The Moral Limit

Sinterklaas Dag

Sinterklaas (also called Sint-Nicolaas or De Goedheiligman - in Dutch; and Saint Nicolas in French) is a traditional holiday figure in the Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles and Belgium, celebrated every year on Saint Nicholas' eve (December 5) or, in Belgium, on the morning of December 6. The feast celebrates the name day of Saint Nicholas, patron saint of, among other things, children.

In the Netherlands, Saint Nicholas' Eve, (December 5th) is the chief occasion for gift-giving. The evening is called sinterklaasavond or "pakjesavond" ("presents' evening"). Traditionally, presents are ingeniously wrapped, and are therefore called surprises. Also, presents are traditionally accompanied by a poem from Saint Nicholas.

Sinterklaas is the basis for the North American figure of Santa Claus. It is often alleged that, during the American War of Independence, the inhabitants of New York City, a former Dutch colonial town (New Amsterdam) which had been swapped by the Dutch for other territories, reinvented their Sinterklaas tradition, as Saint Nicholas to be a symbol of the city's non-English past.[1] The name Santa Claus is derived from older Dutch Sinte Klaas. However the Saint Nicholas Society was not founded until 1835, almost half a century after the end of the American War of Independence.

Sinterklaas

The Sinterklaas feast celebrates the nameday of Saint Nicholas (280-342), patron saint of children. Saint Nicholas was a Greek bishop of Myra in present-day Turkey and became the patron saint of children based on various legends that include resurrecting children from death and saving them from prostitution.

Sinterklaas has a long white beard, wears a red bishop's dress and red mitre (bishop's hat), and holds a crosier, a long gold coloured staff with a fancy curled top. Sinterklaas carries a big book with all the children's names in it, which states whether they have been naughty or nice in the past year.

The temper of Sinterklaas also differs in the some regions of the Netherlands and Belgium. In the Netherlands Sinterklaas is usually a nice, forgiving person. In Belgium, on the other hand, Sinterklaas is less forgiving (like he used to be in the Netherlands). He can be quite severe and takes naughty children back to Spain when they were not nice.

"Saint-Nicolas" rides a white horse called a schimmel, literally mold, because of the color (green grey specks on his flanks). In the Netherlands this horse is oftenly called "Amerigo".

'Zwarte Piet'

Sinterklaas' helping hand Black Pete has a story found in the bishops past. Three small Moorish boys were to be sentenced to death for a crime they did not commit. Because the bishop intervened they were saved. The boys stayed with Sinterklaas to help him as show of gratitude. The Black Petes we know for Sinterklaas night are tumbling and jumping all over the roofs to deliver the presents. Their black skin color may refer either to the job of chimneysweep, which is corroborated by the clothes, that remind of an Italian chimneysweep's costume and by the tradition of climbing roofs and bringing the packages through the chimney, or to the Moorish background of Sinterklaas's helpers. [I however think they were slaves]

When you see Sinterklaas and his Black Petes they will also carry the bag (that either holds candy for nice children or the 'roe', a bunch of willow branches used to spank naughty children in the old days-a chimneysweep's broom). They toss the candy around for all. This stems from Sint Nicolaas' story of saving three young girls from prostitution by tossing golden coins through their window at night till the debt their father had made were paid.

Arrival

Sinterklaas traditionally arrives each year in November (usually on Saturday) by steamboat from Spain (even though the bishop is originally from Turkey. It is believed that the gifts associated with the holy man such as oranges and clementines led to the misconception that he must have been from Spain. That story has stuck ever since), and is then paraded through the streets, welcomed by cheering and singing children. Invariably, this event is broadcast live on national television in the Netherlands and Belgium. His Zwarte Piet assistants throw candy and small, round ginger bread-like cookies, kruidnoten or pepernoten, into the crowd. The children welcome him by singing traditional Sinterklaas songs. Sinterklaas also visits schools, hospitals and shopping centres. After this arrival all towns with a dock have their own intocht van Sinterklaas (arrival of Sinterklaas). Local arrivals usually takes place on Sunday, the day after he arrives in the Netherlands or Belgium. In places a boat cannot reach, Sinterklaas arrives by train, bus, horse or even carriage.

