Saint Nicholas (Svyaty Mykolay in Ukrainian) is making a comeback.
During most of the Soviet period, and for many of the Christmases since Ukraine gained independence, the festive season was dominated by the Soviet-era character Father Frost (Did Moroz), who gave out presents to children at New Year’s, in the same way Santa Claus does in the English-speaking West on Christmas Day.
But Did Moroz (and Santa) can both trace their origins back to the original (and some Ukrainians maintain the best) Christmas gift giver – Saint Nicholas, a Christian saint venerated for his generous spirit, who is still the favored “Santa” figure in most of Europe.
And now Svyaty Mykolay is regaining popularity in Ukraine – especially in recent years, while the Soviet-era Did Moroz is losing ground.
It’s not clear whether Svyaty Mykolay’s resurgence is due to a growing rejection of the country’s Soviet legacy, or a renaissance of national traditions, or both, but the Ukrainian Santa Claus is getting a lot of attention in society and in official institutions these days.
For instance, from Dec. 12 the National Bank of Ukraine introduced into circulation a Hr 5 coin with a Svyaty Mykolay motif, while some non-profit organizations, cafés and restaurants are organizing charity events to mark Svyaty Mykolay’s Day throughout the country. The saint’s post office, where one can mail him a letter, will be open from Dec. 15 to Jan. 7 in the building of Ukraine’s main Post Office on Khreshchatyk Street in Kyiv’s downtown, where children will be able to take pictures with the saint next to a Christmas tree. And this year, for the fourth year in a row, Svyaty Mykolay will on Dec. 19 light the Christmas tree on Sofiyivska Square, marking the start of the New Year and Christmas holidays.
Svyaty Mykolay’s Day is celebrated in Ukraine on Dec. 19, as most Ukrainians celebrate religious holidays according to the old Julian calendar, which is 13 days behind the Gregorian calendar. In Western Europe the saint’s feast day is marked on Dec. 5 or 6.
Back to roots
Kostyantyn Oliynyk, the director of Kyiv’s Mamayeva Sloboda open-air ethnographic museum, welcomes the trend of Svyaty Mykolay replacing Did Moroz, and calls it “a return to our roots.”
“Ukrainians have for centuries honored Svyaty Mykolay,” he says. “The first written records of Ukrainians celebrating Svyaty Mykolay’s Day by giving presents to children and to the poor date back to the 15th century. It’s good that we’re returning to our roots, that we remember Svyaty Mykolay and his good deeds.”
Svyaty Mykolay, or Saint Nicholas, is an actual historical figure who lived in the fourth century in Myra, Asia Minor, which is now the city of Demre in Turkey, where he served as a Greek Christian bishop in a local church. During his life, Saint Nicholas is said to have helped the poor, once even paying the dowries of three daughters of a poor Christian, saving the girls from having to become prostitutes.
Unlike Saint Nicholas, Did Moroz is an artificial creation from Soviet times, and has nothing to do with Ukrainian traditions, Oliynyk says. The character is not related to Christmas and was derived from a mixture of pre-Christian beliefs and Soviet myths, he says.
“Did Moroz was an evil spirit who froze everybody – people, birds and animals,” Oliynyk says. “He is the embodiment of the harsh environment of the people who lived to the north of Chernihiv Oblast and all the way up to the Arctic Circle. Nowadays we call these people Russians.”
Did Moroz may also have partly evolved from a character in a fairy tale written in the 19th century by Russian writer Vladimir Odoyevsky – that character, named Moroz Ivanovich, had a kind rather than bad temper.
In the late 1930s the atheist Soviet authorities revived the Did Moroz character, presenting him as an old man with a long red or blue coat who gives gifts to kids, while stripping him of any religious associations.
But today Did Moroz’s Soviet background counts against him with many Ukrainians. Kyivan Nataliya Parkulab believes that Ukrainians should abandon Did Moroz because “it was created by Soviet propaganda to eclipse Svyaty Mykolay.”
Her two kids – an 8-year-old son and a 6-year-old daughter, know that Did Moroz is a fictional character, she says. “My kids write letters to and ask for gifts only from Svyaty Mykolay, and never from Did Moroz,” she says.
Mykolay vs. Moroz
All the same, many Ukrainians still want Did Moroz to be in charge of handing out gifts to children during the winter holidays.
The graphic shows the difference between St. Mykolay (St. Nicholas) and Did Moroz (Father Frost), Ukraine’s two main symbols of the Christmas season. (Stella Shabliovska)
“I will tell my child about Svyaty Mykolay and about Did Moroz,” Facebook user Sveta Semenyaka wrote in a discussion about the winter holidays on Dec. 6.
“The winter holidays are for kids. Why should I take sick fanatics into account, and deprive my kid of the New Year spirit? Did Moroz has been, and will be in many Ukrainian families.”
Another Did Moroz supporter, Alenka Bortnychuk, wrote on Facebook on Dec. 5 that “every nation has its Did Moroz/Santa. Stop inventing idiocy! Don’t spoil the holidays and the festive mood!”
The people who portray Did Moroz every year also have a lot to lose from the character’s decline: Valeriy Potyomkin who describes himself Ukraine’s leading Did Moroz, is not happy at being overshadowed by Svyaty Mykolay. For a decade-and-half, Potyomkin has been performing the role of Did Moroz in kindergartens and even in top Ukrainian officials’ residences.
Potyomkin believes that Ukrainians should retain the Did Moroz character for the winter holidays.
“Did Moroz is our Ukrainian fairy character. He should remain, because he is very kind and very beautiful,” he says.
Did Moroz sits in a sleigh pulled by reindeer on Troyitska Square in Kyiv on Dec. 31, 2014. Did Moroz, or Father Frost, is a Soviet symbol of the New Year. In Ukraine, he has been competing for the people’s affections with St. Nicholas. (Volodymyr Petrov)
But ethnographer Oliynyk puts Did Moroz’s support in society down to the country’s Soviet legacy.
“It’s a struggle between Soviet ideology and Ukrainian beliefs. We have to cherish our own ancient traditions,” he says.
Kids’ holiday
According to those traditions, Svyaty Mykolay usually comes to Ukrainian children at night on Dec. 19 and leaves his presents under their pillows. He brings gifts only to obedient children, while badly behaved kids might get only a twig from a tree.
Did Moroz, in contrast, hands out the goodies at New Year. His popularity is also bolstered by Ukraine’s still largely unreformed Soviet-era education system: He is still regularly invited to kindergartens and primary schools, where he congratulates children on the upcoming New Year holidays.
So far Ukrainian kids seem to be main beneficiaries of the uncertainty over who should be in charge of the winter holidays in the country – Svyaty Mykolay or Did Moroz.
“Before New Year’s Eve I buy sweets for my kids on Did Moroz’s behalf, although I don’t like this character,” Parkulab says, adding that her children receive their main gifts on Svyaty Mykolay’s Day.
“I don’t want to traumatize my daughter and son – they were told in kindergarten that Did Moroz brings presents.”
Economist Olga Marikutsa also buys gifts for her 12-year son and 10-year old daughter both on Svyaty Mykolay’s Day and at New Year.
“They refuse to believe that Did Moroz does not exist,” she says.
“Anyway, you can never have too many gifts.” n
