One of the earliest mentions of Zwarte Piet is in Jan Schenkman's Saint Nicholas and his Servant; Schenkman describes Piet as a black-a-moor, and as a page. In 1891, in the book Het Feest van Sinterklaas the servant is named Pieter. By the early 20th century, in the Civilized Standard Celebration for Children, which had spread throughout Scandanavia, Zwarte Piet was the personal servant of the Saint. The number of Sinterklaas' servants expanded to include a number of “Piets,” such as "Hoofd Piet" (Head Piet) who carries the book of Sinterklaas, "Rijm Piet" (Rhyme Piet), et cetera, until the Saint arrives assisted by dozens of Piets.
The origin of Sinterklaas and his helpers can be traced back to the mythology of Wodan and the Wild Hunt, which saw Wodan leading the hunt riding through the air on his white horse Sleipnir. He was always accompanied by two black ravens, who would listen at chimneys to report to Wodan about the good and bad behaviors of humans. With the coming of Christianity, it was decided by Pope Gregory I that the best way to win the people over to Christianity was to merge their myths with Christian ideas and values. Wodan's mythology was merged with that of Saint Nicolas or Sinterklaas. According to myths Saint Nicholas (Sinterklaas) operated by himself or in companionship with the devil. This was a testament to the triumph of good over evil. It was said that on Saint Nicholas' Eve, the devil was shackled and made his slave. A devil as a helper of the Saint can also still be found in Austrian Saint Nicholas tradition in the character of Krampas. (These were all based on Afrikan cosmology, particularly, the Ausarian Drama, where Heru having been victorious over him evil uncle Set, punishes him by making him the force that propelled the sun across the sky. This was not a triumph of good over evil but of “evil” being used in the service of good.) Other sources suggest that in Germania, Zwarte Piet originally was the devil forced to assist his captor; however, by the 19th century Zwarte Piet, within the Netherlands, was a servant of Saint Nicholas resembling a black-a-moor or Moor.
According to the modern Saint Nicholas legend, Zwarte Piet is a servant who accompanies Saint Nicholas on his holiday travels. Other versions says Saint Nicholas liberated a young slave named Peter, who decided to repay Santa for his freedom by becoming his servant! Zwarte Piet today is depicted as a black person, somewhat slow of wit, dressed in the colorful pantaloons, feathered cap and ruffles of a European page.