Who is Santa Claus and. The history of the origin of Santa Claus and the Snow Maiden: Slavic roots

“Hello, Santa Claus, cotton beard! Did you bring us gifts? The guys are looking forward to it!” - these lines are familiar to us since kindergarten! Most of us perceive this comrade as fairy tale character which appears on New Year and distributes gifts to obedient children. Let's take a closer look at who Santa Claus is and where he came from.

When did the image of Santa Claus appear?

The Slavs were able to personify almost all natural phenomena. Frost was also not deprived of such an honor. He was represented as a white-bearded old man in a fur coat, who was master of cold and winter cold. Frost can be heard in winter forest when he "crackles and clicks, jumping from tree to tree." He usually came from the north. Different Slavic tribes called Moroz in their own way: Treskunets, Morozko, Karachun, Studenets, Zyuzya, etc.

In general, Frost was held in high esteem among the Slavs, because it was believed that a cold snowy winter would provide a good harvest. Therefore, there was a ceremony called "Crying Frost", when he was treated to ritual food in the form of pancakes and kutya.

A lot of information about Frost can be gleaned from folk art. In many tales, he tested the main character, who could be generously gifted or frozen to death.

Many writers of the 19th century described this character in their fairy tales, relying specifically on Slavic mythology. At the same time, he was not associated with the New Year or Christmas, but he already had some attributes of the modern Santa Claus. In the Soviet film "Morozko" you can directly see such a character.

But still, starting since the second half of the 19th century, Santa Claus began to be compared with the New Year holidays. So he began to play the role of "Christmas grandfather", who, like Nikolai Ugodnik in the West, gave gifts to obedient Russian children.

Already at the beginning of the 20th century, Grandfather Frost was very similar to his contemporary, but with a bias towards Christmas traditions. However in 1929, the Komsomol strictly banned the celebration of Christmas and, accordingly, Moroz Ivanovich went on vacation for several years.

The revival of Santa Claus in the form familiar to us took place on New Year 1936! At the same time, the first New Year tree in the Soviet Union was officially held, where he appeared with his granddaughter Snegurochka. It is worth noting that Santa Claus was conceived as a character designed for a children's audience.

By the way, in the USSR they tried to introduce such a character as the New Year Boy, who appeared as the successor of Grandfather.

What does a real Santa Claus look like?

Western culture sometimes makes us confuse the appearance of our Santa Claus with the attributes of Santa Claus. Let's figure it out how should a Russian New Year's grandfather look like?.

Beard

A long thick beard has always been an essential attribute of our Santa Claus at all times. In addition to the fact that the beard indicates his age, it also symbolizes wealth and prosperity. Interestingly, the Slavs represented Frost with a beard to his feet.

Fur coat

The grandfather must wear a red fur coat, embroidered with silver and trimmed with swan down. Do not forget about the obligatory presence of a traditional ornament, for example, in the form of geese or stars. Today, fur coats are used and blue, and white, and even Green colour, but many, including historians, criticize such an outfit, insisting that for our Frost, it is red that is canonical.

A cap

Santa Claus wears a semi-oval hat, like a boyar, but on its front part should be triangular. Color, ornament, trim - everything should match the fur coat. Any caps with a brush are for Santa.

Shoes and other accessories

Today, many Grandfathers wear sneakers and leather shoes, which is completely unacceptable. It must be felt boots or boots embroidered with silver. The belt (not the belt!) must be white with a red ornament, which symbolizes the connection with the ancestors. Mittens should also be white, symbolizing the holiness and purity of what Santa Claus gives from his hands.

Staff

The Slavic Morozko used a stick to make a distinctive knock, later the staff was used to create cold and freeze those who did not pass the test. According to the canon, the staff should be crystal or at least silver under crystal. It has a twisted handle and ends with a stylized image of the moon or a bull's head.

This is how the famous Santa Claus from Veliky Ustyug looks like. The dress is almost on point.

A bag with presents

Santa Claus comes to children not empty-handed, but with a whole bag of gifts. Its color is also usually red. By definition, the bag is magical, because the gifts in it do not end, at least while it is in the hands of Grandfather.

Well, now dressing up as Santa Claus, you will know what to focus on.

Character of Santa Claus

Unlike the Western counterpart, Santa Claus is not an avid merry fellow. He is quite harsh, but at the same time kind and fair.. Santa Claus still likes to test people and only then give gifts, but he no longer freezes anyone, but simply finds out how you behaved last year and asks you to tell a poem.

In many cultures, there is a character who gives gifts to children at New Year's or Christmas. The most famous throughout the world is Santa Claus, who holds the post of a kind giver in Western Europe and USA.

We will not make a detailed comparison of Santa Claus and Santa, just remember that our donor's sleigh is pulled by a troika, he does not climb pipes, does not smoke a pipe and does not wear glasses. In addition, our Grandfather does not hobnob with the elves, because he has a granddaughter, the Snow Maiden.

A few words about the Snow Maiden

The Snow Maiden has no direct analogy with Slavic mythology, although it is believed that this is one of the girls that Morozko froze. The first mention of the Snow Maiden appears in Russian folklore, where she is described as a revived girl who was made of snow. Later, she appears as the daughter of Santa Claus, but in the end the option with her granddaughter took root.

Today, the Snow Maiden is an indispensable assistant to Santa Claus on all New Year's holidays.

Conclusion

Santa Claus is really a national treasure, because people from different eras worked on his image. Also in Slavic tribes revered the stern master of the cold, who also appears in oral folk art, and in the fairy tales of Russian writers. He came down to us in the form of a kind grandfather who gives children gifts for the New Year.

