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KRAMPUS – THE CHRISTMAS DEMON

It is the night of December 5 in the Alpine countries. The inhabitants of a small village in this region rest at home after a long day of work, and the children go to bed worried, hoping they will not attract an evil demon into their room and drag them to hell. Then footsteps are heard slowly walking through the dark and narrow snow-covered streets. Some frightened villagers look out the window to see the beast that appears each year during the winter with a thunderous noise. They know what he wants and hope he does not knock on their door since his visit is not pleasing.

It is Krampus, the Christmas Demon, who, by ringing bells and with iron chains tied around his hands, announces that naughty, disobedient, disrespectful children and those who got bad grades at school will not receive Santa’s visit.

Christmas is a time of happiness and family reunions. The children do not go to school and receive many gifts and sweets. However, some are not so lucky and experience the dark side of Christmas since Santa Claus has them on the list of those who did not behave well. Santa gave that list to his faithful and wicked friend, a terrifying demon who, on Christmas Eve, punishes misbehaved children by whipping them with a stick until they become good. Sometimes, he places them in a basket he carries on his back, throws them into a lake, or takes them directly to hell to devour them.

Krampus is half goat, half demon. It has twisted horns, a large hairy body, a human foot, a goat foot, large fangs, pointy ears, his mouth is stained with blood, a very long tongue, and a long serpentine tail. It is a character that comes from the folklore of the Alpine region of Austria, where it has been scaring children and surprising adults for hundreds of years. The word Krampus is derived from the Old German Krampen, which means claw, and is said to be the son of Hela, the Goddess of Death and keeper of the underworld, in Norse mythology.

Today the “Annual Krampus Night Festival” is still celebrated in Austria and throughout the Alpine region, such as Germany, Switzerland, parts of France, northern Italy, the Czech Republic, and Slovenia. This tradition is over 500 years old, and men and women dress up as the same Christmas devil. They wear costumes made of goatskin, large horns, and terrifying wooden masks with the monstrous image of Krampus. They walk through the streets with torches, chains, and rods, chasing and whipping people and terrorizing children.

There should be rewards and consequences for our actions, but if Santa Claus isn’t enough of a reason to keep kids from misbehaving, then they surely need a visit from Krampus.

AUTHOR: ALPINE FOLKLORE

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