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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Santa vs father Christmas

186 replies

Blinkingheckythump · 17/12/2021 23:18

I know it's totally unimportant and hence iabu but it really irks me that everything seems to be santa these days and not father Christmas. It was always father Christmas when I was growing up. I miss it! Why has it changed over time? I say father Christmas to the kids but they hear santa everywhere else so usually say santa themselves. Am I being unreasonable in wishing it was still father Christmas?!

Incase it needs clarifying, this is very lighthearted. I'm aware it's not really an issue

OP posts:
CeeceeBloomingdale · 18/12/2021 06:32

Completely geographic. It's always been Santy and Santa in the North East of England. It's nothing to do with class, being americanised or Coca Cola Hmm. However every year this same question is posted by someone, normally in the South East of England, who can't understand that another people live elsewhere, have different traditions or that middle class people can have an accent. We in the North should all get back down the mines and stop watching American films eh? My Grandmother was born in 1911 and it was Santy to her, don't think tv or Coke influenced her early choices.

beardeddragon174 · 18/12/2021 06:33

Father Christmas all the way! I grew up with that. I am from Sussex.

shouldistop · 18/12/2021 06:39

It's never been Father Christmas in Scotland. I think it's also Santa in Ireland and Northern Ireland.

shouldistop · 18/12/2021 06:47

@PilesEdgeworth

“ The younger Britons are the more likely they are to favour 'Santa Claus' over 'Father Christmas', with 18-24 year-olds tending to use the former name over the latter by 50% to 33%. By contrast, two thirds (66%) of Brits aged 65 and older tend to use 'Father Christmas'.”
They should replace brits with English in those stats
RoseAndRose · 18/12/2021 06:51

They should replace brits with English in those stats

Are you sure they asked only in England though? Looking at the relative size of population between the home nations, this result could easily encompass all

www.statista.com/statistics/294729/uk-population-by-region/

NoHunGosh · 18/12/2021 06:52

In our household in Italy we have to use Father Christmas (Babbo Natale) for the fat jolly one who lives at the North Pole and brings presents on Christmas Eve using reindeer and sleigh to differentiate him from San Nicolo (Saint Nicholas/ Santa Claus) who looks like a bishop, travels by horse and brings kids presents on the morning of 6th December.

Aprilx · 18/12/2021 06:53

I think I use both.

shouldistop · 18/12/2021 06:55

[quote RoseAndRose]They should replace brits with English in those stats

Are you sure they asked only in England though? Looking at the relative size of population between the home nations, this result could easily encompass all

www.statista.com/statistics/294729/uk-population-by-region/[/quote]
They may well have asked Scots too but they've only mentioned age as a reason and no regional differences so the data makes no sense for Scotland at all.

GrannyBattleaxe · 18/12/2021 06:56

I’m working class, Scottish and forties…Father Christmas here. I like it, and don’t really care if the children think, yet again, that I’m peculiar 😆.

OneForTh · 18/12/2021 07:11

Yanbu. It's Father Christmas. I hear Santa Claus in all the American films my kids watch so presumably the US uses 'Santa'

Justleaveitblankthen · 18/12/2021 07:15

Father Christmas makes me feel all warm and nostalgic 🙂
In most of the European languages, it's the translated equivalent.
Santa makes me think of the Coca Cola version and Hollywood.
Not for me, but I think it's going to take over unfortunately.

RoseAndRose · 18/12/2021 07:26

They may well have asked Scots too but they've only mentioned age as a reason and no regional differences so the data makes no sense for Scotland at all

Just as it's not reflective of you're in one of the other areas where other usages predominate.

But it makes perfect sense when you see, when looking at the whole of the UK, what the distribution of the population is.

Toottooot · 18/12/2021 07:31

Suntee Claaas

Liverbird77 · 18/12/2021 07:31

It's interchangeable in our house

GlmPmum · 18/12/2021 07:33

Yorkshire here and growing up we knew him as Father Christmas where as my husband who is the same age as me and from the next town knew him as Santa reckoning never to have heard of Father Christmas?!?! Now we have our DS2 it seems we call him santa although I keep saying Father Christmas and confusing him. .

PAFMO · 18/12/2021 07:37

@Justleaveitblankthen

Father Christmas makes me feel all warm and nostalgic 🙂 In most of the European languages, it's the translated equivalent. Santa makes me think of the Coca Cola version and Hollywood. Not for me, but I think it's going to take over unfortunately.
As it's about 300 years old (see previous posts, origins being Dutch) it's hardly a new thing.
Cosyclothes · 18/12/2021 08:04

Irish lady here! We generally say Santa/Santy. I think it comes from the Irish San Nioclás (St Nicholas). The kids in school learn about Daidí na Nollag now though, Daddy of Christmas!

TitoMojito · 18/12/2021 08:04

For those who hate their DC calling him Santa, does that mean you don’t like them singing all the Christmas songs like Rudolph, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, etc? I don't see why it matters what your kids call a fictional character who, traditionally, has multiple names.

Stroopwaffle5000 · 18/12/2021 08:16

Oh not this thread again!! I'm 42 and use both, but I prefer Santa

Toplowlight · 18/12/2021 08:17

I prefer the sound of Father Christmas as it’s what I grew up with, but I live in Scotland now and it’s always Santa here.

2TurtleDovesInARow · 18/12/2021 08:19

I'm from home counties but live in Northern Ireland now so we have started saying Santa so not to confuse 2yo. I don't really care either way. He's a made up fat bloke bringing sparkle to a pagan festival hijacked by Christianity hijacked by consumerism. So...eh.

Findingapath · 18/12/2021 08:22

I prefer Father Christmas, but my DS has a speech delay and can pronounce Santa mucjh more clearly

LakieLady · 18/12/2021 08:25

I'm an atheist and consequently don't believe in saints, so it's Father Christmas for me.

Plus it's what I grew up with (SE England, 1960s).

GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER · 18/12/2021 08:31

[quote mathanxiety]@DroopyClematis, I think you're right that the English feeling of unease about Santa Claus stems from a deeply buried antipathy to Catholicism, and associated with that, the Irish.

However, you used British where you should have said English. It's Santa Claus in Scotland.

Father Christmas is a very English term.[/quote]
I once read that Father Christmas became more popular in England during WW1, because Santa Claus - the Claus bit anyway - sounded too much like German.

God knows why some MNers are making it out to be a class thing, though. It really isn’t, but inverted snobbery/sneering at anything perceived as MC is often a popular theme on MN.

He’s Father Christmas in France, too. (Pere Noel.).

firstimemamma · 18/12/2021 08:50

I am team Father Christmas and dh team Santa. I'm not overly bothered though.

Ds' nursery on the other hand care a lot! If they hear children saying Santa they always correct them and there was lots of talk among the staff about some children 'daring to use the S word'. I honestly thought at first that they were talking about 'shit' the way they said it. We also got a letter about the Christmas party and it said 'we'll be having a visit from Father Christmas NOT SANTA!!!' it's a bit much.