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Father Frost, Santa Claus, Per Noel, St. Nicholas - winter presenters of gifts to good children (in fact, to everyone in a row) filled the entire near-Christian world. These characters make the coldest and gloomiest season a little magical, help brighten up the endless expectation of spring. But at the very beginning of their ancient history, they were just as cold and gloomy. Mankind has come a long way before it began to celebrate victory over its winter fears.

The further north people lived, the more difficult their relationship with nature was. And the more intricate they seemed to be the personifications of the elemental forces with which they have to fight in order to survive. It is to the incarnations of the winter cold that the image of a bearded good man with a bag of gifts goes back. Only in ancient times he was not at all kind, and there was only one gift in his arsenal: a chance to survive another winter. An invaluable gift for a time when forty years was considered old age.

Frost, snow and ice, a deaf winter darkness in the minds of our ancestors were associated with death. In Scandinavian myths, the realm of the dead is located in the icy north, where the terrible goddess Hel, the prototype of the Snow Queen from Andersen's fairy tale, rules. The houses of modern Santa Clauses are also placed in the north: Lapland, Greenland, Alaska, the North Pole, the “pole of cold” Oymyakon in Yakutia ... Russian Veliky Ustyug Vologda region Yes, the Belarusian Belovezhskaya Pushcha - perhaps the southernmost places where this grandfather was settled. Fortunately, modern Santas do not want to kill us. And they wanted our ancestors. And they were cunning as best they could, paying off the victims.

On the longest night of the year - on the winter solstice, from December 21 to 22 - the ancient Germans and Celts celebrated the holiday of Yule (Yule). There was something to rejoice about: after that night, the sun "turned to spring," and the day began to lengthen. People decorated their houses with evergreen branches of holly, ivy and mistletoe, drank hot spiced ale, burned a special “Yule log” in the fireplace, and went to visit their neighbors. After the Christianization of Europe, these customs became attributes of Christmas and the New Year, coming a little later than Yule.

Yule log - not only a decoration, but also a traditional Christmas dessert (cream roll)

The image of Wotan the Wanderer has become a popular illustration for the story of the Wandering Jew

Among the Germans, Yule was dedicated to Wotan (aka Odin), the god of wisdom, the lord of life and death. According to the legend, first retold by Jacob Grimm, Wotan gallops across the sky that night at the head of the Wild Hunt, introducing unwary travelers to his retinue. Perhaps this is where the tradition “Christmas is a family holiday” is rooted: on the longest night of the year, all family members should sit by their own hearth, and not wander along the roads. Wotan was often portrayed as a long-bearded old man, leaning on a spear, wearing a cloak and a wanderer's hat - do you recognize Grandfather Frost in a sheepskin coat and with a staff? Sacrifices were made to Wotan on Yule - it is reliably known that these were horses and pigs, but it is possible that in the deepest antiquity the victims were human.

Slavic Frost (Mraz) also demanded sacrifices. An echo of the ceremony of human sacrifice can be seen in the fairy tale "Morozko". Remember the girl who was almost frozen to death, but then generously presented as a reward for meekness? So, the young virgins, who were sent to the forest every winter as a sacrifice to the winter god, really froze to death. But in the pagan consciousness, such a death meant communion with the very elemental force that everyone was afraid of. And if Morozko accepted the sacrifice, then this year he will be kind.

In Ukrainian and Belarusian villages back in the 19th century, Frost was ritually "invited" to Christmas kutya (sweet wheat porridge with dried fruits) - a harmless equivalent of a human sacrifice. If we remember that kutia was also a traditional dish at the Slavic commemoration, the ritual acquires additional depth, turning into a way of communication with the spirits of deceased ancestors.

But how did these capricious and insatiable elements turn into kind and generous donors? For this to happen, another, non-pagan character had to appear in world mythology.

Santa Wonderworker

In the III century AD in the Roman province of Lycia, in Asia Minor, there lived a young man Nicholas, who from childhood decided to devote himself to religion. When his parents died, he distributed all his considerable inheritance to the poor, and he himself went to study with his uncle, the bishop, who later ordained him to the priesthood. Over time, Nikolai became the Bishop of Mirliki, beloved by the people for his kindness and generosity to those in need. Moreover, he secretly showed this generosity - but all the same, for some reason, it became known that it was the bishop who was the mysterious benefactor.

One of the legends about Nicholas says that he heard about three beautiful sisters, whose father was poor and could not give them a dowry, so instead of marrying his daughters, he planned to sell them to brothel. To save the girls from this fate, Nikolai collected three bags of gold and threw them into the sisters' house - according to different versions of the legend, through a window or a chimney. And these bags ended up in stockings hung out near the hearth to dry.

Image of St. Nicholas in the Catholic tradition. By the way, like Wotan, he is considered the patron saint of travelers.

In memory of the generosity of St. Nicholas - and he was named a saint during his lifetime - the day of his memory (December 6, or December 18 in a new style) became a holiday on which it is supposed to give gifts and help the poor, ritually joining in that truly Christian image life, which was led by a bishop without silver. The children were told that Saint Nicholas himself, a kind, gray-bearded old man in a long-brimmed episcopal robe and a high headdress (miter), brought gifts. In order for the gift to end up in a child's sock, which was specially hung by the fireplace, Saint Nicholas supposedly climbs to the roof of each house and descends the chimney.

