Santa Claus Trivia
True or False: A real person was the original Santa Claus.
True: The inspiration for Santa Claus was Saint Nicholas, a 3rd-century Christian bishop who lived in what today is the country of Turkey. Saint Nicholas was renowned for his generosity to the poor and the sick. This is why Santa Claus is still sometimes referred to as "Saint Nicholas" or "Old Saint Nick."
What is the reason for the shape of candy canes?
a) They are supposed to resemble reindeer antlers
b) They are supposed to resemble shepherds' crooks
c) They were originally held upside-down, so they are meant to resemble a capital "J" for "Jesus."
"b"--They are supposed to resemble shepherds' crooks--is correct.
This is because according to the Biblical story of Jesus' birth, shepherds came to visit the newborn Jesus after angels had announced his birth to them.
Where did the tradition of Christmas trees originate?
a) Germany
b) Israel
c) Spain
Answer: a) Germany
Christians in parts of Germany began decorating evergreen trees as part of their Christmas celebrations in the 1600s. Although German immigrants brought the tradition with them to the U.S. in the early 1800s, Christmas trees only became widely popular after 1846, when Queen Victoria of Great Britain and her German husband, Prince Albert, were sketched in the Illustrated London News standing with their children around a Christmas tree.
Which of these famous Christmas carols originally had a different title?
a) "Silent Night"
b) "All I Want for Christmas Is You"
c) "Jingle Bells"
c) "Jingle Bells"
Possibly the most well-known Christmas song, the song, written by James Lord Pierpont in 1857, was originally titled “One-Horse Open Sleigh." It was not even intended to be a Christmas song!
Which famous symbol of Christmas is not found at the North Pole and is sometimes called "caribou" in North America?
a) reindeer
b) elf
c) mistletoe
Answer: a) reindeer
How fast would Santa's reindeer have to fly in order for him to deliver toys on Christmas Eve to all children who celebrate Christmas?
a) About six million miles per hour
b) About six thousand miles per hour
c) At the speed of light
Answer: a) About six million miles per hour
Factoring in the number of children who celebrate Christmas around the world (about 700 million) and the total time Santa would need due to time-zone differences (31 hours), Dr. Katy Sheen, a physicist from Exeter University, determined that Santa would have to travel so fast that his reindeer would break the speed of sound (not the speed of light, however).
Which Christmas beverage is also known as “milk punch?”
Answer: Egg nog. Most culinary historians agree that eggnog comes from an early medieval British drink called "posset," which was hot milk flavored with spices and wine or ale. In the Middle Ages, posset was a popular cold and flu remedy.
True or False: Christmas trees are grown in all 50 states, including Alaska and Hawai'i.
Answer: True
98% of real Christmas trees sold in the US are grown on farms. Until the 1950s, Christmas tree production in the United States was largely limited to what could be harvested from natural forests.
Which of these means "a traditional Christmas song"?
a) carol
b) anthem
c) holiday song
Answer: a) Christmas carol
The word "carol" dates to about 1300, and comes from the Old French word carole meaning "joyful song" or a "round dance danced in a ring, accompanied by singers."
Which of these plants associated with Christmas is also used in some treatments for cancer?
a) holly
b) evergreen tree
c) mistletoe
Answer: c) mistletoe
According to a webpage maintained by the famous Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Hospital, mistletoe has some medicinal uses, including treating cancer and reducing side effects from cancer treatments. (However, mistletoe is poisonous if eaten by people or pets. It should only be used as an ingredient in special drugs administered by a medical doctor.)
Which beverage company's Christmastime advertising was responsible for creating the modern image of Santa Claus as a heavy-set, jolly, older gentleman wearing red?
a) Coca-Cola
b) The American Egg-Nog Company
c) Dr. Pepper
Answer: a) Coca-Cola
In 1931 Coca-Cola commissioned American artist Haddon Sundblom to develop images of Santa Claus. For inspiration, Sundblom turned to Clement Moore's 1822 famous poem "A Visit From St. Nicholas" (also called "'Twas the Night Before Christmas"). Moore's description of St. Nick led to an image of a warm, friendly, and pleasantly plump Santa. (Although it's often said that Santa wears a red coat because red is the color of Coca-Cola, images of Santa in a red coat pre-date Sundblom's illustrations.)
In the early 1800s in Germany, the first gingerbread houses were reportedly inspired by what famous fairy tale?
a) Hansel and Gretel
b) Snow White and the Seven Dwarves
c) Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Answer: "a"--Hansel and Gretel
In this famous Germany fairy tale, Hansel and Gretel are a brother and sister abandoned in a forest, where they fall into the hands of a witch who lives in a house made of gingerbread, cake, and candy.
