Vrolijke Sinterklaasdag! That's would you have been hearing this weekend if you were in the Netherlands (where my wife and lived for five years) or Flemish Belgium.
"Sinterklaas" is Dutch for Saint Nicholas, who was an actual person and whose feast day is Dec. 5 or 6. The historical Nicholas was born to Greek parents in Asia Minor (modern Turkey) and eventually became Bishop of Myra. He gained a reputation of benevolence, especially toward children, and is said to have had a practice of secret gift giving.
So it's not hard to imagine the leap from Sinterklaas to Santa Claus -- and the benevolent old man distributing gifts, treats and joy.
So where does Sinterklaas live? Since the early 1800's in the Netherlands, St. Nick has arrived by boat to any number of Dutch ports, but not from the North Pole, not from Turkey, nor from Italy (legend has it that at least some of his relics are buried in the coastal city of Bari)...but from Spain. Don't ask me. (Actually, Dutch and Spanish history are intertwined, as the Spaniards fought against and occupied the Netherlands over a considerable period of time.) It is widely believed that people thought he came up from Spain because they knew he was from somewhere south, and Spain sounded as good as any other southern country!
But Sinterklaas is rarely alone. He is accompanied by a number of helpers who are not elves, but characters all carrying the same name: Zwarte Piet (Black Pete). "Black" because they are Moors, the Muslims who invaded and occupied Spain from North Africa beginning in the 8th century. But if you're thinking, "Wait - North Africans aren't black," you're right; but pasty white Europeans called anyone with a darker complexion black (I guess we have come at least a little ways since then). So for 200 years, white Dutchmen have been donning colorful Zwarte Piet costumes and wearing blackface, escorting their benevolent boss through the streets of Dutch and Belgian cities.
That is, until recently, when, as you can imagine, the increased collective conscience has made wearing blackface more than a little controversial. So now, if there are Zwarte Piets present as part of the Sinterklaas parade, there are also likely protests. Could it be time to reinvent at least part of this cherished tradition?
One thing that is not likely to change any time soon: rather than exchanging gifts on Christmas Day (the Dutch actually have two Christmas Days. Dec. 25 AND 26), children and adults alike only have to wait till SInterklaasdag to give and get presents. Christmas Day is mainly about celebrating the birth of Christ.
What a concept.