In the era of the Reformation, when Protestants fought the Catholic custom of venerating saints as idolatry, the ritual of giving gifts shifted to Christmas - in memory of the gifts that the three wise men brought to the infant Christ. St. Nicholas fell into disgrace, remaining as the main Christmas benefactor in only a few countries. Now many Polish, Ukrainian, Austrian, Czech, Hungarian, Croatian and part of the Dutch children receive the main gifts "for good behavior during the year" not on Christmas or New Year, but on St. Nicholas Day - December 18th. However, some manage to beg their parents for a gift for all winter holidays. If you remember yourself as a child, you should know how to do it.

In the Netherlands and Belgium, St. Nicholas is accompanied by Black Peter, a Moor servant who traces his ancestry to one of the Christmas wise men-giver.

The holiday comes to us

From Holland, Saint Nicholas moved to America - along with a wave of Dutch immigrants in the 18th century. They called him Sinterklaas - hence the name "Santa Claus" known to us. True, at first it was called that only in New York, which originally belonged to Holland and was called New Amsterdam. The English Puritans, who shared the northeast of what is now the United States with the Dutch, did not celebrate Christmas - they had trouble having fun at all.

In 1821, Sinterklaas for the first time gets into a sleigh pulled by a reindeer.

Father Christmas of the 1836 model is more reminiscent of the god of wine and fun Dionysus (Bacchus)

But in English folklore there was an old character named Father Christmas (Father Christmas), who symbolized not the Christian custom of disinterestedly sharing with one's neighbor, but rather the pagan love for unbridled fun during the holidays. Father Christmas was represented as a fat, bearded man in a short camisole with fur, a lover of drinking beer, eating well and dancing to catchy tunes. In the Victorian era, when the influence of Protestants in England weakened (most managed to emigrate to America), Father Christmas also got the mission of giving gifts to children. And in America, his appearance and love of fun ("Ho-ho-ho!") went to Sinterklaas, who turned into Santa Claus. The red color of clothes is all that remains in America from Bishop Nicholas.

In 1821, Sinterklaas appeared in the pages of a children's book by an unknown author, A New Year's Gift for Children from Five to Twelve, and in 1823, in Clement Clarke Moore's poem "The Visit of St. Nicholas", now known to American children as "The Night Before Christmas". It is written from the point of view of a father who wakes up on Christmas night and watches Santa's reindeer sleigh fly across the sky, and Santa himself descending the chimney to put gifts for the children in stockings hung by the fireplace.

Moore's poem names eight of Santa's reindeer: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donder, and Blitzen. The first six are English (Swift, Dancer, Steed, Frisky, Comet, Cupid), the last two are German (Thunder and Lightning). The ninth and chief deer, Rudolph, appeared over a hundred years later, in 1939, in a poem by Robert L. May. A feature of Rudolf is a huge shining nose, with which he illuminates the path for the entire team.

The scene has been recurring ever since—on Christmas cards, in movies and cartoons, and in the stories of parents who want their children to believe in Santa Claus rather than the agonizing search for presents in the bustle of pre-Christmas sales. There was a tradition to leave a treat for Santa on Christmas night by the fireplace: milk and cookies - in America and Canada, a glass of sherry or a bottle of beer with a piece of meat pie - in England and Australia. Yes, Santa Claus has become part of everyone's culture. English speaking countries, returning across the ocean to his ancestral home of Britain, and from there reaching Australia. By the way, in 2008 he was granted Canadian citizenship.

And the fact that Santa became known to the whole world must be blamed on the deity of the twentieth century - His Majesty Marketing. In the 1930s, a cheerful, ruddy old man in red and white clothes began to appear in Coca-Cola advertisements. At the same time, the actors portraying Santa began to work on holidays in decorated shopping centers and at Christmas markets - to communicate with children, listen to their cherished desires and unobtrusively promote goods.

This advertising was already so massive that it gave rise to a steady urban legend, as if the canonical image of Santa Claus was invented by Coca-Cola. In fact, in the 19th and early 20th centuries, he often appeared in illustrations in this form. Yes, and in advertising, his appearance was first used not by Coca-Cola - Santa, and before that he had to promote mineral water and ginger ale.

Cotton beard

The history of the domestic Santa Claus in the form in which we know him also has a few years. Back in the 19th century, he was a character in Russian folklore and children's books (for example, Odoevsky's fairy tales "Moroz Ivanovich"), from time to time he looked at public children's Christmas trees - but rarely. Parents in Russian Empire they told the children that the baby Jesus brought them gifts, or they honestly admitted that they gave them themselves. The Orthodox Church did not approve of the pagan Frost, and the children were afraid of the bearded old man - in their minds, Frost was a harsh winter ruler from fairy tales. When in 1910 such a Grandfather appeared at a holiday in a kindergarten, singing a song based on Nekrasov’s poems “It’s not the wind that rages over the forest”, the kids burst into tears of fear. The teacher had to remove the fake beard from the actor to make Frost look more human.

The meeting of Morozko and meek stepdaughter performed by Ivan Bilibin

The revolution of 1917 almost put an end to winter holiday: Christmas, like other dates church calendar, the Bolsheviks decided to write it off for scrap. Christmas trees and other ritual winter entertainments were deleted from the life of the new Soviet state In 1929, Christmas officially became a normal working day.

But in the 1930s, the “leftist excesses” began to be abandoned. In November 1935, Stalin said famous phrase: “Life has become better, comrades! Life has become more fun." Taking this opportunity, candidate member of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks Pavel Postyshev, who dreamed of returning the holiday to children, in December made a proposal to the Pravda newspaper: to organize holiday trees for Soviet children, clearing them of religious attributes. So the Christmas tree star of Bethlehem turned into a five-pointed Soviet star, instead of Christmas it was decided to celebrate the New Year en masse, Christmas time with traditional dressing up in costumes became the New Year's carnival. The atmosphere of the holiday has also changed: Christmas was a quiet family celebration, while the New Year was supposed to be celebrated noisily and cheerfully.

