Where did Santa Claus, elves and reindeer come from? Was it just something to encourage people to be nice to each other?

Created to bring "gifts to good children" -- so maybe as an incentive to encourage children to be well behaved? The Dutch Sinterclaas: "Originally, the feast celebrates the name day of Saint Nicholas – patron saint of children, sailors, philatelists, and the city of Amsterdam." For more, read this -

Santa Claus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Claus)