November 18, 2014

Grandfather Frost: More than Just Santa Claus


Grandfather Frost: More than Just Santa Claus

Today, November 18, is Ded Moroz’s birthday! Now, you might think that Ded Moroz (Grandfather Frost) is just your familiar Santa Claus in a blue coat, but in fact he is a powerful pagan god who just softened up a bit over the years.

Santa Claus and Ded Moroz have several superficial similarities: they’re old white men with long white beards, wearing heavy coats with white trim, giving out presents to the good little children (and often impersonated by the children’s parents). Given how much Russian New Year’s traditions have borrowed from the Western concept of Christmas, this apparent similarity comes as no surprise. Nonetheless, Ded Moroz has a few distinctly Russian qualities, above and beyond the color of his coat.

Morozko
Ded Moroz as the spirit of winter

1. Unholy origins: Centuries ago, Ded Moroz went by the name Morozko, a powerful and cruel god of frost and ice, married to the equally unforgiving Winter. He could freeze people and landscapes at will, including entire invading armies. In some tellings, he was capricious and unpredictable, and the newly established Russian Orthodox Church attempted to brand him as a demon, along with the other pagan gods. However, his more lasting image was of a wise and impartial old man, someone who would give everyone a second change and only freeze them if they persisted in their ways.

Snegurochka
Ded Moroz with Snegurochka (right)

2. Family matters: Santa Claus has his Mrs. Claus; Ded Moroz has a granddaughter, Snegurochka (from sneg, ‘snow’). As far as we know, Mrs. Claus is flesh and blood, but Snegurochka is made of snow, with predictable consequences. Before her association with Ded Moroz, she appeared in several Russian fairy tales, each of which ended with her melting.

Ded Moroz
Look at that embroidery - and that beard!

3. Attire: As mentioned above, Ded Moroz can sometimes appear in blue, or even white. But that’s not the main difference. In his clothing Ded Moroz is meant to look like a Russian nobleman from before Russia’s Westernization. His coat is not just trimmed in white: it is often richly embroidered with white or gold designs. A traditional fur-trimmed cap and felt boots complete the picture – don’t expect to see Ded Moroz in a Santa hat.

Ded Moroz's house
Ded Moroz's house in Velikiy Ustyug

4. Housekeeping: While we all know that Santa Claus lives at the North Pole, we don’t know exactly where: every country that borders the Arctic Ocean claims a location or postal address for Santa’s workshop. Ded Moroz, on the other hand, is very easy to locate: his house is located in Velikiy Ustyug, a few hours north of Moscow.

Troika
Ded Moroz in his signature troika

5. Transportation: You may be asking, where are the reindeer? Like a real Russian aristocrat, Ded Moroz rides in a troika – a sleigh pulled by a trio of three white horses representing the three months of winter. Not only do Russian children not have to rattle off the names of all 12 of Santa’s reindeer, their task of remembering the names of Ded Moroz’s horses was made easy for them by a popular children’s song.

 

Further reading on supercook.ru [ru]

Image credits: flickr.com, supercook.ru, souzspb.com

You Might Also Like

Christmastide Tradition
  • January 01, 1990

Christmastide Tradition

St. Nicholas, Babouschka, Christmas Eve festivities . . .Ded Moroz leading to Christmas on January 7th.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.
Marooned in Moscow

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
The Little Golden Calf

The Little Golden Calf

Our edition of The Little Golden Calf, one of the greatest Russian satires ever, is the first new translation of this classic novel in nearly fifty years. It is also the first unabridged, uncensored English translation ever, and is 100% true to the original 1931 serial publication in the Russian journal 30 Dnei. Anne O. Fisher’s translation is copiously annotated, and includes an introduction by Alexandra Ilf, the daughter of one of the book’s two co-authors.
The Samovar Murders

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.
At the Circus (bilingual)

At the Circus (bilingual)

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955