Santa Claus, as most people imagine him today, is a legendary gift‑giver inspired mainly by a real 4th‑century Christian bishop named Saint Nicholas and then reshaped over many centuries of European and American tradition. The modern image of a jolly man in a red suit from the North Pole is a cultural creation that blends this saint’s story with older winter folklore and later commercial art and literature.

Early historical roots

  • Saint Nicholas was a Greek Christian bishop of Myra (in present‑day Turkey) around the 3rd–4th century CE, known for generosity and secret gifts to the poor.
  • Stories about him include anonymously providing gold for three impoverished sisters and protecting children, which made him a patron saint of both children and sailors across the Mediterranean.

From St. Nicholas to “Santa”

  • In medieval and early modern Europe, St. Nicholas’s feast day on December 6 became linked with giving small gifts to children, especially in northern Europe.
  • As these traditions migrated to places like the Netherlands and then to North America, the Dutch “Sinterklaas” evolved linguistically and culturally into “Santa Claus” in English‑speaking countries.

Building the modern Santa image

  • In the 19th century United States, writers and illustrators reimagined Santa as a cozy, domestic Christmas visitor, especially through Clement Clarke Moore’s poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” (“’Twas the Night Before Christmas”).
  • Political cartoonist Thomas Nast and later advertisers helped standardize Santa as a plump, bearded man in a red suit with white trim who lives at the North Pole, travels by sleigh with flying reindeer, and keeps lists of children’s behavior.

Older mythic influences

  • Folklorists note that Santa and England’s Father Christmas also echo older winter gift‑bringer figures, such as the Norse god Odin, depicted as a cloaked, white‑bearded traveler riding the midwinter sky and bringing gifts.
  • Over time, these pagan and folk elements blended with Christian veneration of St. Nicholas, producing a hybrid midwinter figure that gradually converged into what many now simply call Santa Claus.

Today’s cultural Santa

  • Today, Santa Claus is widely treated as a symbol of generosity, childhood wonder, and the commercial side of Christmas rather than a single historical person.
  • Different cultures still adapt him under local names and styles—such as Père Noël in France or Father Christmas in Britain—but the core idea of a magical gift‑giver on or around Christmas remains broadly shared.

TL;DR: The “real” Santa started with Saint Nicholas of Myra, a generous 4th‑century bishop, and over many centuries of storytelling, folklore, and advertising he turned into the modern red‑suited Santa known around the world.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.