The Tradition of St. Nicholas Day Around the World (December 6th)

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Thanks to a European influence on my side of the family, I grew up celebrating the tradition of St. Nicholas Day on December 6th.

Many people just know St. Nicholas by the name of Santa Claus. While the modern figure of Santa derives from St. Nick, you’d hardly find this patron saint of children making toys at the North Pole.

The Story of St. Nicholas

The real man behind the fictitious modern day Santa Claus and Father Christmas was St. Nicholas of Myra. Born in 280 A.D. in Asia Minor, he lost his parents at an early age, though they left him great wealth when they died. The real St. Nicholas was known for giving anonymous gifts to help those in need and was eventually made a bishop of Myra.

The good bishop died on December 6th; thus this day is now Saint Nicholas Day.

For a fascinating explanation of how a man with a beard, reindeer, and the North Pole came to be associated with St. Nick, see this podcast episode about Santa Claus and the roots of the story in Finnish culture.

Why the Gift Giving?

The history of leaving shoes or stockings out on St. Nick’s Day likely stems from the story of him leaving small bags of gold for a man and his three daughters. During those times women had to bring a dowry to a marriage in order to find a good husband.

St. Nick heard of a man who had three daughters but could not afford the dowry. Without it, the daughters would most likely enter a life of prostitution instead of being able to marry. According to legend, St. Nick threw three bags of gold through their window at night (some say down the chimney) where they found them the next morning. This saved them from a life at a brothel and cemented his place as the patron of gift-giving.

St. Nicholas Day Around the World

Various cultures around the world celebrate the feast of St. Nicholas. It’s also observed in Orthodox and Catholic faiths (and sometimes protestant Christian ones). Our own family tradition is a hybrid of several cultural traditions related to St. Nick.

This is how some cultures around the world remember this day:

Shen’Kollë in Greece

Greece (as well as Albania, Serbia, and Bulgaria), celebrate St Nicholas on the eve of his feast day, December 5th. This day is known as Shen’Kolli i Dimnit (Saint Nicholas of Winter). In these cultures, this day is one of fasting, not gift-giving. In fact, on this day, most people abstain from meat, fast completely, or prepare a feast to eat just after midnight.

Sinterklaas in Belgium & Netherlands

In these countries, children leave their boots in front of the fireplace for St. Nicholas. Often, they include a carrot or a treat for his horses Legend has it that he arrived with his horses via sleigh or steamboat in these areas.

St. Nicholas and Père Fouettard in France

In France, St. Nicholas arrives on December 6th and gives children small gifts and chocolates. In the weeks leading up to this day, parents and grandparents tell stories of the legend of St. Nick. This included a disturbing but popular one. 

The story goes that three children wandered away and got lost. A butcher lured them into his shop where he killed them and salted them away in a large tub. According to legend, St. Nicholas revived the boys and brought them home to their families. (At least there’s a happy ending!)

This story earned St. Nicholas his reputation as a protector of children in France. The butcher (known as “Père Fouettard,” meaning “Father Whipper”) is imagined to follow St. Nicholas in penance. He’ll leave lumps of coal or even whip misbehaving children. In France, statues and paintings often portray this event, showing the saint with children in a barrel.

Sankt Nikolaus and Krampusnacht in Germany and Austria

The way our family honors St. Nicholas mainly centers on this tradition. In Germany and Austria, children leave out a boot for St. Nicholas and receive small toys, coins, or candy. In these areas, St. Nicholas still dresses like a bishop and is often portrayed on a horse. Like the French story, a sinister companion accompanies St. Nick, in this case, the even more terrifying demon-like Krampus.

In these areas, they don’t mess around with an Elf on the Shelf to encourage kids to be good. They invoke the legend of the Krampus! This beast is thought to punish children who misbehave. He’ll capture particularly naughty children in his sack and carry them away to his lair. The Krampus was derived from old pagan Winter Solistice celebrations and has roots in Germanic folklore. Its influence has spread to Austria and throughout parts of Europe.

