圣诞老人民间传说的因素还来自于德国的传统。在德国古老的神话中，欧丁神会在圣诞节那天为众神和死去的勇士举办盛大的狩猎狂欢会。所以对于孩子来说，这是个古老的传统，他们会在自己的靴子里塞满胡萝卜、稻草或者糖块并将靴子放在烟囱的附近，以便让欧丁奔驰的骏马斯雷皮涅来吃。欧丁会把麋鹿的食物换成礼物或者糖果，作为好心孩子的回报。这些习惯在德国(还有比利时和荷兰)被基督化后保留了下来并和圣•尼克拉斯联系起来。今天，孩子们仍然将长袜或者短袜放在烟囱的附近，以便圣诞老人放礼物进去。

    In the Netherlands, Saint Nicholas is also known by the shortened form of his name Sinterklass. The popular North American form Santa Claus is actually a mispronunciation of the Dutch form. Parallels in the lore of Santa's helpers can also be traced to stories told in the Netherlands about a young Ethiopian slave boy named Peter. According to the story, Saint Nicholas freed Peter from a Myra market, and the boy was so thankful he decided to stay with Nicholas as a helper. In Dutch, Nicholas's helper is known as Zwarte Piet (black Peter).

    Many have felt the name to contain racial connotations. Today, Zwarte Piet has become a modern servant who has a black face because he climbs through chimneys and gets soot all over him.

    在荷兰 ......