{"id":7863,"date":"2017-06-21T22:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-06-21T20:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/blog\/por-que-papa-noel-baja-por-una-chimenea\/"},"modified":"2023-05-26T11:49:25","modified_gmt":"2023-05-26T09:49:25","slug":"why-santa-claus-comes-down-a-chimney","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/blog\/why-santa-claus-comes-down-a-chimney\/","title":{"rendered":"Why does Santa Claus come down a chimney?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">When children are told during Christmas that Santa Claus, a rather plump old man dressed in red who brings them gifts, enters houses through the chimney, most of them are surprised and ask the same question: <strong>How and why does he come down the chimney?<\/strong> Some don&#8217;t know what to say, while others have resorted to the strangest stories to give an answer. At HotFireDoor, we will tell you about the legend of <strong>Santa Claus or Saint Nicholas<\/strong> and the chimney.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_82_2 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Contenidos:<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a109ac91e6c7\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a109ac91e6c7\"  aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/blog\/why-santa-claus-comes-down-a-chimney\/#The_story_of_Santa_Claus\" >The story of Santa Claus<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/blog\/why-santa-claus-comes-down-a-chimney\/#Origin_of_Santa_Claus_in_Turkey\" >Origin of Santa Claus in Turkey<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/blog\/why-santa-claus-comes-down-a-chimney\/#Spread_throughout_Europe\" >Spread throughout Europe<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/blog\/why-santa-claus-comes-down-a-chimney\/#Santa_Claus_in_the_United_States\" >Santa Claus in the United States<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/blog\/why-santa-claus-comes-down-a-chimney\/#The_origin_of_the_legend_of_Santa_Claus_coming_down_the_chimney\" >The origin of the legend of Santa Claus coming down the chimney<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/blog\/why-santa-claus-comes-down-a-chimney\/#The_poem_where_Santa_Claus_enters_through_the_chimney\" >The poem where Santa Claus enters through the chimney<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/blog\/why-santa-claus-comes-down-a-chimney\/#Translation_into_Spanish_of_the_famous_poem_by_Clement_Clarke_Moore\" >Translation into Spanish of the famous poem by Clement Clarke Moore<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/blog\/why-santa-claus-comes-down-a-chimney\/#Santa_Claus_the_Chimney_and_the_Lapland_Tradition\" >Santa Claus, the Chimney, and the Lapland Tradition<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_story_of_Santa_Claus\"><\/span>The story of Santa Claus<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Origin_of_Santa_Claus_in_Turkey\"><\/span>Origin of Santa Claus in Turkey<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The origin of Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas or Santa Claus, can be traced back to the historical figure of <strong>Saint Nicholas of Myra<\/strong>, a Christian bishop who lived in the 4th century in Lycia, a region that is now part of present-day Turkey. Saint Nicholas was famous for his generosity and kindness towards the poor and children, and many stories and legends developed around him.<\/p>\n<p>One of the most well-known stories about Saint Nicholas is that of a man who didn&#8217;t have money for his three daughters&#8217; dowries. Saint Nicholas, upon learning about the situation, threw three bags of gold through the man&#8217;s window for three consecutive nights, allowing the daughters to get married. This story contributed to the tradition of giving gifts in his name.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Spread_throughout_Europe\"><\/span>Spread throughout Europe<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Over time, the veneration of Saint Nicholas spread throughout Europe, and different cultures adopted and adapted its customs and legends. In the Netherlands, Saint Nicholas is known as Sinterklaas, a phonetic adaptation of the name in Dutch, and is depicted as an elderly bishop who arrives on a ship from Spain, accompanied by his helpers called &#8220;Zwarte Pieten&#8221; (Black Petes).<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Santa_Claus_in_the_United_States\"><\/span>Santa Claus in the United States<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>When Dutch settlers arrived in North America, the figure of Sinterklaas merged with British Christmas traditions and became &#8220;Santa Claus.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The current image of Santa Claus as a chubby and cheerful man wearing a red and white suit became popular in the 19th century, largely due to the work of the American cartoonist Thomas Nast and, subsequently, the famous advertising campaign by Coca-Cola in the 1930s.