December 5th is known as Krampus Night, or Krampusnacht, where the hairy devil appears on the streets. Traditionally young men dress up as the Krampus on the night of December 5th. They’ll roam the streets frightening children with rusty chains and bells.

Our St. Nicholas Day Traditions

Spooky stories are fun in their own way, but never fear … there’s a more cheerful way to celebrate St. Nicholas Day! He was a good bishop known for helping others, after all. We honor St. Nicholas feast day in our family by celebrating in a few ways. The result is an adaptation of a mix of celebrations from around the world. Having some holiday fun well before Christmas morning is a great way to kick off Advent.

Leaving Shoes or Boots Out on December 5th

We leave out a shoe or boot in the hallway on the evening of December 5th for St. Nick’s arrival. This is similar to the idea of doing stockings, though we do that as well on Christmas Day. In the boots, my kids usually find:

  • Coins: Each child receives some quarters in their shoe to signify the money St. Nicholas gave.
  • Healthy Treats: Instead of lots of candy canes and sugary treats I’ll leave some healthy treats. These can include dark chocolate, small bags of nuts,  or homemade marshmallows.
  • Oranges: These signify the gold St. Nick gave away and my kids love oranges this time of year. We didn’t use to get them during the winter, but now we live in the south they’re in season even when the Christmas tree is up!

Random Acts of Kindness

The most important lesson from the legend of St. Nicholas is his generosity. To help us all remember this, we make a point to do random acts of kindness this time of year. We brainstorm creative ways to help those in need in our local area. We’ll then set about our “secret” mission to bring some joy to others.

In the past, we’ve done things like:

  • Drop off grocery store gift cards to families in need.
  • Give a big box of wrapped gifts and clothes to families who need them.
  • Anonymously pay the utility bills of someone in need.
  • Wrap gifts or donate items to local foster programs.

The list of possibilities is endless, and it’s always a good lesson in gratitude for all our blessings.

The Traveling Christmas St. Nicholas (or Angel)

This is perhaps the most fun tradition and one I hope you’ll consider starting in your own area. In the spirit of St. Nicholas Day, we start a traveling Christmas St. Nicholas (or Angel) tradition. It sparks generosity all over our area. Here’s how it works:

  1. Get some kind of small St. Nicholas statue or angel statue.
  2. Think of another family in your area you want to pass on the statue to and something kind to do for them. This could be a small gift, a family activity, or just an act of kindness.
  3. Anonymously leave the statue on their front door mat one evening. Include a letter that they’ve been touched by the spirit of Christmas generosity and it’s their turn to pass on a kind act. We also print out a paper that “We’ve been visited by St. Nicholas.” This way they can post it in their front window so others know they’ve already been visited.

Whether you celebrate St. Nicholas Day or not, a random act of kindness is a great way to honor the Christmas season. We certainly need more of it in the world. Happy Feast of St. Nicholas, from my family to yours!

Does your family celebrate St. Nicholas Day? What are your traditions?

Katie Wells Avatar

About Katie Wells

Katie Wells, CTNC, MCHC, Founder of Wellness Mama and Co-founder of Wellnesse, has a background in research, journalism, and nutrition. As a mom of six, she turned to research and took health into her own hands to find answers to her health problems. WellnessMama.com is the culmination of her thousands of hours of research and all posts are medically reviewed and verified by the Wellness Mama research team. Katie is also the author of the bestselling books The Wellness Mama Cookbook and The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox.