1950s illustration for Vladimir Odoevsky's fairy tale "Moroz Ivanovich"

The problem was only with Santa Claus: the children were still afraid of the old man in white clothes. To soften the effect, his granddaughter Snegurochka was given to accompany him, affectionately calling Moroz "grandfather", and a whole retinue of forest animals. In addition, in fairy-tale performances that were played out at children's Christmas trees, Santa Claus acted as a kind wizard, a kind of Gandalf, saving the New Year from the machinations of Baba Yaga, Leshy, Koshchei the Immortal and other evil spirits. Little by little, over the course of two decades, Ded Moroz in the Soviet Union became as harmless, though powerful, kind-hearted as Santa Claus is in the West. Only he usually dresses not in red, but in white and blue - shades of snowy winter twilight. Only in last years Frost sometimes appears in red, and his headdress takes on the features of a Saint Nicholas mitre.

If the Snow Maiden is the granddaughter of Santa Claus, then who are her parents? This question is asked by all kids, having barely learned to understand family ties. Apparently, the Snow Maiden is not a pale beauty melting with love from Ostrovsky's fairy tale play (in the play she was called the daughter of Frost and Spring, and not the granddaughter), but one of the girls who were once sacrificed to Frost. He calls her granddaughter only because, by age, she is suitable for his granddaughter.

The historical appearance of Santa Claus.
Santa Claus was represented as a gray-haired old man with a beard to the floor in a long thick fur coat, felt boots, a hat, mittens, and with a staff with which he froze people.

Beard and hair - thick, gray (silver). These details of appearance, in addition to their “physiological” meaning (the old man - gray-haired), also carry a huge symbolic character denoting power, happiness, prosperity and wealth.
The shirt and trousers are white, linen, decorated with white geometric patterns (a symbol of purity).
Three-fingered gloves or mittens - white, embroidered with silver - a symbol of purity and holiness of everything that he gives from his hands.
The belt is white with a red ornament (a symbol of the connection between ancestors and descendants, as well as a strong amulet).
Shoes - silver or red, silver-embroidered boots with a raised toe. The heel is beveled, small or completely absent. On a frosty day, Santa Claus puts on white felt boots embroidered with silver.
The hat is red, embroidered with silver and pearls. Trimming (hall) with swan down (white fur) with a triangular cutout made on the front part (stylized horns). The shape of the hat is semi-oval (the round shape of the hat is traditional for Russian tsars, it is enough to recall the headdress of Ivan the Terrible).
Staff - crystal or silver "under the crystal". Twisted handle, also silver-white colors. The staff is completed by a lunnitsa (a stylized image of the month) or a bull's head (a symbol of power, fertility and happiness).

Santa Claus has been with us for a very long time. This is a real-life spirit, alive, by the way, to this day. Once upon a time, even before the advent of Christianity in Rus', our ancestors believed that the spirits of the dead guard their family, take care of the offspring of livestock and good weather. Therefore, in order to reward them for their care, every winter people gave them gifts. On the eve of the holiday, the village youth put on masks, turned out sheepskin coats and went from house to house, caroling. (However, different regions had their own peculiarities of caroling). The hosts presented the carolers with food. The meaning was precisely that the carolers were the spirits of their ancestors, who received a reward for their tireless care of the living. Among the carolers there was often one “man” dressed the worst of all. As a rule, he was forbidden to speak. It was the oldest and most formidable spirit, he was often called simply Grandfather. It is possible that this is the prototype of the modern Santa Claus. Only today, of course, he has become kinder and does not come for gifts, but brings them himself. With the adoption of Christianity, pagan rites were, of course, “abolished”, and therefore exist to this day ;-) Carolers depict not the spirits of their ancestors, but heavenly messengers, which, you see, is practically the same thing. It’s already difficult to say who to consider as Grandfather, but there is an “older” even now.

Initially, he was called Grandfather Treskun and was represented as a little old man with a long beard and a disposition as harsh as Russian frosts. From November to March, Grandfather Cracker was the sovereign master of the earth. Even the sun was afraid of him! He was married to a despising person - Zima. Grandfather Treskun or Father Frost was also identified with the first month of the year - the middle of winter - January. The first month of the year is cold and cold - the king of frosts, the root of winter, its sovereign. It is strict, icy, icy, it's time for snowstorms. People say about January like this: fireman and jelly, snowman and cracker, fierce and fierce.

In Russian fairy tales, Santa Claus is portrayed as an eccentric, strict, but fair spirit of winter. Remember, for example, the fairy tale “Morozko”. Good hardworking girl Morozko froze, froze, and then bestowed, and evil and lazy - he froze to death. Therefore, in order to avoid trouble, some northern peoples and now they are coaxing old man Frost - on solemn nights they throw cakes, meat over the threshold of their dwellings, pour out wine so that the spirit does not get angry, does not interfere with hunting, does not destroy crops.

It is difficult to say unequivocally where the Russian Santa Claus lives, since there are a lot of legends. Some say that Santa Claus comes from the North Pole, others say - from Lapland. Only one thing is clear, Santa Claus lives somewhere on far north where it is winter all year round. Although in the tale of V.F. Odoevsky “Moroz Ivanovich” Frost red nose in the spring moves to the well, where “it is cold even in summer”.

