? The story of Santa Claus? His origin can be traced back to distant northern Europe. According to legend, Santa Claus is a descendant of Odin, but the most popular story is the story of Saint Nicholas.
According to legend, Nicholas was born in patara in Asia Minor in the 4th century. His family is very rich and his parents are very enthusiastic Catholic friends. Unfortunately, his parents died young. When Nicholas grew up, he donated all his property to the poor, became a monk himself, and devoted his life to the church and society.
He has done many good deeds in his life and likes to help the poor in secret. Santa Claus is his later nickname, which comes from the story that he secretly donated money to help three girls.
According to legend, not far from where Nicholas lived, there lived three beautiful girls. Their father is a poor scholar and often lives by borrowing money. Unable to pay his debts, he had to sell his three daughters to creditors and take them to Africa as maids. Nicholas knew about it and ran to their house to comfort him first. In the evening, Nicholas put gold in three stockings and hung them in front of the windows of three girls.
With gold, the father's debt was paid off, and the third daughter was spared the fate of being a servant girl. It happened that the next day was Christmas. They knew that Nicholas had done something good, so they invited him to celebrate and thank him.
From then on, every Saint Yan's Day, these three girls will tell this story, and the children will listen to it, calling Nicholas Santa Claus. Later, I don't know which clever parents began to give socks to their children in the name of Santa Claus. As a result, this habit became popular.
It was not until the19th century that the American poet Clement Moore embodied the image of Santa Claus in his poems:
Wearing a big red dress, a wide belt around her waist, black leather boots, a fur ball cap, cheeks like roses, nose like cherries, a smile on her face, chubby and round. Every Christmas Eve, he drives an elk sleigh to villages and towns, enters along the chimney, and gives presents to good children.
Soon this happy and lovely old man image quickly took root in people's hearts, spread all over the world with the passage of time, and has been deeply rooted in people's hearts until now.
Christmas customs 1. The tradition of decorating Christmas trees refers to decorating pine trees with colored lights, gold foils, garlands, decorations, candy bars, etc. Nowadays, the Christmas tree is also an indispensable part of celebrating festivals.
Christmas custom II. The tradition of lighting Christmas candles means that people will put a lighted candle outside their house during Christmas. Even in the darkest room, candles can bring light and symbolize hope. In the early years, when Christians were persecuted, they were forbidden to preach and pray. Therefore, Christians put candles outside the house, suggesting that they are still praying silently in their hearts.
Christmas custom 3. The tradition of baking Christmas cakes in Britain has been around for centuries. People used to drink sour plum porridge on Christmas Eve. Over time, people will also enjoy candied fruit, honey and spicy food, and then Christmas cake will replace plum porridge. Christmas cake is baked with eggs, butter, desserts and fruits. Nowadays, Christmas cake has become an indispensable part of the Christmas menu. ?
Christmas custom 4. Give gifts to relatives and friends? This tradition comes from a legend: three wise men give presents to the baby Jesus at Christmas. Every Christmas, friends and relatives, especially children, will give gifts to each other. The story of Santa Claus also comes from this tradition.
Nowadays, children all over the world know that there is a happy and kind old man coming to give gifts on Christmas Eve! Baby, are your socks ready?