to sit on Santa’s lap
—| B2-C1 (upper-intermediate to advanced) |—
In North American culture, this phrase is often used at Christmas time, particularly with children. This expression means:
to place yourself on the knee or thigh of Santa Claus while he is sitting in a chair
In North American malls, children with their parents can be seen lining up to sit on Santa’s lap and tell him what they would like for Christmas. After they do so, elves take their picture and hand it over to the parents for a cost. Sometimes, teenagers or adults will even sit on Santa’s lap for fun, nostalgia, or the irony of it all.
Sitting on Santa’s lap has been a Christmas tradition since the 19th century and continues to be popular among young kids and their families. This is especially true as you can even see this happening at homes across the continent. At Christmas family gatherings, sometimes an adult relative can be seen dressing up as Santa Claus for all the kids. Depending on the child, they will either love doing this or hate doing this. It is not uncommon to see photos of someone’s kid crying out in terror on Santa’s lap in a mall or family home. Though some find this sad or torturous, many find this adorable, and so they continue participating in this tradition with their young ones, year after year.
Still taken from the film “Miracle On 34th Street” (1994).
Have you participated in this tradition either as a child or parent/caregiver? How was the experience for you? Let me know in the comments below.
To learn about more Canadian holidays, including vocabulary related to these holidays, check out the Holidays link in the Tags section of our blog.