Later, Grandfather Frost had a granddaughter Snegurka or Snegurochka, the heroine of many Russian fairy tales, a snow girl. Yes, and Santa Claus himself has changed: he began to bring gifts to children on New Year's Eve and fulfill their innermost desires.
The image of the Snow Maiden is unique for Russian culture. There are no female characters in Western New Year and Christmas mythology.
As you can see, the origin of the Russian Santa Claus is fundamentally different from the European Santa Claus. If Santa Claus was a real historical figure who was elevated to the rank of saints for good deeds, then the Russian Santa Claus is rather a pagan spirit, a character of folk beliefs and fairy tales. Although modern look Santa Claus was already formed under the influence of the European new year character, most of the characteristic Russian features remained. To this day, Russian Grandfather Frost walks in a long fur coat, felt boots and with a staff. He prefers to move on foot, by air, or on a sleigh drawn by a frisky troika. His constant companion is the granddaughter of the Snow Maiden. Santa Claus plays the game “I'll Freeze” with children and hides gifts under the Christmas tree on New Year's Eve.

Santa Claus and the Russian Orthodox Church
The attitude of the Russian Orthodox Church towards Santa Claus is ambiguous, on the one hand, as a pagan deity and magician, and therefore contrary to Christian teaching, and on the other hand, as a Russian cultural tradition. In 2001, Bishop Maximilian of Vologda and Veliky Ustyug announced that the Russian Orthodox Church would support the project "Veliky Ustyug - Fatherland of Father Frost" only if Father Frost was baptized.
mythological image
Who is he - our old friend and good wizard Russian Santa Claus? Our Frost - character Slavic folklore. For many generations, the Eastern Slavs created and kept a kind of “oral chronicle”: prose legends, epic tales, ritual songs, legends and tales about the past of their native land.
The Eastern Slavs have a fabulous image of Frost - a hero, a blacksmith who binds water with “iron frosts”. The Frosts themselves were often identified with violent winter winds. Several folk tales are known, where the North Wind (or Frost) helps lost travelers, showing the way.
The Belarusian brother of Santa Claus - Zyuzya, or the god of Winter - is presented as a grandfather with a long beard who lives in the forest and walks barefoot.
Our Santa Claus is a special image. It is reflected in the ancient Slavic legends (Karachun ( Karachun(Korochun) - the day of the winter solstice - December 21.), Pozvizd( Pozvizd - according to sources late XVII century Slavic god of the wind, good and bad weather. Brother Dogoda. ), Zimnik), Russian folk tales, folklore, Russian literature (A.N. Ostrovsky’s play “The Snow Maiden”, N.A. Nekrasov’s poem “Frost, Red Nose”, V.Ya. Bryusov’s poem “To the King of the North Pole”, Karelian - Finnish epic "Kalevala").
Pozvizd - Slavic god of storms and bad weather. As soon as he shook his head, a large hail fell on the ground. Instead of a cloak, the winds dragged behind him, snow flakes fell from the hems of his clothes. Pozvizd rushed swiftly through the heavens, accompanied by a retinue of storms and hurricanes.
In the legends of the ancient Slavs, there was another character - Zimnik. He, like Frost, was presented as an old man of small stature, with white hair and a long gray beard, with an uncovered head, in warm white clothes and with an iron mace in his hands. Where he passes - there expect a cruel cold.
Among the Slavic deities, Karachun stood out for his ferocity - evil spirit shortening life. The ancient Slavs considered him an underground god who commanded frost.
But over time, Frost changed. Severe, in the company of the Sun and Wind, walking around the earth and freezing to death the peasants who met on the way (in Belarusian fairy tale“Frost, Sun and Wind”), he gradually turns from a formidable into a fair and kind grandfather.

Kolyada - a festival winter solstice (December 21-25), solstice.

It was believed that on this day a small bright sun is born in the form of a boy - Khors. The new sun completed the course of the old sun (of the old year) and opened the course next year. While the sun is still weak, the earth is dominated by night and cold inherited from the old year, but every day the Great Horse (as mentioned in the "Tale of Igor's Campaign") grows, and the sun grows stronger.
Our ancestors celebrated the solstice with carols, wore Kolovrat (an eight-pointed star) on a pole - the sun, put on the guise of totemic animals that were associated in the minds of people with the images of the ancient gods: the bear - Veles, the cow - Makosh, the goat - the cheerful and at the same time evil hypostasis of Veles , the horse is the sun, the swan is Lada, the duck is Rozhanitsa (the progenitor of the world), the rooster is a symbol of time, sunrise and sunset, and so on.

Shrovetide isholiday, dedicated to the farewell to winter and the joyful greeting of spring.

In fact, it was a meeting of the New Year, only in early spring on March 23 - until the 15th century. Since this holiday saw off the winter and met the new summer, hence the chronology and the New Year. That is, Shrovetide met the actual new year, the arrival of a new summer. And Kolyada met the birth of a new sun.
The northern peoples still celebrate the meeting of the new sun, the holiday of Heiro.
Heiro is a holiday of the northern peoples, associated with the appearance of the sun after a long polar night. The duration of the polar night at the latitude of Dudinka is one and a half months. It ends in mid-January, when the disk of the sun appears above the horizon. On traditional holiday the end of winter, people express gratitude for the winter they have lived, ask the spirits of fertility, well-being in the family. The holiday symbolizes the beginning of a new life. On this day, people gather near the ritual fire and, holding hands, dance in circles. This is how the northern peoples met the luminary hundreds of years ago, and this is how they greet it now.

