The tradition of celebrating St. Nicholasās feast day was brought to the American colonies by the Dutch. In New Amsterdam (now New York City) the saint was transformed into Santa Claus by the English-speaking majority. This new figure combined the legend of a kindly old man with Nordic folktales of a magician who rewarded good children and punished naughty ones.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.
Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style