The KB collection is full of books about Sinterklaas, showing exactly how he evolved over time. We keep these books to enable research into our culture or history.
What do we know about Sinterklaas?
Sinterklaas is based on the Turkish Saint Nicholas, who lived in the 4th century CE. After inheriting money from his parents, he used it to carry out many good deeds, the stories and legends of which first emerged about 200 years after his death. For example, he is said to have provided dowries for the three daughters of a poor nobleman, throwing gold coins through the window and possibly laying the foundation for the practice of throwing sweets. In another story, the money ended up in the girls' shoes, thus inspiring the tradition of putting out a shoe for Sinterklaas.
St. Nicholas is also the patron saint of sailors, which explains why many port cities have a Saint Nicholas church. Sinterklaas' connection to the sea has persisted to this day – he still sails on his steamer from Spain every year.
St. Nicholas Day
In Europe, St. Nicholas Day has been celebrated since the 13th century. In mediaeval times, a child bishop and helpers would be chosen from amongst the city's poor on 6 December. These children would then be given food and lavished with gifts until 28 December, the day of the Feast of the Holy Innocents. All the other children were given money and a day off, so they could celebrate on 6 December. In the Netherlands, this highly Catholic festival disappeared in the 16th century, when Protestantism rapidly gained in popularity. The celebration slowly came back into fashion in the 19th century, but it was not until 1934 that Sinterklaas had his first 'official' arrival in Amsterdam. This big annual event was first televised just 18 years later, in 1952.
Sinterklaas's helpers
Tante Keetje's prentenboek. Tante Keetje [1854].
Sinterklaas originally worked alone, banging on doors and windows and gathering up naughty children in his burlap sack himself. In this picture from a translation of a German children's book titled Tante Keetje's prentenboek (1854), Sinterklaas is not accompanied by his helpers, nor does he look like a Christian saint.
It was not until later that Sinterklaas got his companion, Piet. The exact origins of Piet are shrouded in mystery and his appearance and name changed over the years. One hypothesis is that the character is based on Moorish pages or squires, but he might also have been inspired by Italian chimney sweeps. We do know that Piet makes his first appearance in Sint Nikolaas en zijn Knecht by Jan Schenkman, where he is depicted as a black man wearing an Oriental-looking costume.
The Piet debate
Piet has increasingly found himself at the centre of the racism debate over recent years. As December approaches, the KB is often asked whether we plan to remove Sinterklaas books from our collection. The answer is no. We are a national library and believe in the importance of preserving everything regardless of content. We do so to enable research into our cultural heritage. In the video below, we explain why this matters.
Sinterklaas in pictures
St. Nikolaas-geschenk aan de jeugd. E.J.B. Schonck [1814].
The earliest image of St. Nicholas dates from 1814, although it does not actually depict Sinterklaas. All you can see is a staff and a door behind which someone appears to be standing. By 1850, it is common for Sinterklaas to appear in full. This trend was likely started by Amsterdam educator Jan Schenkman (1806-1863), who authored St. Nikolaas en zijn Knecht, the first picture book we know of that features the modern Sinterklaas festival. You can find St. Nicholas en zijn knecht in the KB collection.
There are thousands of books about Sinterklaas in our collection, showing exactly how Sinterklaas and the festival developed over time. We've selected several images from these books to illustrate the evolution. Click on the images to enlarge them and see the catalogue number.
Disclaimer
These images may be perceived as offensive, discriminatory or racist. Please read our disclaimer to see how KB handles works of this kind.
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Sint Nikolaas en zijn knecht. J. Schenkman [184X].
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Sint Nikolaas-vertellingen voor de jeugd. C. van Schaick [1849].
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Sint Nikolaas-vertellingen voor de jeugd. C. van Schaick [1849].
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Sint Nikolaas en zijn knecht. Jan Schenkman [1850].
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Sint Nikolaas en zijn knecht. Jan Schenkman [187x].
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Sint Nikolaas en zijn knecht. J. Schenkman [1880].
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Bosch-viooltjes. Ant. L. de Rop [1883].
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St. Nikolaas en zijn knecht. J. Schenkman [ca.1885].
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Groot Sint-Nicolaasboek: met toepasselijke gedichtjes. door F.G. Bos [ca. 1886].
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Nieuw St. Niklaas boek. Tante Frankie [1906].
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Sint Nicolaas en zijn knecht. J. Schenkman [ca. 1907].
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Van Spanje naar ons land: reisbeschrijvingen van St. Nicolaas. Schetsen van Corns de Bruin [ca. 1920].
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Als het 6 december wordt: 12 oude en nieuwe St. Nicolaasliefjes. Philip Kruseman [1921].
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Piet de Smeerpoets: vroolijke verhaaltjes en grappige prentjes, naar Struwelpeter. Oom Gus [1922].
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Het nieuwe St. Nicolaasboek. Anna Sutorius [1925].
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Op deze afbeelding zijn de algemene gebruiksvoorwaarden van KB.nl van toepassing.
Sinterklaas kapoentje / versjes van A.B. van Tienhoven ; met platen van Freddie Langeler. - Alkmaar : Gebr. Kluitman, [1928]. - 22 p. : 10 gekl. ill. ; 23×30 cm
Sinterklaas kapoentje. A.B. van Tienhoven [1928].
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Om stil te luisteren. C. Asscher-Pinkhof [1930].
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St. Nicolaas. S.M. Bouman-van Tertholen [ca. 1935].
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Een avontuurlijke reis van St Nicolaas in 1833. Overbeeke [194-?].
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Sint Nicolaas is in het land. Cees Woltman [194-?].
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Zie de maan schijnt.... . Auteur onbekend [194-?].
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Sinterklaas is weer in 't land. Dick Vandé [194-?].
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Sint Nicolaas. Karel Hendrik van Seben [194-?].
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De legende van den Heiligen Nicolaas. Nellie Burgdorffer en Oeke Wieringa [1942].
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St. Nicolaas komt. Teekeningen van Sjoerd de Vries [ca. 1945].
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Klaas: een Sinterklaasverhaal. W.G. van de Hulst [1945].
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Waarom Sint-Nicolaas in 1944 niet bij de Rotterdamsche kindertjes kon komen rijden. B. Stroman [1945].
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Sinterklaas en Pieterbaas. S. Abramsz [1947].
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Sinterklaas blijft een zomer over. Henriette van Eyk [1948].
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Liederenbundel voor Sinterklaas. Auteur onbekend [195-?].
Read more
Books
- Marcus Vankan, Heilige Nicolaas, bruggenbouwer tussen Oost en West: 1700 jaar devotie, legenden en volksgebruiken, 2020.
- Eugenie Boer & John Helsloot, Het Sinterklaas boek, 2009.
- Bram van der Vlugt, Erik van Muiswinkel & Jochem Myjer, Sinterklaas bestaat!, 2012.
- W.M. Nijkamp, Kind en Sint: opvoedingsproblemen in Sinterklaastijd, 1952.
Articles
- Frits Booy, "Het sinterklaasfeest in negentiende-eeuwse kinderboeken", in: De boekenwereld, vol. 33 (2017), afl. 4, p. 58-63.
- Frits Booy, "Het beeldbepalende sinterklaasboek van Jan Schenkman uit 1850", De Boekenwereld, vol. 31 (2015), p. 62-69.
- Willem Koops, Madelon Pieper en Eugenie Boer (red.), Sinterklaas verklaard, 2009.
- P.J. Buijnsters en L. Buijnsters-Smets, Lust en leering. Geschiedenis van het Nederlandse kinderboek in de negentiende eeuw. Zwolle, Waanders, cop. 2001.
