SANTA ARGH!!

[User202022]

To me it’s always been FATHER CHRISTMAS!

Every book I seem to read to my children containing said jolly man with white beard calls him SANTA BLOOMING CLAWS! (I have to change it even if it means the book no longer rhymes).
i can cope with St Nicholas but just cannot abide by Santa! Argh!
Is this just me?

Father Christmas is an English phenomenon. Most other European (and UK) countries use Santa Claus (Saint Nicklaus). So YABU. Father Christmas is the outlier.

But this conversation appears on Mumsnet every year and still it comes up.

Father Christmas tends to be used on one small island.

Many books are written by people outside of that island.

Hope this helps.

Yes it's just you. I am 42 and when I was a wee lassy, it was Santa.

Despite what everyone who lives in South East England believes, Santa has been 'a thing' in Scotland and Ireland for a long time and is not an American import.

If you want to Google it, you'll learn than Santa and Father Christmas are actually two very distinct and different things. At least Santa was real unlike FC.

Eh, I say Father Christmas and do tend to gravitate towards books using that name when shopping for my son but I don't mind other people using Santa Claus 🤷🏻‍♀️

It's Santa Claus in Scotland. I don't know anyone who calls him father Christmas.

Father Christmas tends to be used on one small island.

And only parts of it at that.
I've always used both terms interchangeably. Wtf is the problem?

Ah the annual slating of Santa Clause! Its always been Santa for me in Scotland

Claus*

North East here and I don't know anyone who uses father Christmas. Even my 99 year old grandad has always said Santa (or Santy)

I always assumed "Father Christmas" was Santa's aspirational middle class name.

Ever heard of Saint Nicholas OP?

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Nicholas

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinterklaas

What's wrong with Santa Claus OP? Why are you so angry?

It’s always been Santa to me and I’m in my 40s, calm down

Here in Scotland you’d be looked at like you had two heads if you said Father Christmas. I can’t even imagine those words coming out of anyone’s mouth here.

Remember OP. The world is a big place.

Never called him FC, always Santa. I'm 41

why cant you and others accept that for other people/nationalitys its santa

Santa all the way. On his sleigh. 😁

I always say Father Christmas as well. I understand each country has its own version - Pére Noel, Noel Baba m, St. Nicholas etc but Santa seems so American and commercial!
The Eden Project call him Father Christmas which I like. They seem to like sticking to more traditional versions of events.

It's Santy

Santa Claus in Scotland. Or as PP said, in my area ‘Santy’ as in ‘if don’t stoap that greetin, you’ll be gettin’ nothin’ Santy’s watching you!

I use Santa on here because I use FC to mean foster care. We use Father Christmas in real life.

Christmas songs use Santa:
When Santa got stuck up the chimney
..then one stormy Christmas Eve, Santa came to say....
etc

I don't think it matters as he doesn't exist...

My very posh friend is the only person who says Father Christmas. Everyone else is Santa.

It's Santa. Father Christmas always sounds faintly ridiculous to me.