And among the Slavs Horse, it is consonant, isn't it?

taken from big-rostov.ru

Somewhere on the edge of the earth, an old man lives in a wooden house. His mansions are full of amazing things: a huge throne, a warm fireplace, a bed with separate pillows for every day, and even a wishing room. With the onset of cold weather, when the snow falls in a confident cover on the ground, grandfather begins to bypass the property. Either he will freeze the river, then he will dress the tree in frost, or he will send a blizzard to people's houses. On New Year's Eve, he comes with a huge bag of gifts over his shoulder. He takes out colorful big and small surprises from there and gives children happiness, joy and a miracle. The real magic. Who shows it to kids? Without whom it is impossible to imagine the New Year in our time? And who is this mysterious old man with a white beard? Of course, Santa Claus! Its history is very interesting and modern life even more interesting.

The prototype of Santa Claus

taken from bigslide.ru

Who is this Red Nose Frost and how old is he - questions that concern both kids and many adults. Many people are interested, but few people know that according to many sources, the Wizard is already at least 2 thousand years old! Our Slavic ancestors considered the mighty and gloomy old man Treskun to be his prototype. The people also called him:

• Zimnik;
• Morozko;
• Morok;
• Student.

The pagan god had huge force. He could freeze with one breath. Rivers and lakes froze under his feet, and from the swing of a stick in his hands, the trees were covered with frost. That's where wasreal grandfather Freezing ! In those days, there could be no talk of any kind New Year's wizard. Outwardly, he was very similar to a modern guest of the New Year holidays, only he was small in stature. They were afraid of grandfather, and they were very afraid of meeting him, because you could stay frozen in the forest forever. Some superstitious people until now, when a blizzard blows, they lower their heads low and hide their eyes so as not to meet the gaze of the lord of winter. Those who do not believe in such images interpret such deeds as mere caution before the hype, when they do not want to feel the taste of snow on their lips and the cold behind the collar.

Confirmation that the story of the appearance of Santa Claus is not fictional, is the fact of the existence of a very real Saint - Nicholas the Wonderworker. The elder lived in the 4th century in the city of Patara (Asia Minor) and did charitable deeds. He became the prototype of the current Winter sorcerer both thanks to his outward resemblance and good deeds.

In 1700, by decree of Peter the Great, the New Year became an officially celebrated holiday. Santa Claus could well become the symbol and guest of matinees, New Year's Eve and festivities. At that time, he had already changed his stick for a less formidable staff, and began to bring gifts to obedient children. The naughty ones, who indulged and upset their parents and teachers with their behavior, got "beaters" with rods.

If at all times the legends about Santa Claus were only heard, then in 1840 for the first time the magician was mentioned in literature. He appeared in Odoevsky's story, where readers finally found out the old man's real name - Moroz Ivanovich. His temper was still cool, he himself was powerful, but kindness, sympathy and understanding appeared in his character.

In the 20th century, at different periods of celebrating the New Year holidays, as well as the installation of a Christmas tree, it was either forbidden, or resumed again. And since 1935, officially under Stalin, a celebration was announced from December 31 to January 1. The guest of the programs was Ded Moroz, who in the same 35th year first appeared at a holiday in Moscow with the Snow Maiden.

Russian Grandfather Frost recently celebrates his birthday on November 18th. This date is significant in terms of changes in weather conditions. According to the data obtained as a result of summarizing figures for many years, it is from this day that real winter begins in Russia. The earth is covered with a reliable layer of snow and winter frosts come. Kids love to celebrate the birthday of their idol, and therefore send him postcards with congratulations and gifts made with their own hands.

Santa Claus in different countries

taken from classpic.ru

For those who would like to learn something from the heading " Father Frost Interesting Facts' provides informative information. First of all, we should mention Santa Claus and Santa Claus. At present, on New Year's posters, as well as in modern cartoons and films, these two images are often identified or forced to become related. Indeed, the winter old people are very similar to each other: the same white beard and mustache, eyes with a smile, warm clothes and gifts for children. Here is just our Frost:

• tall, powerful and stately;
• does not change taste in clothes: wears a long fur coat and a high hat with fur trim;
• always appears with a magic staff;
• puts gifts for children under the Christmas tree while they sleep.

Santa Claus, on the other hand, often appears in glasses, wears a red jacket and pants, a red cap with a pom-pom, and enters the house to the kids through the chimney. Many families in our country have adopted the American tradition of hanging colorful socks by the fireplace, in which Santa hides gifts for children. This is an additional entertainment, and decorating the premises for the New Year holidays, and a memorable event for the kids.

Santa Claus in different countries looks different, and the method of delivering gifts to babies is different. So, in France, Per Noel puts surprises in shoes that prudent house owners leave in front of the fireplace. The Wizard comes to the monastery on a donkey, and even in wooden shoes. Instead of a bag, he has a basket with gifts, and the caftan is equipped with a hood.

In Holland, the magician is called Sinderklaas. He is invariably shod in white boots and dressed in a caftan. Before New Year's Eve the magician stays in the capital on a ship, and gifts are distributed to the children by Sinderklaas' close associates - the Moors.

The Finns call Santa Claus Joulupukki. He is very similar to Santa Claus, only he lives in Lapland (Northern Finland) with his wife. Grandfather's favorite pastime is feeding his beloved reindeer Rudolph with lichen and, of course, giving gifts to the kids who are waiting for him.

In Italy, Frost is called Babbo Natale, in Georgia - Tovlis Babua, in Armenia he is called Dzmer Papi. Belarusian kids meet Zyuzya or Dzeda, and Estonian kids meet Yyuluvana. In Hawaii, the Wizard is allowed to appear not in a long fur coat and pants, but in a jacket and shorts, and in Australia, Santa can dress up in a funny blue fur skullcap.

