The Evolution of Father Christmas
The figure of Father Christmas, Santa Claus, or St. Nicholas, the gift-giver of December 24th, has a complex history. He wasn't always the gift-bringer we know today.
Originally, Father Christmas was an illustration, a symbol of the Christmas season itself, not a mythical person. He represented the spirit of feasting.
According to the English origin of Father Christmas, early mentions of a personified Christmas include a 15th-century carol featuring 'Sir Christëmas' spreading news of Christ's birth and the 'Yule Ridings' in York, where a man dressed as Yule carried food and threw nuts into the crowd. During Tudor and Stuart times, 'Lords of Misrule' sometimes went by names like 'Captain Christmas'.
The idea of Christmas as an old man and a father came later, thanks to playwright Ben Jonson's 1616 play, Christmas, His Masque. Jonson's "old Christmas" had a long beard and brought his "sons and daughters," personifying different Christmas traditions like "Mince Pie" and "Wassail," with "New Year's Gift" bringing symbolic presents.
SOURCE:ENGLISH HERITAGE WEBSITE
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