -- |
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both come from the Dutch who settled in New York long ago. |
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The Dutch believed Saint Nikolas gave gifts to children. |
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They honored this kindly saint with a yearly festival on December sixth. |
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The English-speaking people who lived nearby greatly enjoyed Dutch festivals. |
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And they brought the saint and the custom of giving gifts |
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into their own celebration at Christmas time. |
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The Dutch spoke the name "Saint Nikolaas" very fast. |
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It sounded like "sinterklaas." And so, |
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when the English said this word, it sounded like Santa Claus. |
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West of New York, in Pennsylvania, |
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many German farmers had also heard of Saint Nikolas. |
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But they called him Pelznickel. This word came from "pelz," meaning fur, |
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and "nickel" for Nicholas. And so, to the Germans of Pennsylvania, |
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Saint Nicholas or Pelznickel was a man dressed in fur |
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who came once a year with gifts for good children. |
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Soon, people began to feel that the love and kindness Pelznickel brought |
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should be part of a celebration honoring the Christkindl, |
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as the Germans called the Christ child. After a time, this became Kris Kringle. |
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Later, Kris Kringle became another name for Santa Claus himself. |
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Whatever he is called, he is still the same short, fat, |
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jolly old man with a long beard, wearing a red suit with white fur. |
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The picture of Santa Claus as we see him came from Thomas Nast. |
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He was an American painter born in Bavaria. |
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He painted pictures for Christmas poems. |
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Someone asked him to paint a picture of Santa Claus. |
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Nast remembered when he was a little boy in southern Germany. |
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Every Christmas, a fat old man gave toys and cakes to the children. |
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So, when Nast painted the picture, |
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his Santa Claus looked like the kindly old man of his childhood. |
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And through the years, |
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Nast's painting has remained as the most popular picture of Santa Claus. |
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Santa can be seen almost everywhere in large American cities during the Christmas season. |
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Some stand on street corners asking for money to buy food and gifts for the needy. |
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Others are found in stores and shopping centers. |
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It is easy to find them by the long lines of children |
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waiting to tell Santa what they want for Christmas. |