Where does the Winter Wizard live?

taken from dvholidays.ru

The city of Veliky Ustyug deservedly bears its majestic name. It is surrounded by magnificent landscapes, which embodies the true Russian nature. The settlement is also the birthplace of the great masters of wood and silver. That is why Veliky Ustyug became the patrimony of Father Frost. Here, in silence, tranquility and harmony with the outside world, the Patron of Winter lives, who every year gladly welcomes the children who come to visit.

The residence of the Winter Wizard is located 15 km from the city itself. Pine forest, the river Sukhona, wooden towers contribute to the creation of a truly fabulous atmosphere. Magic reigns in Grandfather's house itself. Located here:

• wardrobe;
• throne room (wish room);
• bedroom;
• living room;
• the rest of the 13 rooms.

In the dressing room, Santa Claus stores all his outfits for different events. Here you can see coats different colors and patterns, summer kaftans, as well as a sports ski suit! Every child who wants his dreams to come true strives to the wishing room. It is believed that it is enough to really, really want something and think about it, and the room will then do its job. Many kids and parents return to the room again in order to make the following cherished desire. It is also interesting to visit the room where numerous gifts are collected for Santa Claus himself. Children send him crafts and beautiful postcards, and friends of Santa Claus - funny little things, for example, a shaman's tambourine!

In addition to the house in Veliky Ustyug, the mighty Wizard appears in his. There are mansions in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kemerovo, in the Crimea and in Yekaterinburg. On the eve of New Year's Eve, Grandfather Frost, together with his beloved granddaughter Snegurochka and assistants, comes to visit the children from different corners countries. For example, the residence in Yekaterinburg is the only one in the Urals, and therefore residents of the cities of nearby regions gather here.

It is very important for children to spend the New Year holidays in the company of the Lord of Winter. For them, Frost with his retinue always prepares a lot of entertainment. The residences have attractions, playgrounds, a skating rink (in the Moscow Apartments), as well as exciting reindeer sleigh rides!

Letters and gifts

taken from img.com

Santa Claus in the eyes of kids and schoolchildren is the personification of miracles, magic and the fact that a fairy tale can come true. On such days, one cannot do without the main surprise - gifts for the children. In the residences of the Wizard, on the patrimony and on the squares in the cities, mass festivities are organized. Round dances are performed around the Christmas tree, garlands are lit and fireworks are set off.

For matinees in kindergartens and schools, as well as events in the residences of Father Frost, children prepare thoroughly. The smallest learn funny and simple quatrains. Older children can learn funny or narrative poems, sing a festive song in unison. For the efforts, the guys are presented with gifts. From a huge bag that Santa Claus always carries with him, he takes out wonderful toys, constructors, dolls, balls and much more interesting and long-awaited.

For guys who know exactly what they would like to receive from this magic bag, there is Santa Claus mail. Children together with their parents can write a letter to the Wizard, put it in a beautiful and hand-decorated envelope and send it to the addressee. In order for grandfather to hear the guys and pick up gifts for them, you should be polite to him, respect him and his retinue, and also thank you for the New Year's mood.

Beliefs and interesting observations

taken from hmmasters.ru

Many mistakenly compare Santa Claus with the Snow Queen. Like, both command cold and blizzard, freeze and chill. But The Snow Queen turns people's hearts into pieces of ice, because instead of a heart, she herself has a piece of frozen water in her chest. Santa Claus, on the contrary, warms hearts with his kindness and warmth. He gives everyone a chance to improve in the coming new year, to leave everything bad and wrong in the outgoing year. He generously gives gifts to children, and adults - the joy of watching the happiness of his children. It is only thanks to him that multi-colored lights are lit on the Christmas tree, the trees are wrapped in hoarfrost, and in every house under the Christmas tree on New Year's Eve gifts appear.

The personal life of Santa Claus, according to popular belief, has developed quite successfully. In his wives is Winter herself. According to some superstitions, a blizzard lives in his beard, and the blizzard obeys his will, according to others, the blizzard is his daughter. Frost's favorite granddaughter is the beautiful Snegurochka, who has good heart and love for kids. The Snow Girl always accompanies her grandfather, helps to congratulate the children, dances with them and sings songs. In the residences of the country, personal chambers have been prepared for the Snow Maiden, where she can relax and braid her beautiful braid.

There are several more superstitions that define Santa Claus as the majestic and powerful Lord of the Cold:

1. When Frost walks around his possessions in the cold, he leaves unique patterns on the glass of the windows. Where his foot steps, the water is covered with ice, and if he hits the hut with his staff, the log on the log house will crack.
2. In addition to the freezing staff, the Wizard always has a bag with gifts in his hands. It is believed that he is bottomless. Santa Claus never rummages through it in order to extract a gift. He just puts his hand in there, and the right gift jumps into his mitten.
3. Frost Red Nose travels on a sleigh pulled by three handsome stallions. Horses are named after the winter months - December, January and February.
4. The wizard's wardrobe contains long fur coats of three colors: white, blue and red. All of them are decorated with fabulous patterns, turned off with white fur and girded with a wide belt.

At present, the facts and beliefs regarding this Wizard are closely intertwined and created wonderful legends, traditions and beliefs in tandem. What is true and what is fiction is difficult to determine. It is easy to learn only one thing: the New Year holidays, and especially the night, are filled with miracles. And they come true especially for those who believe in them with all their heart!