Comments

25 responses to “The Tradition of St. Nicholas Day Around the World (December 6th)”

  1. Tima Avatar

    I come from a town in the Veneto region bordering Friuli, as a child I used to put my shoes out on the evening on Dec 5th and then find small gifts the morning after. We called him San Nicolo’ he will come with his donkey late that night.
    I celebrated the same tradition here in the States with my son when he was little.
    Such great memories

  2. Kristi Avatar

    Yes! My family has always celebrated this tradition. My husband did not and thought I made up a holiday. It wasn’t until I moved away from home that I learned I was in the minority. We always received candy and a small toy at home and a new ornament and Grandma and Grandpa’s house. My mom also let my brother and I pick out our own wrapping paper for our Christmas gifts and we would leave it for St. Nick to take back to Santa!

  3. Ann Stokman Avatar
    Ann Stokman

    Lovely article detailing all about St. Nick’s day..I always celebrate the day with my parents..

  4. Tija Avatar

    Hi,
    I really like the post about St Nicolas. People in North America, at least the one I know, are not very familiar with the story of St. Nicolas. However, there are few things here that are not correct. Serbian Orthodox and Macedonian Orthodox celebrate St. Nicolas day on December 18th, and it is a patron saint of many Orthodox families there. Greeks and Bulgarian have accepted a new calendar, thus they celebrate on Dec 5th, and they have a village or a city St. celebration. Romanian Orthodox are also celebrating on Dec 18, but I don’t think they do it as a patron day.
    Albania is a Muslim country, and if someone celebrates St. Nicolas there, it would be Orthodox or some other Christian group.
    Orthodox don’t fast for St. Nicolas deliberately, they have a Great Fast of 40 days that last till January 7t or December 25th, depending on following old or a new Callander. St. Nicolas always falls on a fasting day, since it is during the Great Lent, and you can eat fish, but no meat, eggs, dairy products or anything from an animal rather than fish.
    So St. Nicolas has nothing to do with the Great Fast itself, it is vice verse.

  5. Jenny Avatar

    Thank you for sharing this info, I was curious about the 6th December traditions! We are expats living in France and today my son will receive a gift from Saint Nic in his slipper at school under the Christmas Tree (it’s a lovely Montessori school).

  6. Min Avatar

    Yes, the Fest of the Three Kings (Heilige Drei Könige) is still alive and well in the Catholic parts of Germany. It’s celebrated on the 6th of January, and normally childreen dress up like the three kings and go door to door in groups singing songs and collecting money for different charities. They also mark your door with chalk to show that you have been visited by the three kings.

  7. Rochelle Avatar

    I just have to say that I love that your blog is becoming more and more Catholic! Thank you for your family’s beautiful witness and for sharing the beauty of our faith, homeschooling, and intentional natural living. 🙂

  8. Maggie Avatar

    We love St. Nicholas and love celebrating his feast day! Kids (and adults!) enjoy receiving small gifts and chocolate in their stockings today; I really like how you tie in the random acts of kindness as well. Great article, thanks for sharing this wonderful information, Katie 🙂

  9. Beth Avatar

    What an informative article! I really inspired me to look into St Nicolas Day. As a note, however, one of your subtitles reads “St. Nicholas Day Around the World” and you went into details about how various regions and countries in Europe celebrate the day. I know you mean well, but Europe is not the whole world.

    But now that we are talking about obscure holidays, have you ever heard of Wise Men’s day? I am not sure what the Low German word is actually, but my Mennonite husband claims his family used to celebrate a day int he First week of January commemorating the coming of the Wise Men and the gifts they brought Jesus. This was the day of merry making, and Christmas, which they held weeks before was a solemn holy day of church going and hymn singing all day long.

    1. Rachel Avatar

      If I’m understanding your description correctly, Wise Men’s Day sounds like it’s Epiphany.

  10. Jane Avatar

    My mom is German/Austrian and my father is Polish. Our family of nine kids celebrated St. Nicolas when I was growing up and I continue this tradition with my kids. We set our stockings out the night before St. Nicolas comes and the kids receive small gifts and treats. It’s a fun way to start the Christmas season!

  11. Doina Avatar

    I love how you have started it with Greece and all of the translation is in Albanian. 🙂 Made my day.

