The Mystery of Sinterklaas

Sinterklaas? The name may sound familiar but Sinterklaas is actually quite different from the commercial and jolly fat Santa Claus we all know[1]. According to various internet sources[2] Sinterklaas might be related to Bishop Nicholas from Myra (in today’s Turkey), who originally lived in the fourth century. He was well known for his kindness, good heart and modesty and was later on proclaimed a saint. Saint Nicholas died on the 6th of December which could explain why we celebrate his day around this time.

One of the most famous legends about Sinterklaas, the “Sint” or “Sint Nicolaas” as the Dutch also call him, tell us how he helped three poor girls to get married. These girls did not have enough money to pay for their weddings. Bishop Nicholas was too modest to give them money in person so he is said to have climbed onto the roof of the girls’ house to throw golden coins down the chimney. He did it for all three daughters. When he was helping the last girl, the coins fell into the stockings which were drying in front of the chimney. (That is why many families keep the tradition of leaving stockings, socks and/or shoes for the presents in front of the chimney). The girls’ father is also said to have seen Bishop Nicholas - he promised he would not tell anyone but he did - and from that moment on every time people received an unexpected gift, they gave thanks to Saint Nicholas.

Many centuries later the Dutch still commemorate Sint Nicolaas on December 5th. But the whole celebration actually starts around three weeks earlier in November. The Sint “travels” from Spain to the Netherlands on a steamboat, accompanied by his white horse - for whom children often offer carrots, hay or water next to their shoes - and a Black Knight, called “Zwarte Piet” (Black Pete). All the children wait patiently to welcome the Sint and when he arrives they scream with joy and excitement and sing specials songs (“Sinterklaasliedjes”) for him.

In the 17th century Holland was famous for its navigation and the fact that Sint Nicolaas comes from Spain, according to the article “Sinterklaas explained”, could be related to his being the patron of sailors. This could also explain why Sint Nicolaas has “Zwarte Pieten” to help him - namely because the Moors dominated Spain for several hundreds of years. Another explanation mentioned in the article for the black skin colour of the “Zwarte Pieten” is that they have come down the chimneys so often that they cannot wash the soot off. What is relevant regarding the “Zwarte Pieten”, however, is that they punish the naughty children and reward the good ones. “The worst punishment is to be taken back to Spain in “Zwarte Piet’s” bag out of which the good children receive sweets and presents. A less radical punishment is to get the “roede” (rod) instead of presents”.

And finally December 5th arrives. It is typical to the Dutch that they actually celebrate Sinterklaas on the eve of December 6th, during “pakjesavond” (evening of gifts). The adults can celebrate it among each other as a “surpriseavond” (surprise evening) which means that the gifts are wrapped in such a way that no one would expect their content. For example, receiving a giant fake cake with hidden inside it a small plastic box containing the real present would be a good example of a “surprise”. There is also a tradition of writing a short, teasing poem (“Sinterklaasgedicht”) for each person on this occasion. The poem should be related to each person’s life, and/or to characteristics which are caricaturised in a plausible way so that everyone, including the person concerned, can really laugh about it.

In that way some of the Dutch celebrate Sinterklaas all their life. Initially as children with their parents during “pakjesavond”, later by organising a “surpriseavond” with their friends, and then by returning to the tradition of “pakjesavond” once they have established their own families. And even if some people may stop celebrating the Sint for a while, they do not exclude it for future times . “I have not celebrated Sinterklaas for the past 3 years because I used to do it with a group of friends and now some of them have moved further away, others became very busy with their work or got children and now celebrate the Sint with their own families,” a young Dutch colleague from work told me. “But when I think of all the nice traditions related to Sinterklaas I really feel like celebrating it again”, she quickly added, her eyes twinkling.

Alexandra Jurczynska

[1] By the way, did you know that the image of the jolly fat Santa Claus was actually created in 1831 for the Coca-Cola marketing campaign?

[2] The story is mostly based on articles from the following websites:
New Hope Church, “ I believe in Santa”
Sinterklaas
Sinterklaas explained