Well, it’s Christmas Eve, and we’ve finally come to the end of the Christmas Creature Countdown series. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading them as much as I’ve enjoyed researching and writing them.
I’m leaving the best till last. He is the one most widely recognised globally, especially in the past few years. He draws inspiration from, and bears many similarities to, the narratives and origins of the previously mentioned creatures. He’s inspired all kinds of pop culture from literature to music, film and television. He’s a character we’re encouraged to fear but have instead begun to embrace and love.
I am indeed talking about Krampus – originally of German and Austrian folklore, but it is celebrated and observed in the Czech Republic, Croatia, Slovenia, Hungary, Liechtenstein and Italy.
The figure’s origin is unclear; some folklorists and anthropologists have suggested it may be pre-Christian, though historians generally consider this unlikely, as it is not attested until the 16th century, in certain traditional parades and at events such as the Krampuslauf (“Krampus run”), some young men dressed as Krampus attempt to scare the audience with their antics. Krampus is featured on holiday greeting cards called Krampuskarten. It also seems likely that Krampus is a retelling and or amalgamation of the same characters mentioned in previous posts – especially Frau Perchta and Père Fouettard.
Although Krampus appears in many forms, most share common physical traits. He is hairy, horned, usually brown or black, and has one foot with the cloven hooves of a goat, a gaping fanged mouth and a pointed tongue that curls out.
He is often depicted carrying chains, which are thought to symbolise the Devil’s binding by the Christian Church. He thrashes the chains for dramatic effect. Bells of various sizes sometimes accompany the chains. And much like Père Fouettard, He will also carry a bundle of birch branches (or in some depictions a whip) with which he occasionally swats children.
On the eve of St. Nicholas Day (6th of December), Krampus travels with St. Nicholas, a sack or basket strapped to his back, to cart off evil children for drowning, eating, or transport to Hell. Some of the older versions make mention of naughty children being put in the bag and taken away.
The Feast of St. Nicholas is celebrated in parts of Europe on 6 December. On the preceding evening of the 5th of December, Krampus Night or Krampusnacht, the wicked hairy devil appears on the streets. Sometimes accompanying St. Nicholas and sometimes on his own, Krampus visits homes and businesses. The Saint usually occurs in the Eastern Rite bishop’s vestments and carries a golden ceremonial staff. Unlike the North American Santa Claus, in these celebrations Saint Nicholas attends only to the good children, while Krampus attends to the bad. Nicholas dispenses gifts, while Krampus supplies coal and the birch rods. During this time, it is customary to offer a Krampus schnapps, a strong distilled fruit brandy.
As it so happens, over the past few years, the world (not just Germany and Austria) has slowly opened up to the idea of Krampus and is integrating him into our own Christmas celebrations. In a few more years’ time, we may even see a global rise in popularity that mirrors Santa himself. Is the idea of punishing naughty children with a horned devil, lumps of coal and lashings from birch branches something that you could see celebrated in the near future or is the threat of Santa’s naughty list more than enough?
Let us know in the comments…..
Well, I hope you enjoyed this series. There are still plenty of other characters that can be added to the list. It’s definitely an interesting, deep, dark rabbit hole worth going down – in fact, it almost appears that Christmas has far darker traditions historically compared to what we celebrate today.
I’d like to wish you all a Merry Christmas from the Paranormal NZ family and my family to yours. Hopefully, Krampus or any of his mates don’t turn up tonight and give you 20 lashings and a lump of coal for your troubles – unless that’s your thing (we don’t judge).
Until next year, stay safe
-Sam 