Shoe [and the diff. between good & bad children]

Traditionally, in the weeks between his arrival and the 5th of December, before going to bed, children put their shoes next to the chimney of the coal fired stove or fireplace, with a carrot or some hay in it "for Sinterklaas's horse", sing a Sinterklaas song, and will find some candy or a small present in their shoes the next day, supposedly thrown down the chimney by a 'Zwarte Piet' (Black Pete) or Sinterklaas himself. However, with the advent of central heating children put their shoes near the boiler or even just next to the front door.

Typical Sinterklaas candy is the chocolate letter, the first letter of the child's name made out of chocolate, kruidnoten(a type of shortcrust biscuit), chocolate coins, a figurine of Sinterklaas made out of chocolate and wrapped in painted aluminium foil, and coloured marzipan shaped into fruit, an animal or some other object.

Children are told that Black Pete enters the house through the chimney, which also explains his black face and hands, and would leave a bundle of sticks (roe) or a small bag with salt in the shoe instead of candy when the child had been bad.

Children are also told that in the worst case they would be put in the gunny sack in which Black Pete carries the presents, and be taken back to Spain, where Sinterklaas is said to spend the rest of the year. This practice, however, has been condemned by Sinterklaas in his more recent television appearances as something of the past. Typical of that time was also the fact that the saint would have the names of every child written down in either his "golden book" (if a child had been good), or his "black book" (if a child had been bad) - very much like Odin's ravens reporting everything in the world to him. The standard joke would be that initially Sinterklaas would not be able to find the name in the "golden book", trying to scare the children. With modern views on child psychology, these practises have been abandoned as well.

Sinterklaasavond [or the trickery]

Traditionally Saint Nicholas brings his gifts at night, and Belgian and many Dutch children still find their presents on the morning of December 6th. Later in The Netherlands adults started to give each other presents on the evening of the 5th; then older children were included and today in that country sometimes even the youngest on the evening of December 5 (Saint Nicholas' eve), known as Sinterklaasavond or Pakjesavond (present evening). After the singing of traditional Sinterklaas songs, there will be a loud knock on the door or the window, and a sack full of presents is found on the doorstep, or next to the chimney. Alternatively - some improvisation is often called for - the parents 'hear a sound coming from the attic' and then the bag with presents is "found" there. Some parents manage to "convince" Sinterklaas to come to their home personally. Often, the father of the house goes outside to "catch some fresh air" or "smoke a cigarette" and leaves presents behind at the door. He then comes back (annually, year after year), playing at being sad he missed it.

Presents are often accompanied by a simple poem, saying something about the child or with a hint to the nature of the present.

When the presents are too bulky in size or when the quantity of presents is too large, they have to be sneaked into the house while the kids are distracted.

Another aspect of "Pakjesavond" is writing small poems for gifts to adults. When children grow too old to believe in Sinterklaas, they are introduced to a different form of entertainment on Pakjesavond night, December 5th. People will write small personal poems for friends and family usually accompanied by a small gift or candy. Teasing the receiver of gifts about their habits or hang ups can be included in the poem.

Poems can still accompany bigger gifts as well, though instead of brought by Sinterklaas, people will draw 'lootjes'(literally: lottery tickets) comparable to Secret Santa. The gifts are creatively 'disguised'. E.g. someone will receive a CD wrapped into a box that is made to look like a chimney or a present has to be looked for in a Sinterklaas scavenger hunt, clues will be left by Piet. Sticky situations may arise though most people steer away from the old tradition of the gift 'surprise' being filled with saw dust and syrup (or hair gel and cotton balls, or news paper and peanut butter, etc.).

Such a fun holiday. I wish I lived there. I miss it.

-Inf.