Father Christmas vs Santa Claus: Is There a Difference?
Father Christmas vs Santa Claus: is there a difference? Today, no. In British homes they are the same man with the white beard, the sack and the reindeer. But they started out as two quite different characters, and you can still hear the difference in how families talk.1
Father Christmas is the older one. He is a very English figure who stood for feasting and merrymaking for centuries, long before he brought anyone a present. Santa Claus came from America in the 19th century, and over a few decades the two simply merged into one.2
Below you will find the differences at a glance, a short history from Tudor carols to Victorian Christmas cards, and the latest figures on whether Britons say Santa or Father Christmas. Spoiler: it is now a dead heat.
Father Christmas and Santa Claus: the differences at a glance
| Father Christmas (old English) | Santa Claus (American) | |
|---|---|---|
| Where from? | England, personification of Christmas since at least the 15th century | New York, from the Dutch Sinterklaas (St Nicholas) |
| Original job | Feasting, merrymaking and good cheer for grown-ups | Bringing presents to children |
| Classic look | Long fur-lined robe, often green, sometimes a holly wreath | Red suit or coat with white fur, belt and boots |
| Presents? | Not at first, only from Victorian times | Yes, from the start |
| Reindeer and sleigh | No, borrowed from Santa in the 19th century | Yes, since the 1823 poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas" |
| Today | The same person as Santa in British homes | The same person as Father Christmas |
Compiled from the Library of Congress folklife team2 and the history of the figure on Wikipedia.1 In short: Father Christmas was the spirit of a good party, Santa Claus the man with the presents. Since about 1900 both names mean the same thing.
Father Christmas and Santa in numbers
Who was the original Father Christmas?
England personified Christmas long before anyone talked about Santa. A 15th-century carol, "Sir Christèmas", attributed to Richard Smart, rector of Plymtree in Devon, greets Christmas like a jolly visitor and tells everyone to make good cheer.5 That was his job: food, drink, singing and fun, mostly for adults.6
By the 16th century he was usually pictured in long fur-lined robes, green or scarlet.6 In 1616 the playwright Ben Jonson put "Old Christmas" on stage in Christmas, His Masque, dressed in deliberately old-fashioned clothes as a reminder of merrier days.2
The Puritan ban on Christmas
In June 1647 Parliament passed an ordinance that abolished Christmas, Easter and Whitsun altogether.1 Royalist writers fought back with pamphlets in which Old Father Christmas stood for the good old days. One of them, Josiah King's The Examination and Tryall of Old Father Christmas (1658), is the earliest source for the name "Father Christmas" recognised by the Oxford English Dictionary.1 Christmas came back with the Restoration in 1660.
Dickens and the green robe
In A Christmas Carol (1843) the Ghost of Christmas Present is not called Father Christmas, but he clearly is him: a giant in a green robe trimmed with white fur, with a holly wreath, sitting among food and a wassail bowl.71 So if you spot a green Father Christmas on an old card, he is not wrong, just traditional.
When did Father Christmas become Santa Claus?
Santa Claus grew up in New York out of the Dutch Sinterklaas, St Nicholas. The poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas" (1823) gave him his sleigh and reindeer, and the cartoonist Thomas Nast later fixed his look.8 The full story of the saint behind him is in our article St Nicholas vs Santa Claus.
This American Santa arrived in Britain in the middle of the 19th century, the sources say from the 1850s or around the 1860s.12 Victorian Christmas was turning into a family festival for children, and Father Christmas took on Santa's habits: presents, stockings, the chimney.
By 1883, a French visitor noted as common knowledge that Father Christmas comes down chimneys and puts toys and sweets in stockings.2 By the early 20th century the last differences had faded, and modern dictionaries treat the two names as synonyms.1
| Year | What happened |
|---|---|
| 15th century | The carol "Sir Christèmas", attributed to Richard Smart of Plymtree in Devon, greets Christmas as a jolly guest |
| 1616 | Ben Jonson brings "Old Christmas" on stage in Christmas, His Masque |
| 1647 | Parliament abolishes Christmas, Easter and Whitsun; Royalists make Father Christmas their symbol |
| 1658 | Josiah King's pamphlet gives the earliest Oxford English Dictionary citation of "Father Christmas" |
| 1660 | The ban ends with the Restoration |
| 1843 | Dickens publishes A Christmas Carol; the Ghost of Christmas Present wears a green, fur-trimmed robe |
| 1850s to 1870s | The American Santa Claus arrives in Britain with his sleigh and reindeer |
| 1880s | The two figures merge: Father Christmas now comes down the chimney with toys |
| early 1900s | The last differences fade; dictionaries treat both names as the same |
Did Coca-Cola make him red?
