New Delhi: Christmas is just around the corner and every year, the same specific characters reappear, each popularly known and celebrated. But are the origins known? Although they may all have different roles or origin stories, here are some of the most popular.
Read also: Men’s fashion industry has shifted from cool casuals to streetwear, says fashion expert Sanket Mehta
Main characters of Christmas:
Santa Claus: The modern version of Santa Claus is a little man with a white beard who wears a thick red robe with fur trims and lives in the North Pole. He rides a sleigh pulled by flying reindeer on Christmas Eve and gives gifts to children on the grounds that they have been ‘naughty or nice’. He is believed to have been based on Saint Nicholas, a 4th-century Greek Christian bishop of Myra who was known for giving gifts. Born into a wealthy family, one of his most famous stories is that he once saved three girls from being forced into prostitution by dropping a sack of gold coins from the window of their house for three nights so that their father would pay for the dowry. Can do each of them.
Christmas elves: These elves are little creatures that live in Santa’s workshop and work all year round to make presents for the kids. They also help children read letters, take care of reindeer and sleigh and organize things. They are usually depicted as small human-like creatures, but with pointed ears and dressed in red or green clothing. Believed to be derived from Norse mythology, the character of the elf has combined this Norse legend with other Scandinavian and Celtic cultures and myths about elves, fairies and nature spirits.
Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer: Perhaps one of the most popular carols people hear is about the red-nosed deer. He was the twelfth and youngest reindeer and made fun of his red shiny nose and because he was small. But one night it was so foggy that Santa Claus asked Rudolph to lead the sleigh as his shiny nose illuminated the way. Rudolph is a fictional reindeer created by Robert Lewis May in a 1939 pamphlet he wrote and published by Montgomery Ward, a department store, after which it boomed in popularity.
Three Wise Men (Kings): Twelve are known in some cultures, with three being more popularly known and displayed in the nativity scene. These people are distinguished as foreigners in the Gospel of Matthew. In Christian tradition they are known to have traveled from distant lands to the east, carrying gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh followed by divine light to meet the king of the Jews after their birth. Since no other details about the men are known, different cultures have different versions of these men. Among these is St. Thomas Syrian Christian of Kerala, a scholar from a feudal Nair family from Kerala, India, who after his return built a temple with an idol of Mary and the infant Jesus and named the idol “Bala Kartayani” and called it kept apart from others. Hindu deities. Later in the 5th century when the St. Thomas Syrian Christian community was firmly established, the temple was renovated as the Piravom Syrian Church.
little Drummer Boy: A popular Christmas song composed by American musician Katherine Kennicott Davis in 1941, the song is about a poor boy who was called by The Three Wise Men, but said he had no gifts for a king like Baby Jesus, Then he asked Mary (Mother Mary). /Virgin Mary) If he could play his drum after Mary nodded, he did his best and then Baby Jesus smiled at him. First recorded in 1951 by the Austrian trap family, the song was recorded by Harry Simeon Chorel in 1958; The Simeon version was successfully reissued for several years and the song has been recorded several times, including a version by Bob Dylan.
Christmas Angels: Literally meaning messenger, borrowed from the later Greek ‘angelos’, the angels are believed to have conveyed that the baby Jesus Christ was born. The connection to Christmas comes from the central role that angels play in the birth story told in the Gospel of Luke: a lone angel announces the birth of the Messiah to the shepherds, at which an entire choir of angels sings ‘Gloria in Excelsis’. ‘ struck. , In the Christian tradition, angels are considered the announcers of the birth of Christ and the bearers of divine light.
Frosty Snowman: A popular Christmas song written by Walter “Jack” Rollins and Steve Nelson, and first recorded in 1950 by Gene Autry and the Cass County Boys and later by Jimmy Durante. The song is about a snowman who comes to life after the children find the magic hat and place it on Frosty’s head. Frost laughs and plays with the children until the hot sun threatens to melt him. Frosty says goodbye to the kids, assuring them, “I’ll be back someday.” Although the song makes no mention of the holiday, a 1958 American TV show changed the lyrics and made it “Christmas Day” instead of “Someday”, after which it became a popular Christmas carol.
,