Why Do Children Put Out Shoes on St Nicholas Day?
A shoe by the door on December 5, and something small and golden by morning.
On the night of December 5, in much of Europe and in many families beyond it, children set a shoe by the door, the fireplace, or the windowsill. In the morning they find it filled: a few coins, some chocolate, an orange, perhaps a small gift. That is Saint Nicholas Day, kept on December 6, and the shoe is the heart of it.
Why a shoe?
The custom goes back to the story that made Saint Nicholas beloved. Nicholas, a 4th-century bishop, is remembered for secretly giving bags of gold to a poor family by night, tossing them through a window so no one would see. According to a much-loved tradition, the gold landed in stockings or shoes that had been left by the fire to dry. Ever since, children have set out a shoe in the hope of a small gift arriving the same quiet way.
So the shoe is really a little reenactment. You leave it out, and in the morning the gift is simply there, with no giver in sight. That is exactly how the real Nicholas preferred to give.
What goes inside
The classic fillings all echo the legend. Coins, often chocolate ones in gold foil, recall the bags of gold. An orange or clementine, round and golden, is said to stand for the gold itself. Add a few sweets or a small toy and the shoe is full. In some homes a note goes in too, and in others a carrot or a little hay is left beside the shoe, for the saint’s horse.
Naughty or nice, the older way
In parts of Germany, Austria, and the Alps, the day has a sterner side. A good child wakes to treats; a naughty one might find a twig or a lump of coal. In the old stories a shaggy companion, such as Krampus or Knecht Ruprecht, travels with Nicholas to deal with the misbehaving. The gift and the warning came together.
The same custom, many countries
The Dutch keep the feast as Sinterklaas and set shoes by the chimney. Germans and Austrians fill boots for Nikolaus. The French, especially in the northeast, mark the day with parades and sweets. When Dutch families carried Sinterklaas to America, the shoe by the fire slowly became the Christmas stocking we know.
A gift that keeps its shape
Under all the chocolate, the custom holds on to something true. A gift arrives in the night, quietly, and asks for nothing in return. That is the whole point of the bishop it remembers, and a good thing for a child to notice while the coins are still in the shoe.
A saint like this, every month
This is the sort of story in every issue of Saints by Mail: printed, reverent, and mailed to your door. A thoughtful gift for godchildren, families, and anyone who loves the saints.