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Why is Sinterklaas not actually from Spain
Behold, the steamer from Spain is arriving again… From the arrival of Saint Nicholas until Christmas Eve, children all over the Netherlands put their shoes in front of the chimney and eat gingerbread cookies. And after package evening, the Good Saint leaves again for Spain. But why does our Sinterklaas actually come from Spain? And where does the tradition of putting your shoe on come from?
Who was Santa Claus?
During his life, Sinterklaas was a man of much charity. According to a legend, he saved three women from prostitution. They were about to get married but had no dowry. Because Sinterklaas threw a bag of gold into these women, they could get married and they did not have to go into prostitution. The story that Sinterklaas throws presents down the chimney at night probably stems from this legend. We know Sinterklaas as a childhood friend, which may be due to the story that he rescued a child from a pan of boiling water. He is also said to have brought back to life children who had been murdered by a butcher.
What is the link between Sinterklaas and Spain?
Sinterklaas himself never lived in Spain but was born around 270 AD in the city of Myra, which is located in present-day Turkey, at the time this region was part of the Greco-Roman Empire, because later the Byzantine Empire became with Constantinople as its capital. He was born as Nicholas of Myra. Later he became Bishop of Myra. After his death on December 6, he was canonized for the extraordinary deeds he had performed during his lifetime. His relics were brought to Bari (Italy) centuries later. From the thirteenth century, the worship of Saint Nicholas has spread across Europe. Bari was later dominated by the Spaniards. This may be a reason why it was said in the Netherlands at one point that Sinterklaas came from Spain. The Sinterklaas tradition may also have blown over with the sailors. In 1555 the Spanish king Philip II ruled in the Netherlands. Spain continued to rule in the then so-called Southern Netherlands until 1715. In this era Spanish troops regularly came to the Netherlands by water and perhaps they took the tradition with them. In Spain, a similar festival is celebrated, but on January 6, called Epiphany, or Los Tres Reyes Magos. Children in Spain also put on their shoes the night before Epiphany and receive gifts the next morning. When the children have been naughty, they are not put in a burlap sack but are given carbón dulce, a black candy that resembles coal. Roscón de reyes is also baked, a bread for three kings.
Sinterklaas now
Sinterklaas as we know it has existed since the 19th century. Jan Schenkman, an Amsterdam teacher, has recorded the Sinterklaas traditions in his booklet 'Sint Nicholas and his servant'. He is also the one who wrote the song 'Behold yonder comes the steamer' and added the sentence that it is from Spain. Nowadays children put on their shoes, there is a parade with helpers and of course we all know the horse of Sinterklaas: Amerigo. Amerigo is probably named after the explorer Amerigo Vespucci, he was employed by the Spanish and Portuguese. Vespucci himself was from Florence. The tradition of putting a shoe in front of the chimney dates back to the fifteenth century. Children from poorer classes used to be allowed to put their shoes in the church on December 5, after which the rich put something in it. The contents were distributed among the poor. At that time, on December 5, boys declared love to girls. The boys gave marzipan that day to the girl they liked. The use of marzipan during the Sinterklaas party probably originated there.
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