Undoubtedly, the most beloved characters of the New Year holiday are Santa Claus and the Snow Maiden. The image of Santa Claus in Russian folklore has evolved over many centuries. Historians tend to believe that the prototype of our Santa Claus was the East Slavic spirit of cold Treskun, or, as he was also called, Studenets. More like our Santa Claus character old fairy tales Morozko, in later versions - Moroz Ivanovich, Moroz Yelkich. This is the Spirit of Winter - strict, sometimes angry, grumpy, but fair. good people favors and bestows, and the bad ones can be frozen with his magic staff. By the 1880s, a certain character with a bag of gifts by the Christmas tree had established itself in the public mind. True, they called him differently: the Yule old man, the Christmas grandfather, or simply the Christmas tree grandfather. Moroz Ivanovich appeared in literary processing in 1840 in the collection "Children's Tales of Grandpa Iriney" by V.F. Odoevsky. This kind gray-haired old man presents the Needlewoman for Good work“a handful of silver coins,” and teaches Lenivitsa a lesson by giving her an icicle instead of silver. In Nekrasov's poem "Frost Red Nose" main character angry, loving "to freeze the blood in the veins and freeze the brain in the head." In children's poetry late XIX century Santa Claus is a kind wizard. By the beginning of the 20th century, the image of Santa Claus as a kind giver of Christmas trees and gifts was finally fixed. Traditionally, Santa Claus is dressed in a long, ankle-length, red fur coat trimmed with white fur. At first, his fur coat was blue (indicating the northern, cold origin of the character), on pre-revolutionary postcards you can also find white Santa Claus. Now Santa Claus most often comes in a red suit. His cap is semi-oval to match the fur coat. On the hands of the pet of the children are mittens. In one hand he holds a staff, and in the other a bag of gifts.

The image of the Snow Maiden also took shape in the 19th century. In 1860, G.P. Danilevsky published poetic version Russian folk tale about a revived snow girl. official date The birth of the Snow Maiden was in 1873, when A.N. Ostrovsky put this folk tale in his own way in the play “The Snow Maiden”. So the Kostroma region began to be considered the birthplace of the winter beauty, where the writer came up with a new plot for an old fairy tale in the Shchelykovo estate. In 1874, The Snow Maiden was published in Vestnik Evropy, then an opera appeared, the music for which was written by N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov. Interestingly, at the first reading, Ostrovsky's poetic dramatic tale did not inspire the composer. Five years later, in the winter of 1879, Rimsky-Korsakov "read The Snow Maiden again" and clearly saw her astonishing beauty. I immediately wanted to write an opera based on this plot, and as I thought about this intention, I felt more and more in love with Ostrovsky's fairy tale. The gravitation towards the ancient Russian custom and pagan pantheism, which was gradually manifesting in me, now flared up with a bright flame. There was no better plot for me in the world, there were no better poetic images for me than the Snow Maiden, Lel or Spring, there was no better kingdom of the Berendeys with their wonderful king ... ". The first performance of The Snow Maiden took place on January 29, 1882 at the Mariinsky Theater as a benefit performance for the Russian Opera Chorus. Soon, The Snow Maiden was staged in Moscow, at the Russian Private Opera by S.I. Mamontov, and in 1893 at the Bolshoi Theater. The opera was a huge success.

The image of the Snow Maiden both as a daughter and as the granddaughter of Frost was developed in children's and adult literature, in fine arts. But it was precisely thanks to the beautiful fairy tale of Ostrovsky that the Snow Maiden fell in love with many and soon became a constant companion of Santa Claus. Only their family ties underwent some changes over time - from a daughter she turned into a granddaughter, but she did not lose her charm from this. The appearance of the Snow Maiden was formed thanks to three great artists: Vasnetsov, Vrubel and Roerich. It was in their pictures that the Snow Maiden “found” her famous outfits: a light sundress and a bandage on her head; white long snowy robe lined with ermine, a small fur coat. Before the revolution, the Snow Maiden never acted as a host at the Christmas tree festival.

In the twenties of the last century, the country embarked on the path of combating "religious prejudice." Since 1929, all church holidays. The Christmas day off became a working day, but "secret" Christmas trees were sometimes arranged. Santa Claus has become "a product of the anti-people activities of the capitalists" and "religious rubbish." The Christmas tree holiday was again allowed only on the eve of the new year 1936, after Stalin uttered the significant phrase: “Life has become good, comrades. Life has become more fun." Christmas tree, having lost its religious context, has become a symbol of the holiday of happy childhood in our country. Since that time, Santa Claus has been fully restored in his rights. The Soviet Santa Claus brought packages in a bag with the same gifts for all children. In 1937, Father Frost and the Snow Maiden first appeared together at the Christmas tree festival in the Moscow House of Unions. The Snow Maiden became Father Frost's permanent companion, helping him in everything (the tradition was broken only in the 1960s, when an astronaut took the place of the Snow Maiden on the Kremlin tree several times). So then it happened: a girl, sometimes older, sometimes younger, with pigtails or without, in a kokoshnik or a hat, sometimes surrounded by animals, sometimes singing, sometimes dancing. She asks Santa Claus questions, leads round dances with children, and helps distribute gifts. For many years, Santa Claus and the Snow Maiden have been decorating any New Year's celebration whether it's a corporate party or a children's party. These fairy-tale heroes are an integral part of the New Year, just like a beautifully decorated Christmas tree and gifts.

Not so long ago, the Russian Santa Claus got his own residence. It is located in Veliky Ustyug, in the Vologda region. By the new year 2006, the estate of Father Frost was opened in Moscow, in the Kuzminki park. In November 2006, the Snegurochka's tower was opened in Kuzminki. The wooden two-story tower was designed by Kostroma architects in the "onion" style. Inside, on the first floor, there is a spinning wheel for the skilled Snow Maiden. On the second, there is an exhibition of gifts from children. These are drawings, clay crafts, snowflakes and other souvenirs dedicated to the New Year.