  12. Michelle Avatar

    Thanks – this is a really great summary of various St. Nicholas traditions and I like your ideas of how how to celebrate with the kids and friends. We live in Germany, and Nikolaustag is really a lot of fun. Even the Krampus part. They usually run around town on the 6th causing mischief, and some of the costumes are amazing. And don’t forget to polish your boots before you put them out 🙂

  13. Rosemary Avatar

    I was born in Germany and grew up in Belgium but unfortunately I’m not sure I have any happy memories about this day. In belgium as you may not know… this tradition has created heated conversations about Blackface ” Black Piet” who in most people’s eyes represents a slave… Belgium and The Netherlands have fought hard to keep this tradition with Black piet alive although it has racists undertone. As a mom now, I struggle with the idea that I should celebrate this day when my child could be associated negatively with it. I love the way you have made it your own and it reminded me that traditions were created by us humans and we should not feel forced to celebrate it like others. Thank you

  14. Rosanna Avatar

    Yes, it’s changing slowly, but before the racist elements are completely eradicated? Still ongoing, especially in the debates of some of the conservative ‘opposition’.

  15. Kathleen Avatar

    Just the good news article I needed today as I am frustrated by the conflicting messages of Christmas. I love studying history and I appreciate how you boil it down to the essentials Katie! Keep it simple, keep it healthy and keep it about giving 🙂

  16. Nine Avatar

    Hi, I’m from the Netherlands, and it is customary nowadays to celebrate on the evening of December 5th, rather than the morning of December 6th. Sinterklaas arrives in the Netherlands some two weeks earlier on a steamboat, with his helpers. They are called Pete or Black Pete, and although they originated from the Krampus figure, the portrayal was changed to a more controversial figure, which is now slowly changing again (for which I am grateful!)

    Children are usually allowed to put out their shoe a couple of times between Sinterklaas’ arrival, and his departure on December 6th. On the evening of the 5th we celebrate “Pakjesavond” or “Gifts night”. At some point during the evening there will be a heavy knock on the door, and a hand of candy and small gingernut cookies will be thrown into the hallway. When kids open the door, they will find a hessian sack with gifts. The whole family will then gather together to unwrap the gifts. In Belgium, kids will find their gifts on the table in the morning, unwrapped. When kids get older, and they are let in on the Sinterklaas secret, they will start making surprises instead (like Secret Santa, but with elaborately decorated gifts and a poem.)

    There are a lot of Sinterklaas songs to be sung, as well as specific sweet treats that accompany the season! We are celebrating tonight with my parents, and my sister’s family 🙂

    Happy Sinterklaas!

    1. Ninon Avatar

      Yes! Also, Sinterklaas only has one horse here in The Netherlands: Amerigo is his name. Love that you made an article for this tradition! 🙂

  17. Tina M Avatar

    I’m Slovakian, my partner is Scottish, so our kids get a bit of both cultures.We like celebrating this day (Svätý Mikuláš in Slovakian);our girls put their boots on the windowsill and get all excited to see “he” has been, it is nice.

  18. Vee Avatar

    Hi I am from Bulgaria and have correction regarding the custom there.
    We celebrate on the 6th and it is a common thing to have fish for dinner.

  19. Dee Avatar

    I love all of these traditions. My oldest daughter grew up going to Catholic school where each year they would celebrate St. Nicholas Day. The children would attend mass on this day and come back to their classrooms to find St. Nicholas had visited by leaving them a candy cane. It was always great fun. I love that your family celebrates this tradition. St. Nicholas was a fascinating person. A very dear friend of mine even wrote a book about him. The book is steeped in real history as well as fantasy. It’s a great read for young and old alike. It’s called Nikolas and the Pantheon Trials by Dallas Graham. If you have a chance, you should read it. It’s a wonderful story. We all think of St. Nicholas the man, but this story tells about St. Nicholas as a young teen. A fun new spin….and it’s going to be a trilogy. The second book should be coming out soon. 😉

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