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Buon Onomastico – St. Nicola

I will always remember the feast day of St. Nicola because my grandmother would always send a card to my dad on Dec. 6. It was also the start of the Christmas season for us as we would always get a little something from St. Nick. 

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St. Nicholas Dayfeast day (December 6) of St. Nicholas, the 4th-century bishop of Myra. St. Nicholas is the patron saint of Russia and Greece, of a number of cities, and of sailors and children, among many other groups, and was noted for his generosity. Some countries celebrate St. Nicholas Day on December 5. Saint Nicholas Day is celebrated on Monday, December 6, 2021. 

History

After the Reformation, St. Nicholas was largely forgotten in Protestant Europe, although his memory was kept alive in Holland as Sinterklaas. There St. Nicholas is said to arrive on horseback on his feast day, dressed in a bishop’s red robe and mitre and accompanied by Black Peter (Zwarte Piet), variously described as a freed slave or a Moor, to help him distribute sweets and presents to good children or lumps of coalpotatoes, or switches to bad ones. The Dutch took the tradition to New Amsterdam (now New York City) in the American colonies, where he was transformed into Santa Claus by the English-speaking majority. His legend of a kindly old man was united with old Nordic folktales of a magician who punished naughty children and rewarded good children with presents. The resulting image of Santa Claus in the United States crystallized in the 19th century, and he has ever since remained the patron of the gift-giving festival of Christmas. In Britain he was largely replaced with Father Christmas.

Saint Elizabeth of Portugal (Aragon) my 20th Great Grandmother

When I began my search for my ancestors, little did I know that I would uncover that I would find at least 23 saints that were direct ancestors.  Of course, once you go back this far, there are millions of cousins out there, but you have to be able to find that starting point.  I was lucky enough to find that link through my paternal great grandmother Emilia Caracciolo Di Torchiarolo. Saint Elizabeth Aragon’s relation

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Saint Ferdinand of Castile my 21st GG

There is a long history of Ferdinand’s ancestors and descendants across many of my great great grandparents from Castile, Aragon and Leon. Ferdinand III Ferdinand III, also called Saint Ferdinand, Spanish San Fernando, (born 1201?—died May 30, 1252, Sevilla; canonized February 4, 1671; feast day May 30), king of Castile from 1217 to 1252 and of Leon from 1230 to 1252 and conqueror of the Muslim cities of Córdoba (1236), Jaén (1246), and Sevilla (1248).

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Prince ( Saint ) Mikhail Vsevolodovich and Princess Maria Romanovna my 23 Great Grandparents

Saint Michael of Chernigov[1] or Mikhail Vsevolodovich[2] (c. 1185 – Saray, 20 September 1246) was a Rus’ prince (a member of the Rurik dynasty).[3] He was grand prince of Kiev (1236–1240, 1240, 1241–1243); and he was also prince of Pereyaslavl (1206), of Novgorod-Seversk (1219–1226), of Chernigov (1223–1235, 1242–1246), of Novgorod (1225–1226, 1229–1230), and of Halych (1235–1236).[2] Realtionship Chart to Prince Mikhail Relationship Chart Archaeological evidence reveals that Chernihiv towns enjoyed an unprecedented degree of prosperity during his

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