Here's an interesting quote I found in a news article...

"Santa has a remarkably American accent (I guess he should be as non-national as possible). His voice isn't deep enough."

This was originally posted on an scrapbooking forum in regards to a website called, "Santa's Journal", which runs podcasts of the jolly old elf himself, talking about his day-to-day operations as CEO of the world's most famous toy factory.

So, exactly how does one speak as "non-national as possible"? If you don't speak in an American accent, how do you speak English with no accent at all?

The Santa Claus that we all imagine in our heads actually comes from two places: Clement Clark Moore, and Coca-Cola, both American institutions.

Moore wrote the poem "A Visit From Saint Nicholas" more commonly known as "The Night Before Christmas". Moore describes him in great detail, including this famous line...

He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.

At the time Moore wrote this, there really wasn't a common understanding of what St. Nicholas looked like, except for what had been depicted by painters and writers before him. Keep in mind that Moore wrote this poem for his kids, and it stands to reason that he wanted to create an image that would fill their minds with wonder and joy.

In the decades that followed, companies commissioned artists to create advertising using the image of Santa Claus pitching their products. Being that Moore's depiction was the only popular one available, this is how the image of Santa Claus was solidified.

It wasn't until 1931 when Haddon Sundblom began painting a series of highly popular advertisement posters for Coca-Cola depicting Santa in full Americana form, that left us with the present day incarnation of the jolly old elf.

To sum it up, Santa Claus is who he is today because of the American way of life. The way we see him and understand him now, is an embodiment of American culture and enterprise.

I suppose Santa Claus is also personal to each of us. He does, in fact, keep a list with everyone's name on it, and he knows who's been naughty or nice. For that reason, each of us maintains a personal connection to him, giving us hope that he'll overlook the bad things we did, and remember all the good stuff.

If he's personal to each of us, then perhaps it makes us feel better to know that he speaks with the same accent as each of us do, and even the same language for that matter. But he still has the belly that shakes like a bowl full of jelly, and he still has the long white beard, and the red cheeks. And I guess he'll always drive a team of flying reindeer pulling a sleigh, and he'll always live at the North Pole.

And I suppose for that matter, I'll always picture him with a bottle of Coke.