🦌🔔Mor Zokhe-Saint Nicolas: How Eventually became “Santa Claus”🦌🔔
Fri, Dec 12
|Zoom - 02:00 PM - ET
Explore the fascinating historical and linguistic journey of Mor Zokhe—Saint Nicolas, the revered 4th-century bishop known throughout Syriac-Aramaic tradition for his zīqā (“charity, generosity”) and steadfast defense of the vulnerable.
Time & Location
Dec 12, 2025, 1:00 PM – 1:55 PM CST
Zoom - 02:00 PM - ET
About the event
This webinar traces how his Semitic title “Mor” and his reputation as a patron of the poor traveled from the Eastern Christian world into Byzantine, Latin, and later Northern European cultures—gradually transforming Mor Zokhe into the figure we now recognize as “Santa Claus.”
Through a blend of historical sources, Syriac terminology, and cultural evolution, the webinar will illuminate how an Aramaic-speaking saint became a global symbol of gift-giving and winter celebration.