Why Famous:His reputation for secret gift-giving (such as putting coins in the shoes of those who left them out for him) made him the model for Santa Claus.
Nicholas was an early Christian bishop in the city of Myra in Asia Minor under the Roman Empire. A number of miracles are traditionally attributed to him and he is this patron saint of sailors, merchants prostitutes and children.
Little details are known of his life but he is thought to have attended the First Council of Nicaea in 325.