Don't tell the kids, but we've got Santa Claus all wrong.
Countless Christmas songs tell us that Santa is basically the Judge Judy of juveniles. He decides who's been naughty or nice, and he doles out presents or punishments accordingly. But historians say Santa Claus -- aka St. Nicholas aka Kris Kringle -- was originally created to keep adults, not children, off the naughty list. Being crafty codgers, we ducked Santa's surveillance, turning the spotlight on kids and dramatically changing Christmas celebrations.
Nicholas: A bit of a bad boyThe original St. Nicholas was a real person -- a Greek man with a really interesting story.When the Dutch came to the New World in the 1600s, they brought a fellow from folklore named Sinterklaas with them, Bowler says. Sinterklaas, who wore a red bishop's miter and a snowy white beard, was based on St. Nicholas, a 3rd century Greek who lived in modern-day Turkey. Despite being a bishop, this Nick was a bit of a bad boy.
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