|
The earliest Dutch settlers in the colony of New Amsterdam brought along their own Christmas traditions, which included Saint Nicholas or "Sinter Klaas." This durable saint, patron of children, sailors, and many other special groups, had survived the Dutch adoption of Protestantism, and his feast day of December 6th was celebrated with gifts for the children and a festive meal.
In England, Saint Nicholas had not had gift-bringing connotations even in earlier, Catholic days. Father Christmas, represented as a cheerful old man, was a stock character in the traditional Christmas mummers' plays; however, he was not associated with the bringing of gifts. In fact, New Year's Day was the traditional day to exchange gifts until King James I's time, when it was switched to Christmas Day. It is asserted by some authors that when the English took over the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam after winning the Anglo-Dutch War in the late seventeenth century, they adopted Saint Nick and grafted him onto their own Father Christmas. However, other writers intent on dispelling beliefs, caution that Washington Irving's colorful and sometimes highly fanciful accounts of the early Dutch settlers have been accepted without question by subsequent authors; thus, any assertions about early Dutch Christmas customs should probable be taken with a grain of salt. |
|
© Copyright 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 & 2002 The English Civil War Society of America. All rights reserved.
|