Santa Maria

Santa María (with diacritic over the "i") or Santa Maria may refer to:

People

Churches

Maria

Maria may refer to:

People

Fictional characters

Santa Claus

Santa Claus, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle, Santy, or simply Santa is a mythical figure with historical origins who, in many Western cultures, brings gifts to the homes of well-behaved, "good" children on Christmas Eve (24 December) and the early morning hours of Christmas Day (25 December). The modern Santa Claus is derived from the British figure of Father Christmas, the Dutch figure of Sinterklaas, and Saint Nicholas, the historical Greek bishop and gift-giver of Myra. During the Christianization of Germanic Europe, this figure may also have absorbed elements of the god Odin, who was associated with the Germanic pagan midwinter event of Yule and led the Wild Hunt, a ghostly procession through the sky.

Santa Claus is generally depicted as a portly, joyous, white-bearded man—sometimes with spectacles—wearing a red coat with white collar and cuffs, white-cuffed red trousers, and black leather belt and boots and who carries a bag full of gifts for children. Images of him rarely have a beard with no moustache. This image became popular in the United States and Canada in the 19th century due to the significant influence of the 1823 poem "A Visit From St. Nicholas" and of caricaturist and political cartoonist Thomas Nast. This image has been maintained and reinforced through song, radio, television, children's books and films.

Maria Maria

"Maria Maria" is a song by Santana featuring The Product G&B. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on April 8, 2000, and stayed there for ten weeks. At the 2000 Grammy Awards, the song won the Grammy for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. Despite other lead singers from the album receiving awards, The Product G&B did not receive a Grammy. Marc Anthony also sang on a version of the song.

In 2008, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Hot 100 chart, Billboard compiled its list of the top 100 songs since the inception of the chart in various categories. "Maria Maria" came in at No. 96 on the list of the Billboard All-Time Hot 100 Top Songs, and No. 2 on the list of Top Billboard Hot 100 Latin Songs of All Time. Later, it was named the 14th most successful song from 2000 to 2009, on the Billboard Hot 100 Songs of the Decade.

Carlos Santana has collaborated with Chef Roberto Santibañez to open five restaurants named Maria Maria, after the song. The majority are located in the San Francisco Bay Area, other locations include Arizona and Texas.