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RE: Tottler Sam just turned 3 and yesterday he received a LEGO police car from Sinte ...
Does Santa come on already Dec 6 in the Protestant parts of the Netherlands or is this only the case in the Catholic south? I know that in Belgium Sinterklaas brings gifts to children on Dec 6.
In the Netherlands is on December 5th and yes it's a party for kids but also for adults. Adults write rhymes/poems with the gifts which makes it fun. And it's for the whole country. I don't think many people associate it with religion.
Here (Finland) it's always early in the evening on the 24th of December, usually after Christmas meal. (Santa is an odd fellow, because he must be able to fork himself to be present at every home in the country at roughly the same time.)
By the way, the timing of Sinterklaas' visit is not an accident. It's on the birthday of the catholic saint Holy Nicolaus who was the bishop of Myra in Patara, Lycia now in Turkey in the 3rd century according to legends. He was a very generous man who would help people in trouble and he wouldn't want any fame or recognition for it.
The English world Santa Claus is a translation of the Dutch word Sinterklaas. In the protestant world, Martin Luther wanted this "Papal" custom to end and wanted to replace Saint Nicholas by the Christ Child as the gift giver who would bring the presents at Christmas. This is why I asked whether the protestant part of the Netherlands followed the general protestant custom of Santa coming at Christmas.
Interestingly, the protestant part of the Netherlands does not follow the Lutheran way. That may have to do with the fact that protestant Christianity in the Netherlands is not pure Lutheranism but the national protestant church is a merger of the Calvinist Dutch Reformed Church and the Dutch Lutheran Church. The history of Christianity is quite different from the Nordic countries or the Northern Germany.