December 6 is St. Nicholas Day. And for centuries, children have placed their freshly cleaned boots outside their front door the night before, so that St. Nicholas can fill them with sweets, tangerines and nuts overnight. Find out what’s behind this popular custom, how children can safely clean their shoes for St. Nicholas, and why the saying goes “Clean shoes are a must, St. Nicholas won’t put anything else in them” here.
"According to tradition, St. Nicholas brings his gifts only to the good children.“
Who was St. Nicholas?
Bishop shrouded in legend, benefactor and generous bringer of gifts: so many miracles are attributed to Saint Nicholas that facts and myths of saints of two historical persons, namely Bishop Nicholas of Myra (4th century) and Abbot Nicholas of Sion (6th century), ultimately gave rise to a single “our Nicholas.” The good deeds of the two are the reason why we celebrate St. Nicholas Day to this day and dutifully shine our shoes during Advent.
Why does St. Nicholas bring gifts to children?
Saint Nicholas has always been revered as the patron saint of children. According to legend, he saved three bitterly poor girls from a tragic fate by secretly hiding three gold nuggets in their house one night.
Since the Middle Ages, therefore, on the night of December 6 – the anniversary of the death of Bishop Nicholas of Myra – parents put fruit and goodies on gift plates and in their children’s shoes.
Shoe shine, Santa Claus is coming!
This is probably the only custom in which shining shoes plays a role! According to tradition, St. Nicholas brings his gifts only to good children. According to tradition, the cleanliness of the shoes is considered proof of how well-behaved they have been the past year. If the boots are dirty, however, there’s coal, potatoes or a rod from the Krampus. (Or from the Kramperl or from the Bartl…).
Since December 5 is probably the only day of the year on which children voluntarily clean their shoes, you can use the opportunity to explain to your offspring how to clean their shoes:
For St. Nicholas boot cleaning with children
Children should never handle shoe polish unsupervised. But together and in anticipation of Santa Claus, brushing boots and applying shoe polish can be really fun for kids.
Be careful not to let your child out of your sight and prevent shoe cleaning products from getting to the face and especially the mouth. After that, you need to wash your hands thoroughly.
- You’re best to start brushing off street dust on the balcony or in the yard. Make sure your child doesn’t brush in front of their face or towards their face so they don’t inhale the dirt particles. Always brush away from the head and possibly put on a mask!
- Back indoors, it’s time to clean and, if leather, give the boots a little shine! Put on first enough newspaper, so that also may be spilled.
- After that, don’t forget to wash your hands well!
- As a crowning finale, the clean boots can be proudly placed in front of the door. Santa Claus is sure to come!
Smooth leather shoes: For children from primary school age, a quick cleaner in the form of an express sponge with integrated shoe emulsion is ideal.
Moon boots and shoes made of artificial leather: Cleaning foam is used for synthetic materials. Children can also easily apply this and wipe it off again with a cloth.