No. Coca-Cola used a red Santa in its adverts from the 1930s, but red and white robes were around long before.8 We have looked at the myth in detail in Did Coca-Cola invent Santa?.
Santa or Father Christmas: what do Britons say today?
For a long time Father Christmas was the British default. In 2017, YouGov found 51% of Britons used it, against 36% for Santa Claus. By November 2025 the two names were level at 46% each.3
| Group | Say "Father Christmas" | Say "Santa" |
|---|---|---|
| All Britons, 2017 | 51% | 36% |
| All Britons, 2025 | 46% | 46% |
| Aged 65 and over | 62% | 31% |
| Aged 50 to 64 | 56% | 37% |
| Aged 25 to 49 | 39% | 53% |
| Aged 18 to 34 | 29% | 64% |
| Scotland | 10% | 84% |
Source: YouGov.3 The pattern is clear: grandparents tend to say Father Christmas, younger parents and their children say Santa. And in Scotland, Santa wins by a mile. In Wales he has a third name, Siôn Corn, and you will find many more in Santa in different languages.
Mince pies, carrots and a drop of sherry
Whatever you call him, the Christmas Eve ritual is very British. In a YouGov survey of 398 children aged 6 to 10, 92% said they leave something out. 77% put out a carrot for the reindeer and 64% a mince pie for Father Christmas, followed by a glass of milk (41%).9
If your child is starting to ask whether he is real at all, our article Is Father Christmas real? has gentle ways to answer. The median age at which Britons say they stopped believing is 8.4
Use these facts
Writing about Christmas in Britain or running a family website? Feel free to use the table and figures. A link back to this page is much appreciated:
<a href="https://personalisedsantavideo.co.uk/blog/father-christmas-vs-santa-claus/">Father Christmas vs Santa Claus</a>
Father Christmas vs Santa Claus: common questions
Is Father Christmas the same as Santa Claus?
Today, yes. Both names mean the same jolly man with the white beard who brings presents on Christmas Eve. Historically they were different: Father Christmas was the old English spirit of Christmas cheer, Santa Claus the American present-bringer, and the two merged in Victorian Britain.
What is the difference between Father Christmas and Santa Claus?
Origin. Father Christmas grew out of English folklore and stood for feasting and fun for adults. Santa Claus came from the Dutch Sinterklaas in New York and was always about gifts for children. Since the late 19th century they have been one figure.
Why do the British call Santa Father Christmas?
Because Father Christmas is the older, native English name. He was around for centuries before Santa Claus arrived from America in the 19th century, so many families simply kept the name they already had.
Do more people in the UK say Santa or Father Christmas?
It is now a tie. In YouGov's 2025 survey Britons split 46% to 46%. In 2017 Father Christmas still led by 51% to 36%. Younger adults and Scots mostly say Santa.
Was Father Christmas originally green?
Often, yes. Older pictures show him in long fur-lined robes in green or scarlet, and Dickens's Ghost of Christmas Present, based on him, wears green. The red and white look became standard when he merged with the American Santa.
What do you leave out for Father Christmas in the UK?
Traditionally a mince pie for him and a carrot for the reindeer, often with a glass of milk or a small sherry. In a YouGov survey of 6 to 10 year olds, 64% left a mince pie and 77% a carrot.
Sources
- 1Wikipedia: Father Christmas (en.wikipedia.org)
- 2Library of Congress, Folklife Today: Christmas Cousins, Father Christmas and Santa Claus (2018) (loc.gov)
- 3YouGov: The YouGov Big Survey on Christmas, what do Britons call Saint Nick? (2025) (yougov.com)
- 4YouGov: How old were Britons when they stopped believing in Father Christmas? (2023) (yougov.com)
- 5Wikipedia: Sir Christèmas (en.wikipedia.org)
- 6HeritageDaily: Father Christmas vs Santa Claus (2021) (heritagedaily.com)
- 7Wikipedia: Ghost of Christmas Present (en.wikipedia.org)
- 8History Hit: The history of Father Christmas (historyhit.com)
- 9YouGov: What treats do children leave out for Father Christmas? (2017) (yougov.com)