How long on average does it take for a Christmas tree to grow before being sold?
a) Three to five years
b) Six to eight years
c) Eight to ten years
Answer: b) Six to eight years
In the popular carol "The 12 Days of Christmas," what gift is given on the second day of Christmas?
a) two partridges in a pear tree
b) two golden rings
c) two turtle doves
Answer: c) two turtle doves
Which of these is the highest-grossing* Christmas movie of all time?
a) How the Grinch Stole Christmas
b) Home Alone
c) Elf
*"Highest-grossing" means "earned the most profits."
Answer: a) How the Grinch Stole Christmas
How the Grinch Stole Christmas, released in 2002, is based on the Dr. Seuss book of the same name. An animated movie of the story was released in 1968 and continues to be popular, but it has was a made-for-TV movie, not made to be shown in theaters.
In which of these countries is Santa Claus known as Father Christmas?
a) The Philippines
b) Great Britain
c) Japan
Answer: b) Great Britain
Santa Claus is also called "Father Christmas" (though of course not in English) in France and Belgium, where he is "Père Noël."
This popular Christmas treat is made with flour, nuts, and candied fruit, Sometimes it is also soaked in alcohol such as whiskey or rum.
fruitcake
Fruitcakes which have been soaked in alcohol often have a very long shelf life because the alcohol preserves the other ingredients. A 106-year-old fruitcake discovered in 2017 was described as in "excellent condition" and "almost" edible!
What beverage company started to use Santa Claus in its advertising in 1931 and has continued to do so ever since?
a) Pepsi-Cola
b) The American Egg Nog Company
c) Coca-Cola.
Answer: c) Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola's Santa-themed Christmas ads were so popular that how Santa was depicted in them (wearing a red outfit with black boots, etc.) became the the dominant look Santa Claus has today.
In the song "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," what does Santa Claus say to Rudolph?
a) "You'll go down in history!"
b) "Rudolph with your nose so bright..."
c) "Your nose--I would even say it glows."
Answer: b) "Rudolph with your nose so bright..."
Santa says to Rudolph, "Rudolph with your nose so bright, won't you guide my sleigh tonight?" (It is Santa's other reindeer--who at the beginning of the song are mean to Rudolph and make fun of his red nose--who tell him at the end, "You'll go down in history!")
Which of these is not the name of one of Santa's eight reindeer?
a) Dasher
b) Vixen
c) Flyer
Answer: c) Flyer
The names of Santa's reindeer, according to the famous 1823 poem by Clement Moore, "A Visit from St. Nicholas" (commonly known as "The Night Before Christmas"), are Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, and Blitzen. (Many people today include Rudolph as a ninth reindeer, even though the song "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" was not written until the 1950s.)
True or False: Since 1955, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) has tracked Santa's whereabouts on Christmas Eve.
Answer: True.
n 1955 a young child, trying to reach Santa, instead dialed the US military's Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) Operations Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. Air Force Col. Harry Shoup, the commander on duty that night who answered that phone call, told the child he was Santa. After more calls for Santa came in, Shoup assigned another officer to continue answering as "Santa," and the tradition continued when NORAD was formed in 1958.
Each year, the NORAD Tracks Santa Web Site receives several million unique visitors from more than 200 countries and territories around the world. Volunteers typically answer more than 130,000 calls to the NORAD Tracks Santa hotline from children across the globe. Today, NORAD also allows kids to track Santa via Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter.
What food did "gingerbread" originally refer to?
a) It has always meant cookies or cakes made with ginger.
b) Prior to the 1800s, it was a a slice of bread served at Christmastime with ground ginger sprinkled on top.
c) It meant preserved ginger.
Answer: c) Preserved ginger
Originally, "gingerbread" (from Latin zingiber via Old French gingebras) referred to preserved ginger. It then referred to a candy made with honey and spices. Eventually the term was used to describe a traditional European pastry, very like a modern cookie, usually used to make gingerbread men.
What famous Christmas carol became the first song ever broadcast from outer space?
a) "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer"
b) “Jingle Bells”
c) "Santa Claus is Coming to Town"
Answer: b) “Jingle Bells”
"Jingle Bells” became the first song ever played in outer space when, on 16 December 1965, it was broadcast during NASA's Gemini 6A space flight.
Which of these is the name of a famous Christmas-themed ballet?
a) Tale of the Christmas Tree
b) The Snowflake Dance
c) The Nutcracker
Answer: c) The Nutcracker.
The Nutcracker, written by the famed Russian composer Tchaikovsky, premiered in St. Petersburg, Russia, in 1892. Today it is the most widely-performed ballet in the world.