December 6 is St. Nicholas Day according to the Gregorian calendar, December 19 - according to the Julian calendar. Children look forward to this holiday with special expectation, because well behaved find under the pillow gifts-Mikolaychiki.
"Apostrophe" tells about the history and traditions of the holiday.
What is known about St. Nicholas
The figure of St. Nicholas is the incarnation of humanity, kindness and high moral values. This day reminds of charity and care, helping the poor and sick people.
St. Nicholas is the symbol of the New Year holidays, during Soviet times was replaced for Ded Moroz.
According to legend, Nicholas was born in a family of wealthy Greeks who were Christians. His parents had no children for a long time and in their prayers promised to God that for the birth of a child they would devote him to the priesthood. When born, he did indeed become a priest and then a bishop in modern-day Turkey. The name means "the people's victor". In other languages, the name sounds like Nicholas, Niklas, Niklas, Klaus, Mikulas, Mikulasz and Miklos.
After the death of his parents, received a significant inheritance, but did not live in luxury, and began to give away goods to others, who really needed it. There are many legends about this.
Even at a young age he began to take care of orphans and abandoned people to help and protect them. There are legends about the extraordinary power of his prayers, which he used to calm hurricanes, save fishermen from certain death and heal the sick.
It is known why there is a tradition of putting presents in socks. He once decided to help his poor sisters, that no one wanted to take as wives because of their poverty. He threw three bags of gold coins down the chimney and some of them got into sisters' socks that were drying in front of the fire.
On the day of the Saint's death it is a tradition to give presents on behalf of St. Nicholas.
St. Nicholas died on December 6 around 345 - 352.