"Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"
On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"
"A Visit from St. Nicholas" (aka "The Night Before Christmas") was first published anonymously in a New York magazine, The Sentinel, in 1823. In 1844, the Reverend Clement Clarke Moore, an eminent professor of Greek, claimed authorship "A Visit from St. Nicholas".
According to Reverend Moore, he had written A Visit for his children in 1822, but had not sent it to the magazine. "Someone must have copied it without my knowledge," he suggested.
A competing claim was then made by the family of another poet, Henry Livingston Jr. Livingston had died in 1828, without leaving physical evidence of his authorship. But recent computer analysis of the previously published poetry of both men has suggested Livingston had a strong case.
Cultural influence
As Britannica summarises it, "St. Nicholas did much to establish him as the joyful, plump, toy-bearing Santa Claus of the American Christmas tradition."
That 'Christmas tradition' was amplified by Hollywood in the 20th Century but has a universal resonance
Louis Armstrong had a deprived, Dickensian childhood, but retained his reverence for the magic of Christmas. One of his last-ever recordings is, for many, the definitive reading
Take it away, Sachmo!
Full poem free to access form Poets.org here