What's Happening?

I'll give you some links.

Santa Claus: The Many Faces Behind the Beard | HuffPost


Odin had a long white beard, was said to lead hunting parties across the night sky, flying on an eightlegged horse. Children would fill their boots with hay for the horse; Odin in gratitude would leave small gifts for the children in their boots. When he arrived in Holland, the name St. Nicholas became Sinterklass. To this day he arrives there on St. Nicholas Eve, December 5, by boat, and leads a procession through town riding a white horse. In Holland, he still wears priestly garb: a miter and a chasuble. Children may leave their shoes outside, filled with hay for Sinterklass’ horse, or perhaps leave their shoes by the fireplace, for the tradition has come to the Netherlands, too, of a gift-giver coming down the chimney. St. Nicholas Eve is still celebrated in Holland on December 5; the tradition has not merged with Christmas as it has in this country. But there are many similarities in the tradition. Sinterklass supposedly has a book in which he has a record of which children have been naughty and which nice. Sometimes the book is kept by Zwarte Piet (Black Pete) who may leave switches or lumps of coal for children who have been bad. On the next page in the 17th-century painting, The Feast of St Nicholas by Jan Steen, we see familiar Christmas elements. The little girl is delightedly showing her doll to her mother or grandmother, while the little boy, rubbing his eyes, has apparently been snubbed by Zwarte Piet. Another little boy points mockingly to the unhappy child. Sinterklass (or his helper, Zwarte Piet) had apparently already picked up the habit of going down chimneys; the two persons in middle right are said to be pointing in amazement to the chimney. The Dutch brought Sinterklass to this country and, through mispronunciation and a series of evolutions, he morphed into Santa Claus. The New-York Historical Society (so named), founded by patriot John Pintard after the Revolution, was to make the next contribution to the legend. Washington Irving joined the Society and on St. Nicholas’ Day in 1807 published a satirical fiction, Knickerbocker’s History of New York, with numerous references to a jolly St. Nicholas character. This was not the saintly bishop, but rather an elfin Dutch burgher with a clay pipe. In 1821 the gift-giver, now dubbed Sante Claus, was moved to Christmas Eve in a book called The Children’s Friend. This was a stern character who rewarded good children and punished bad. The style of the poetry leads some to think it was the Christmas poem actually written by Clement Moore (not The Night Before Christmas; see Page 1). It seems likely that Irving’s elfin image of St. Nicholas influenced the writer of The Night Before Christmas. The poem was enormously popular and widely reprinted. In it St. Nicholas is a jolly, elf-like character, the basis for a series of drawings during the Civil War of Santa by Thomas Nast for Harper’s Weekly. These are said to have demoralized the Confederate soldiers by showing Santa as on the Union’s side. In any case, the poem influenced all subsequent images of Santa. By the 1920s the image of Santa had become more or less standardized by artists like N. C. Wyeth and Norman Rockwell: Santa had a flowing beard and wore a red suit, a wide black belt, and black boots. This is the Santa who was the basis of the familiar portrayals in the ads for Coca-Cola in the Thirties.
www.heritagelib.org/file_download/58/Glimpses1210.pdf

 

So the name and character of Santa is based on St. Nicolas.
As with a lot of other catholic holidays and practices the origins may be taken over from a former pagan practice. The Santa person though is primarily based on saint Nicolas which came to the Americas with primarily dutch migrants (but maybe some german and belgian migrants too). If there wouldn't have been a saint Nicolas and his feast brought over to the Americas by settlers who celebrated his feast early december, there would not have been a Santa Clause in a red and white suit on christmas later on. He's primarily based on saint Nicolas, not on Odin wether we like it or not.

 

You might enjoy the illustrations on this page. Irrefutable Proof that Santa is Odin

Here's one:

 

It even says in the illustration that some of the coincidences are merely rumors

But I'm not denying there's some Odin in there as well. It is just clear Santa and his practices are primarily based on the feast of saint Nicolas (as your other very informative link perfectly explains) which has been held and celebrated with said elements of giftgiving and the bishop visiting since at least the 17th century (most likely older). So that's the proven truth about Santa. It also appears that the original saint Nicolas (of Myra, lived in the 3rd century!) has a white/grey beard in his depictions from that area (not associated with or influenced by the dutch feast and characterization of him), so the beard can not without question be primarily attributed to Odin..

 

You've never Been have you ?

 

Odin was born in Turkey.

 

I've been moving furniture today.

Now, it's time to change clothes and go help the triplets with their homework.

 

I'll keep you updated on my plans then

 

Are you sure? It is written he was some kind of Turk. There are many kind of turkish people. A lot don't live in Turkey (which didn't exist anyway at the time Odin was supposed to walk the earth. No turks around Myra when saint Nicolas lived there). It is more likely the Odin in those ancient sagas was born in some part of present day Russia or one of those former sovjet states (where turkish people most likely originated, and a lot of turkish people still live. Btw to be clear: these are not people from Turkey in any way)

 

So close but had last minute problems with getting my passport.

 

Switzerland is not the most cost effective country to visit. While it’s very beautiful and worthwhile, it is just too expensive if you’re considering a European trip on a budget. When I got off the train at my destination in Lucerne, Switzerland, I was starving and it cost me $11 usd for a whopper at Burger King

It’s totally worth visiting though

 

well if you do ever get over give me a bell and I will Walk round to Where you are staying and buy you a pint

 

I descend from Odin through his son, King Yngvi of Turkey. There is discussion of Odin having been born in Turkey.

 

Not really. There wasn't a country called Turkey in those days. But there were turkish people. In central Asia. There is no discussion about Odin coming from Turkey as far as i know. Just central Asia.

 

I'll visit your country without telling or visiting you.

 

'Twas the Ottoman Empire, right?

 

No, Byzantium empire days more like it. Many centuries (and several empires ) before the Ottoman empire.

I'm interested on what you are basing this exactly.

 

I failed world history

 

You're right in that the Ottoman empire was turkish. But it wasn't the first turkish empire in present day Turkey.
The (mythological) swedish king Yngvi supposedly lived in the time the Byzantine empire ruled big parts of present day Turkey. Including the city of Myra where saint Nicolas lived (which life is fact ).

 

I assume because it would be for work and you have no time