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_origin_of_the_legend_of_Santa_Claus_coming_down_the_chimney\"><\/span>The origin of the legend of Santa Claus coming down the chimney<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Everything points to this legend having its origins in a 19th-century poem. Its writer, Clement Clarke Moore, a scholar who had been researching Christmas myths around the world, wrote a story for his children that narrated the tale of Santa Claus, or Papa Noel, riding a sleigh pulled by reindeer and landing on the rooftop.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">With a jump, he goes down the chimney and appears in the house, much to the surprise of those who are awake at that moment. It must also be one of the reasons why <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/blog\/how-to-decorate-fireplace-christmas\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">chimneys are decorated during Christmas<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-243 \" src=\"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/aaa036e4cb16038f90e128d8e39c714f-1.jpg\" alt=\"Santa Claus,Santa Claus comes down a chimney\" width=\"545\" height=\"364\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">In reality, everything indicates that <strong>the author combines various ancient stories<\/strong>, most of which originated from Finnish and Sami traditions. It&#8217;s worth noting that the traditional dwellings in that area were igloos or cabins with a similar shape, dug into the ground and with only the roof serving as an entrance. That is the key to understanding the legend of the chimney.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_poem_where_Santa_Claus_enters_through_the_chimney\"><\/span>The poem where Santa Claus enters through the chimney<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>As mentioned, one of the most solid sources explaining why Santa Claus enters through the chimney is the poem &#8220;<em>A Visit from St. Nicholas<\/em>,&#8221; also known as &#8220;<em>The Night Before Christmas<\/em>&#8221; or &#8220;<em>Twas the Night Before Christmas<\/em>,&#8221; written by Clement Clarke Moore in 1823.<\/p>\n<p>This poem is very popular in Anglo-Saxon Christmas tradition and has significantly influenced the modern conception of Santa Claus. It narrates the visit of Santa Claus (St. Nicholas) to a house on Christmas Eve, arriving in his sleigh pulled by reindeer and entering through the chimney to leave gifts. The complete poem is longer, but here I have shared a selection of the most representative verses in English.<\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>The children were nestled all snug in their beds, While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads; And mamma in her &#8216;kerchief, and I in my cap, Had just settled our brains for a long winter&#8217;s nap,<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter, I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter. Away to the window I flew like a flash, Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below, When, what to my wondering eyes should appear, But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>With a little old driver, so lively and quick, I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick. More rapid than eagles his coursers they came, And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen! On, Comet! on Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen! To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall! Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly, When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky, So up to the house-top the coursers they flew, With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof The prancing and pawing of each little hoof. As I drew in my head, and was turning around, Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7373\" style=\"width: 760px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-7373\" class=\"size-full wp-image-7373\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/clement-clarke-moore-historias-de-navidad.jpg\" alt=\"Clement Clarke Moore Christmas Stories\" width=\"750\" height=\"999\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/clement-clarke-moore-historias-de-navidad.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/clement-clarke-moore-historias-de-navidad-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-7373\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Clement Clarke Moore<\/p><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Translation_into_Spanish_of_the_famous_poem_by_Clement_Clarke_Moore\"><\/span>Translation into Spanish of the famous poem by Clement Clarke Moore<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><em>&#8220;Era la v\u00edspera de Navidad, y en toda la casa no se mov\u00eda ni una criatura, ni siquiera un rat\u00f3n; Las medias estaban colgadas junto a la chimenea con cuidado, con la esperanza de que San Nicol\u00e1s pronto estar\u00eda all\u00ed;<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Los ni\u00f1os estaban acurrucados c\u00f3modos en sus camas, mientras visiones de azucarillos danzaban en sus cabezas; Y mam\u00e1 con su pa\u00f1uelo y yo con mi gorro, nos hab\u00edamos acomodado para un largo sue\u00f1o invernal,<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Cuando en el c\u00e9sped se levant\u00f3 tal alboroto, sal\u00ed de la cama para ver qu\u00e9 pasaba. R\u00e1pido como un rayo vol\u00e9 hacia la ventana, abr\u00ed las contraventanas y levant\u00e9 el marco.