Santa is known as 'Sheng dan Lao ren' in Mandarin, which translates as 'Christmas Old Man', and he is seen as a non-religious figure who lives in a fairytale Arctic Christmas Village in China's North Pole.
In China, Christmas has not always been a publicly celebrated religious holiday. However, as China becomes more global, it has started to welcome a commercialized version of Christmas, known as "Sheng Dan Jieh" or the "Holy Birth Festival," with both religious and secular Chinese Christmas traditions.
In China, Santa is called Dun Che Lao Ren, which means “Christmas old man.” Not everyone in the country celebrates Christmas, or Sheng Dan Jieh. However, those who do celebrate by hanging up stockings for Dun Che Lao Ren to fill with treats.
In Hong Kong, /Santa is most commonly called Santa Claus or Father Christmas. In Cantonese he is known as "Sing Daan Lou Yan" (Christmas Old Man) although most people use English to refer to him. Every year in Hong Kong there is a 'Winterfest'.
In Japan Santa is known as サンタさん、サンタクロース / Santa-san (Mr Santa) or サンタクロース / Santa-Kurosu (Santa Claus). (Another Japanese gift bringer is Hoteiosho, a Japanese god of good fortune from Buddhism. But he is NOT related to Christmas.)
He's known as 'Christmas Baba' in Hindi, 'Baba Christmas' in Urdu (both of those mean Father Christmas); 'Christmas Thaathaa' in Tamil and 'Christmas Thatha' in Telugu (both of those mean Christmas old man); and 'Natal Bua' (Christmas Elder Man) in Marathi. In Kerala state, he's known as 'Christmas Papa'.
Frequently Asked Questions About Christmas In Australia
What is Santa Claus called in Australia? These days most Australians call Atnas (his real name) “Santa”.
In Brazil, Santa Claus is called Papai Noel & Bom Velhinho (Good Old Man). Many Christmas customs are similar to ones in the USA or UK even though it's summer and very hot at Christmas time in Brazil.
Spanish: Papa Noel (lit.
The man behind the Spanish name for Santa Claus is commonly known to give out presents on 24th December or 25th December (from Papa Noel), or on 6th January (from the Three Kings).
To the “grown-ups”, Santa Claus is the wonderful idea of selfless giving and goodwill. Santa also has some other names too. Among them are Saint Nicholas, Kris Kringle, St. Nick, Pelznickel.
The beautiful beaches and warm weather along the Mediterranean coast also draw visitors from both Eastern and Western Europe. They may come to Demre as pilgrims, or, out of curiosity, wondering about the origin of Santa Claus, who is called Noel Baba or Father Christmas in Turkey.
Santa Claus - Der Weihnachtsmann
The term Weihnachtsmann is a very generic German term for Father Christmas, St. Nicholas, or Santa Claus. The German Weihnachtsmann is a fairly recent Christmas tradition having little if any religious or folkloric background.
Though it's not a public holiday in China (with the exception of Hong Kong) and most people don't treat it as a religious holiday, Christmas is still celebrated by millions of people in China each year. Some young people even treat it as a kind of extra Valentine's Day!
It is said that eating a peace apple on Christmas eve will bless you with a safe and peaceful year ahead. This tradition of gifting peace apples or “Ping'anguo” on Christmas Eve has become so popular in China that the price of apples rises every December 24.
It is not common in a Chinese household to have Christmas trees or decorations, but outside, especially in big cities, extravagant Christmas trees, lights and decorations will be set out on the streets, in the hotels and department stores.
Ded Moroz or Grandfather Frost is a Russian counterpart of Santa Claus. Both bring presents and are much expected by the kids but there're a few things that make them different. 1.
The Santa Claus emoji 🎅 portrays the face of Santa Claus, the legendary Christmas figure.
Ecuadorians call him Santa Claus, but Papá Noel is more widely used. He is also known as Papá Noel in Argentina.
Santa is believed in and known as 'Dadabe Noely'. Most people will go to Midnight Mass where people, especially children, perform songs and plays to celebrate the Jesus' birth.
Papá Noel is used in Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Spain, Paraguay, Perú and Uruguay. San Nicolás for Honduras and Venezuela. In Chile is Viejito Pascuero and in Costa Rica Colacho. In most of the Latin American countries you can get along with Santa Claus, but the pronunciation is Santa Clós or Santa Cló.
Variations on Father Christmas are common, such as Spain's Papa Noel (Daddy Christmas), Turkey's Noel Baba (Christmas Father), and Romania's Moș Crăciun (Old Man Christmas). Central European countries such as Austria, the Czech Republic and Slovakia call him 'Ježíšek' (Baby Jesus).
Australian, British and New Zealand English uses "chips" for what North Americans call french fries. When confusion would occur between the two meanings, "hot chips" and "cold chips" are used.
roo – kangaroo
They had to have a dedicated slang term for kangaroos too, didn't they? After all, the kangaroos are Australia's most popular animals.