For generations, many people have believed Santa Claus wears a red suit because of Coca-Cola. While the soft drink company helped popularize the image worldwide, historians say Santa’s red attire has much deeper roots—stretching back centuries before the first Coke holiday advertisement appeared.
The origins of Santa Claus trace back to St. Nicholas of Myra, a real-life 4th-century bishop who lived in what is now modern-day Turkey. Known for his generosity, particularly toward children and the poor, St. Nicholas traditionally wore red and white bishop’s robes, a style that influenced early depictions of the figure who would later evolve into Santa Claus. His feast day, celebrated on December 6, helped cement his legacy throughout Europe.
As St. Nicholas’ legend spread, his image evolved. In the Netherlands, he became Sinterklaas, a gift-giver who arrived on horseback. In England, elements of Father Christmas, a symbol of feasting and holiday cheer, merged with the St. Nicholas tradition. Folklore and even Norse mythology—such as Odin’s sky-riding “Wild Hunt”—also influenced the developing character.
When Dutch settlers brought Sinterklaas to New Amsterdam (now New York) in the 17th century, the figure began to take on a distinctly American identity. That transformation accelerated in 1823 with the publication of “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” better known as “The Night Before Christmas.” The poem portrayed Santa as a cheerful, magical gift-bringer traveling by sleigh and reindeer, though it did not specify the color of his clothing.
The modern visual image of Santa began to solidify in the late 19th century thanks to political cartoonist Thomas Nast. In a series of illustrations for Harper’s Weekly in the 1880s, Nast depicted Santa as a plump, jolly man wearing a red suit with white fur trim. These images gained widespread popularity and helped standardize Santa’s appearance, though other depictions at the time still showed him in green, blue, brown, or even animal skins.
It wasn’t until the 1930s that Santa’s red suit became nearly universal. Coca-Cola, seeking a warm and friendly holiday figure for its advertising, commissioned artist Haddon Sundblom to create illustrations of Santa Claus. Inspired by Nast’s drawings and Clement Clarke Moore’s poem, Sundblom portrayed Santa as cheerful, rosy-cheeked, and dressed in a bright red suit that matched Coca-Cola’s branding. Beginning in 1931, those advertisements spread the image across magazines, billboards, and storefronts worldwide.
Despite popular belief, Coca-Cola did not invent Santa’s red suit—but its advertising power helped cement it in global culture. Long before soda ads, the red-and-white attire was already tied to the historical St. Nicholas and reinforced through 19th-century art and literature.
Today, Santa Claus stands as a blend of history, folklore, poetry, and marketing—a timeless holiday icon whose red suit reflects centuries of tradition rather than a single corporate campaign.
