St. Nicholas' Eve in The Netherlands: An Overview
St. Nicholas' Eve, known in Dutch as Sinterklaasavond or Pakjesavond ("present evening"), is celebrated on the evening of December 5, the night before St. Nicholas's Day on December 6. For most Dutch children this is the most important day of December. Christmas, by contrast, is a separate and quieter occasion, with the main family celebration on December 24 and Christmas Day itself given over to a church service and a family meal. The name "Santa Claus" is itself derived from "Sinterklaas."
Origins and Historical Background
The figure of Sinterklaas is traditionally said to live in Madrid, Spain, and to travel to The Netherlands by steamboat. A key moment in the development of the modern celebration was the 1850 book Sint Nikolaas en zijn knecht by Jan Schenkman, which described Sinterklaas's arrival by steamboat and first mentioned his helper, Zwarte Piet. The book boosted his popularity and helped make the arrival a major public event.
The Arrival: The Intocht
Sinterklaas arrives in a Dutch city or town on the Saturday after St Martin's Day (November 11), choosing a different harbour or city each year. Church bells ring as he comes ashore. Dressed in red robes, he leads a procession through the town on a white horse and then visits towns across the country until December 5.
He travels with servants traditionally called Zwarte Pieten ("Black Peters"), or more recently Sooty or Chimney Pieten (Roetpieten). The Pieten keep a record of children's behaviour in a big book: good children receive presents, while bad children are jokingly told they will be put in a sack and taken to Spain for a year. Many Dutch people now object to blackface makeup, and the "Sooty Piet" with only soot smudges is increasingly common.
Customs and Traditions
- The shoe custom: On the evening of the arrival, and in many families every Saturday until December 5, children leave a shoe by the fireplace or on a windowsill, sing Sinterklaas songs, and put hay and carrots in the shoe for the horse, hoping for sweets or small presents. Sinterklaas is said to ride the rooftops while a Piet climbs down the chimney or through a window to fill the shoes.
- The evening of December 5: Children receive presents, sometimes delivered via a knock at the door and a sack of presents. Parties feature treasure-hunt games with poems and riddles as clues to small presents.
- The surprise custom: At parties, often in school classes, names are drawn from a hat and each person makes a "surprise" present—often a useful item tied to the recipient's hobby—accompanied by a poem hinting at the giver, whose identity is kept mysterious. The source notes this is similar to a German custom.
- December 6: Sinterklaas departs by steamboat via the Hook of Holland (the Rotterdam port entrance) back to Spain; some say this day is his birthday. Surprise presents may also be given on this day.
Food and Drink
Two foods are especially associated with St. Nicholas's Eve and Day:
- Banketletter: a letter cake or biscuit of marzipan or pastry, shaped as the first letter of the names of those attending.
- Pepernoot: small spiced biscuits flavoured with cinnamon.
Public Festivities and Civic Observance
The celebration has a strong public dimension. The intocht—Sinterklaas's arrival by steamboat, with church bells ringing and a procession on horseback through town—is a major annual event staged in a different harbour or city each year, after which he visits towns across the country in the run-up to December 5. Beyond this, the source describes the holiday primarily as a family and school celebration, centred on the home, the shoe custom, and parties with poems, riddles, and surprises.
Regional Variations
The source does not describe regional differences in the celebration of St. Nicholas' Eve within The Netherlands. The one regional linguistic detail it records concerns Christmas greetings rather than Sinterklaas: in West Frisian, spoken in Friesland, the greeting is Noflike Krystdagen, alongside the Dutch Prettige Kerst, Zalig Kerstfeest/Zalig Kerstmis, and Vrolijk Kerstfeest.
Sinterklaas and Christmas
Although the two are often confused abroad, Sinterklaas and Christmas are distinct in The Netherlands. Christmas Day (Eerste Kerstdag) is quiet—a church service and a family meal—while Tweede Kerstdag (December 26) is for visiting family, with large shops often open. Children believe that the Kerstman (Santa or "Christmas Man") comes from Lapland, Finland, on Christmas Eve with additional presents. The traditional family meal at Christmas is gourmetten, in which a small table stove lets each person cook their own food, and Christmas trees are common.