Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Chat

Join the discussion and chat with other Mumsnetters about everyday life, relationships and parenting.

Original poster

Why is everyone referring to "Santa"

795 replies

WinWinnieTheWay · 08/12/2020 20:30

DH and I (from different UK countries and different social class) were both brought up with Father Christmas. Why are so many people calling FC "Santa" these days? Is it just the impact of American culture? Each to their own, but I don't like it.

OP posts:
Thread gallery
5
Peppafrig · 08/12/2020 23:50

@CherryPavlova so we all need to love cherry pavlova now ? She was just having her own viewpoint .

wonkschops · 08/12/2020 23:52

Yes you’re mistaken. I do think the term Santa Claus is horrible compared to Father Christmas.

@CherryPavlova why? Do you often have problems with cultures & customs different to your own?

TheFormerPorpentinaScamander · 09/12/2020 00:03

I've taken to calling him Daddy Claus.

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about these subjects:

Christmas Events & celebrations
EmilySpinach · 09/12/2020 00:04

The Americans stole Santa Claus from the Europeans and reinvented him.

Where do you think white Americans came from?! European settlers took their traditions to the new colonies. No stealing involved.

EmilySpinach · 09/12/2020 00:05

@TheFormerPorpentinaScamander

I've taken to calling him Daddy Claus.
I hope you pronounce ‘Claus’ to rhyme with ‘house’ for full effect.
TheFormerPorpentinaScamander · 09/12/2020 00:06

@EmilySpinach I don't but I will start to.

EmilySpinach · 09/12/2020 00:07
Grin
DailyMaui · 09/12/2020 00:11

I’m Scottish and it has always been Santa. And my granny and grandad said Santa too and they’d be almost 100 now. It’s that old. I never heard anyone say Father Christmas until I came to England and only then when I was adult.

I had no idea that people thought it was common until my children went to a village school and several mums from this “fur coat nae knickers” village were sneery and lamenting how AWFUL the Santa word was and how much NICER Father Christmas was and wah wah wah - I honestly thought they were joking the first time (it was in relation to a Christmas play FFS). Like they were the fucking Santa police.

And because these were the same mums who sneered about all sorts of other perceived common things, it was obvious they were just total snobs and they somehow felt superior. Twats.

JaneJeffer · 09/12/2020 00:22

Ah the annual Santa Claus/Father Christmas thread. Now I know it really is almost Christmas. Anyway it's Santy.

VenusTiger · 09/12/2020 00:26

I prefer FC too OP, but my NI DH and his family kept with the 'Santa this and Santa that...' so I just went along with it and have noticed hardly anyone, apart from elderly neighbours say FC anymore.

Goldenbear · 09/12/2020 00:42

Father Christmas to me brought up in London and I only knew one person who called him Santa. It was very much drummed in to us that it was Father Christmas not Santa.

MindyStClaire · 09/12/2020 02:42

You know when Scotland/Ireland/Wales complain about the loss of their language to the English...this is the same.

Yup, we speak English in Ireland because of all that English popular culture we consumed. True story.

lakesideadvent · 09/12/2020 04:12

Yup, we speak English in Ireland because of all that English popular culture we consumed. True story.

Same in our part of Scotland. It wasn't because our native language was banned, people where fined for speaking it and dc where hit at school if they spoke it.
Nope.

midnightstar66 · 09/12/2020 04:13

I'm 41 and never heard anyone around me refer to Father Christmas- it was always Santa.

midnightstar66 · 09/12/2020 04:16

Where does the name Father Christmas come from?

Santa Claus is from Sinter Klaas and the story of St Nicholas.

Also this!

happymummy12345 · 09/12/2020 04:16

It's only ever been Father Christmas to me. Would never say Santa as I don't like it tbh

HeronLanyon · 09/12/2020 04:17

This feels to me as though it’s an unexpectedly important question !
For me (over 50 in U.K.) it’s definitely Father Christmas who comes down the chimney and delivers presents.
Santa Claus seems to be his more commercial persona (shopping centre appearances, Santa’s grotto, etc).
Kind of a multi stranded branding thing going on.
He may just be more canny even than we have realised ???

midnightstar66 · 09/12/2020 04:32

You can bleat on that Santa is used commonly in Scotland or Ireland or anywhere else. But you know really Santa is becoming more poplar because of America. ( because all those films and songs people quoted are American).

Well maybe where you are but it's not becoming more popular here as it's ALWAYS been Santa.

I love all the never heard of Father Christmas shit too. Yeah the popular books and cartoon on every year by the same name escaped you? Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe?

Of course we've seen it on the tv. I know of loads of versions of names for him used all over the globe, but no one here uses Father Christmas in real life.

I love that in German he's the Christmas man, it's such a literal language 😆.

For those saying sinterklaas is German- I'm sure it's Dutch?

Galvantula · 09/12/2020 04:38

read the thread maybe, @HeronLanyon? 🤷‍♀️

"Commercial persona" indeed!

He doesn't only do shopping centres up here 🤦‍♀️

HeronLanyon · 09/12/2020 04:42

I have the thread galvantula I was posting what I thought - as everyone is surely ?

ImNotMeImSomeoneElse · 09/12/2020 04:45

Where I lived (very rural) there were no shopping centres or grottos as a child, Santa did pop into children's parties and visited the school, but he also came down the chimney.

The commercialisation that you speak of came WAY later.

I'm also in the UK. Most of us here are.

midnightstar66 · 09/12/2020 04:46

Talking of 'commercial persona' 😆. Did people who insist it's Father Christmas visit Father Christmas' grotto as a child or was it Santa's grotto? I've never ever heard the term Father Christmas' grotto even on bbc1

midnightstar66 · 09/12/2020 04:51

Cross post with @ImNotMeImSomeoneElse we had them aplenty in the early 80's. not in shopping centres as also rural so didn't exist but at Christmas craft fairs and school parties etc to could always go and sit on Santa's knee and get a present.

maddiemookins16mum · 09/12/2020 04:56

FC all the way growing up. Mixture of both now.

Nicolastuffedone · 09/12/2020 05:02

Santa/Santa Claus in Scotland. Or as my Papa called him ‘Santy Claus’ I always think of Father Christmas as an English thing......