From St. Nicholas to Santa Claus: the surprising origins of Kris Kringle. Santa Claus, Father Christmas, St. Nick—no matter the name, everyone knows the story of this plump, jolly, bringer of gifts.

NEW YORK — The white-bearded Christian saint whose acts of generosity inspired America’s secular Santa Claus figure is known worldwide — but Saint Nicholas’ origin story is not.

Eventually, St. Nicholas morphed into the secular Santa Claus.Artist Thomas Nast, an engraver in Morristown, New Jersey, who illustrated the front cover of Harper’s magazine for many years ...

NEW YORK — The white-bearded Christian saint whose acts of generosity inspired America’s secular Santa Claus figure is known worldwide — but Saint Nicholas’ origin story is not. The ...

Eventually, St. Nicholas morphed into the secular Santa Claus.Artist Thomas Nast, an engraver in Morristown, New Jersey, who illustrated the front cover of Harper’s magazine for many years ...

NEW YORK (AP) — The white-bearded Christian saint whose acts of generosity inspired America’s secular Santa Claus figure is known worldwide — but Saint Nicholas’ origin story is not.

NEW YORK (AP) — The white-bearded Christian saint whose acts of generosity inspired America’s secular Santa Claus figure is known worldwide — but Saint Nicholas’ origin story is not. The legends ...

But whether the stories are true is not so much the point, said Ayo, an 89-year-old retired Notre Dame University professor named after St. Nicholas. “There’s no Santa Claus that lands on the ...

NEW YORK (AP) — The white-bearded Christian saint whose acts of generosity inspired America’s secular Santa Claus figure is known worldwide — but Saint Nicholas' origin story is not. The ...

“He followed the description of Santa Claus or Saint Nicholas – and Clement Clarke Moore’s ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas’ poem,” Ayo says. “So, that’s how that got changed.

NEW YORK (AP) — The white-bearded Christian saint whose acts of generosity inspired America’s secular Santa Claus figure is known worldwide — but Saint Nicholas’ origin story is not. The ...

NEW YORK (AP) — The white-bearded Christian saint whose acts of generosity inspired America's secular Santa Claus figure is known worldwide — but Saint Nicholas' origin story is not. The ...