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>La luna sobre el pecho de la nieve reci\u00e9n ca\u00edda daba el resplandor del mediod\u00eda a los objetos de abajo, cuando, qu\u00e9 apareci\u00f3 ante mis ojos sorprendidos, sino un trineo peque\u00f1o y ocho renos diminutos,<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Con un viejecito conductor, tan animado y r\u00e1pido, supe en un instante que deb\u00eda ser San Nicol\u00e1s. M\u00e1s r\u00e1pidos que \u00e1guilas sus corceles llegaron, y \u00e9l silb\u00f3 y grit\u00f3 y los llam\u00f3 por su nombre;<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;\u00a1Arre, Dasher! \u00a1Arre, Dancer! \u00a1Arre, Prancer y Vixen! \u00a1Vamos, Comet! \u00a1Vamos, Cupid! \u00a1Vamos, Donder y Blitzen! \u00a1A la cima del porche! \u00a1A la cima de la pared! \u00a1Ahora, arre! \u00a1Arre! \u00a1Arre todos!&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Como hojas secas que ante el hurac\u00e1n salvaje vuelan, cuando encuentran un obst\u00e1culo, se elevan al cielo, as\u00ed hacia el tejado de la casa volaron, con el trineo lleno de juguetes y San Nicol\u00e1s tambi\u00e9n.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Y entonces, en un abrir y cerrar de ojos, escuch\u00e9 en el techo el galopar y golpeteo de cada peque\u00f1a pezu\u00f1a. Mientras met\u00eda mi cabeza y me daba la vuelta, por la chimenea baj\u00f3 San Nicol\u00e1s con un salto.&#8221;<br \/>\n<\/em><br \/>\nThis translation captures the spirit and content of the original English poem, although some words or expressions may vary slightly in their interpretation to maintain the Spanish flow and rhyme.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Santa_Claus_the_Chimney_and_the_Lapland_Tradition\"><\/span>Santa Claus, the Chimney, and the Lapland Tradition<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">If you&#8217;re looking for <strong>how to decorate your chimney at Christmas<\/strong>, you may not care for a logical explanation to this story. Nor do you want to give children an answer that turns magic into something more ordinary. Anyway, <strong>the explanation of how he can enter through the chimney<\/strong> is much simpler and more logical than you think if you consider the concepts it comes from.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Lappish cabins only have one entrance, which serves as both the door and the smoke outlet for the chimney. That&#8217;s why entering through the door or through the chimney is actually the same thing. If we translate it to our chimneys, it&#8217;s natural that the question of how it can be possible arises. But in Finland and the traditional homes of the ancient inhabitants, seeing someone, no matter how thick they may be, enter through the chimney would be the most normal thing in the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When children are told during Christmas that Santa Claus, a rather plump old man dressed in red who brings them gifts, enters houses through the chimney, most of them are surprised and ask the same question: How and why does he come down the chimney? Some don&#8217;t know what to say, while others have resorted [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":3679,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"Why does Santa Claus come down a chimney? The legend!","_seopress_titles_desc":"We&#039;ll tell you about Santa Claus, also known as Santa Claus or Saint Nicholas, and the legend of why Santa Claus goes down a chimney and other stories.","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[626],"tags":[531,297,291],"class_list":{"0":"post-7863","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-chimneys","8":"tag-chimney","9":"tag-santa-claus","10":"tag-santa-claus-comes-down-the-chimney"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7863","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7863"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7863\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9287,"href":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7863\/revisions\/9287"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3679"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7863"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7863"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hotfiredoor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7863"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}