IStock Photo 11287424 © Brian McEntire

Santa comes in many forms. There’s Santa of the imagination—eager children tucked in their beds often swear they hear him arrive. There’s iconic Santa—his beaming image is everywhere, from bottles of Coca-Cola® to extra-large rolls of wrapping paper. Then there’s Santa in the flesh, riding in parades, standing on street corners, attending the occasional party, and holding down a day job requiring him to memorize reams of Christmas wishes. Santa’s everywhere you turn in December, probably because he is so important to so many. The odds an adult considers Santa Claus an important part of his or her Christmas celebration are 1 in 1.96 (51%).

Among Christians, the role Santa plays in the holiday breaks along religious lines. Catholics are more enthusiastic Santa supporters, with 60% believing it would not be Christmas without St. Nick, while only about half of Protestants feel that way. That may be because Saint Nicholas was a Catholic bishop in Asia Minor in the 4th century, noted for steadfast faith in an age of persecution.

The most famous story of Nicholas involves three impoverished maidens, whose desperate father was about to sell them into prostitution. In some versions of the story, Nicholas tosses bags of gold through an open window and into stockings hanging over the fire to dry—thought by many to be the origin of the Christmas tradition. Other versions have at least one of the bags dropped down the chimney. Sound familiar?

Although people use the names “St. Nicholas” and “Santa Claus” interchangeably, the modern Santa has far more to do with commercialism than holiness. Macy’s claims the honor of hiring the first department store Santa in 1862, but that is contested by the residents of Brockton, Massachusetts, who contend that James Edgar, who first donned the suit in 1890 in order to entertain customers in his store, was the first. In 2008, residents of Brockton set a record for the most people wearing Santa hats as they dedicated a plaque to Edgar.

Today, thousands of Santas populate our malls and department stores. In 1937, Charles Howard, a former Santa in the Macy’s parade, established a “School for Yule” in Midland, Michigan, after he encountered a disheveled crew of Santas working shifts at a department store in Buffalo. Every year, aspiring Kris Kringles (and a few hopeful Mrs. Clauses) gather for instruction (“Santa is a pure man; he’s a pure spirit,” so “be very careful where we touch the children, how we pick them up, how we set them on our knees”), dispensed between cookie breaks and song fests.

Those vying to become certified Santas must answer a series of questions, including “What are the names of Santa’s reindeer?” (don’t forget Blitzen) and “When was Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer born?” ( 1939, if you’re curious). “Children expect perfection. Parents expect miracles,” Tom Valent, dean of the school, told the Toledo Blade. “They want their child, who may not believe anymore, to believe again.” The odds an adult who believed in Santa Claus as a child stopped believing between 7 and 10 are 1 in 1.69 (59%).

The school stresses hygiene, and it’s especially important this year with concerns about swine flu. The Fraternal Order of Real Bearded Santas (those who don’t have to rely on yak beards) is lobbying Congress for priority in receiving the H1N1 shot. If that is not granted, children all over the country may have to settle for waving at Santa instead of crawling into his lap.