Sumerians? Hmmm... Sumerians had reindeer in the Paleolithic age. Santa Claus has reindeer. Santa must come from Paleolithic Sumeria?!
Let’s just say I need convincing. And my Sumerian cuneiform reading skills are a little rusty.
Why is it that when I type Sumerian and Santa into Google, the first hit is a Free Republic article about Fred Phelps?
Two characters regularly found in the mud of Mesopotamia, particularly in the upland areas to the North, are minatures of both reindeer and an elderly, jolly gentleman with a white beard.
Some of these things have been dated to as early as 7,000 BC. There are many other similar items found in strata where data was not possible. There is no reason to believe the Sumerians or their ancestors in Eurasia waited until the 8th millenium BCE to begin making miniatures.
The last of the great Eurasian ice sheets extended from Fenno-Scandia to beyond the Urals. Took a long time to melt. In the interim it was a great place to hunt.