Père Noël
Originally, it was Saint Nicholas, brought to America by Dutch settlers, who gave birth to the American Santa Claus. He first appeared under this name in 1823 in a poem attributed to Clement Clarke Moore, The Night Before Christmas.
- Christmas culture and tradition
From the 1880s, Santa Claus crosses the Atlantic once again and blends with local European traditions of Saint Nicholas, a strange "Winter Man" figure from the North, and even traditional bogeymen, like Hàns Tràpp in Alsace. The result is a curious cultural fusion.
In France, he takes the name "Père Noël", and in German-speaking countries, he is known as Weihnachtsmann, or Wihnàchtsmànn in Alsace.
The 1900s imagery is full of these ever-changing versions of Father Christmas, sometimes carrying a bishop's crook, a sack full of toys, or a switch, and dressed in green, red, purple, or even multicoloured outfits.
In 1931, a Coca-Cola advertising campaign gave Santa Claus the shape we know today, and the global spread of the American-style Christmas made him the main gift-giver worldwide.
