Krampus

TheKrampus(German:[ˈkʁampʊs]) is a hornedanthropomorphicfigure who, in the Central and EasternAlpinefolkloric tradition, is said to accompanySaint Nicholason visits to children during the night of 5 December (Krampusnacht; "Krampus Night"), immediately before theFeast of St. Nicholason 6 December. In this tradition, Saint Nicholas rewards well-behaved children with small gifts, while Krampus punishes badly behaved ones withbirch rods.
The origin of the figure is unclear; somefolkloristsandanthropologistshave postulated that it may have pre-Christian origins.In certain traditional parades and in such events as theKrampuslauf("Krampus run"), some young men dressed as Krampus attempt to scare the audience with their antics. Krampus is featured on holiday greeting cards calledKrampuskarten.
The figure has been imported into popular culture around the world, and has appeared in movies, TV shows and games.
Discussing his observations in 1975 while inIrdning, a small town inStyria, anthropologist John J. Honigmann wrote that:
Krampus is usually featured as a man with horns with one grotesque human foot and one foot of a goat. He is typically covered in black hair and has a very long snake or dragon-like tongue. These qualities have increasingly made Krampus a character for horror costumes and films.
In the 17th century Krampus was paired withSt. Nicholasas a helper. Because Nicholas is a saint, it wasn’t logical or deemed saintly behavior for Nicholas to deliver punishments. Therefore a helper was assigned to St Nicholas; such asFarmhand Rupert, Schmutzli,Père Fouettard, orZwarte Piet, who would go down the chimney or punish the naughty children. Krampus served St Nicholas in the same role.
In the aftermath of the 1932 election inAustria, the Krampus tradition was prohibited by theDollfussregimeunder theclerical fascistFatherland Front(Vaterländische Front) and theChristian Social Party.
In the 1950s, theGovernment of Austriadistributed pamphlets titled "Krampus Is an Evil Man" for fear that encounters with Krampus might damage children's mental health.Towards the end of the century, a popular resurgence of Krampus celebrations occurred and continues today.
The Krampus tradition is being revived inBavariaas well, along with a local artistic tradition of hand-carved wooden masks.
Although Krampus appears in many variations, most share some common physical characteristics. He is hairy, usually brown or black, and has one foot that has thecloven hoovesand horns of a goat. His long, pointed tongue drops out,and he has fangs.
Krampus carries chains, thought to symbolize the binding ofthe Devilby theChristian Church. He thrashes the chains for dramatic effect. The chains are sometimes accompanied with bells of various sizes.Krampus will carry a bundle ofbirchbranches with which he occasionallyswats children.The birch branches are replaced with a whip in some representations. On Christmas Eve, Krampus travels with a sack or a basket strapped to his back; this is to cart off evil children for drowning, eating, or transport toHell. Some of the older versions make mention of naughty children being put in the bag and taken away.This quality can be found in othercompanions of Saint Nicholassuch asZwarte Piet.
TheFeast of St. Nicholasis celebrated in parts of Europe on 6 December.On the preceding evening of 5 December, Krampus Night orKrampusnacht, 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 appears in theEastern Ritevestmentsof a bishop, and he carries a golden ceremonial staff. Unlike North American versions of Santa Claus, in these celebrations Saint Nicholas concerns himself only with the good children, while Krampus is responsible for the bad. Nicholas dispenses gifts, while Krampus supplies coal and theRute.
There were already established pagan traditions in theAlpine regionsthat became intertwined with Catholicism. People would masquerade as a devilish figure known asPercht, a two-legged humanoid goat with a giraffe-like neck, wearing animal furs.People wore costumes and marched in processions known asPerchtenlaufen, which are regarded as an earlier form of the Krampus runs.Perchtenlaufenwere looked at with suspicion by the Catholic Church and banned by some civil authorities. Due to sparse population and rugged environments within the Alpine region, the ban was not effective or easily enforced, rendering the ban useless. Eventually thePerchtenlauf, inspired by the Nicholas plays, introduced Saint Nicholas and his set of good morals. ThePerchttransformed into what is now known as the Krampus and was made to be subjected to Saint Nicholas' will.
It is customary to offer a Krampusschnapps, a strong distilled fruit brandy.These runs may includePerchten, similarly wild pagan spirits ofGermanic folkloreand sometimes female in representation, although thePerchtenare properly associated with the period betweenwinter solsticeand 6 January.
Every year there are arguments during Krampus runs. Occasionally spectators take revenge for whippings and attack Krampuses. In 2013, after several Krampus runs inEast Tyrol, a total of eight injured people (mostly with broken bones) were admitted to theLienzdistrict hospital and over 60 other patients were treated on an outpatient basis.
Europeans have been exchanginggreeting cardsfeaturing Krampus since the 19th century.Sometimes introduced withGruß vom Krampus(Greetings from Krampus), the cards usually have humorous rhymes and poems. Krampus is often featured looming menacingly over children. He is also shown as having one human foot and one cloven hoof. In some, Krampus has sexual overtones; he is pictured pursuing buxom women.Over time, the representation of Krampus in the cards has changed; older versions have a more frightening Krampus, while modern versions have a cuter, moreCupid-like creature.Krampus has also adornedpostcardsand candy containers.
Krampus appears in the folklore ofAustria,Bavaria,Bosnia and Herzegovina,Croatia, theCzech Republic,Hungary,Romania,Bulgaria,Northern Italy(Autonomous Province of Trento,South Tyrol, andFriuli-Venezia Giulia),Slovakia, andSlovenia.
InStyria, theRuteis presented by Krampus to families. The twigs are painted gold and displayed year-round in the house—a reminder to any child who has temporarily forgotten Krampus. In smaller, more isolated villages, the figure has other beastly companions, such as the antlered "wild man" figures, and St Nicholas is nowhere to be seen. These Styrian companions of Krampus are calledSchabmännerorRauhen., and are similar to thekukeridancers ofBulgaria.
A toned-down version of Krampus is part of the popular Christmas markets in Austrian urban centres likeSalzburg. In these, more tourist-friendly interpretations, Krampus is more humorous than fearsome.
North American Krampus celebrations are a growing phenomenon.
Similar figures are recorded in neighboring areas.Strohbartin Bavaria,Klaubauf(mann)in Austria and Bavaria, whileBartlorBartel,Niglobartl, andWubartlare used in the southern part of the country. Other names includeBarrelorBartholomeus(Styria),Schmutzli(German-speaking Switzerland),PöpelorHüllepöpel(Würzburg),Zember(Cheb),BelzmärteandPelzmärtel(SwabiaandFranconia). In most parts of Slovenia, whose culture was greatly affected by Austrian culture, Krampus is calledparkeljand is one of the companions of Miklavž, the Slovenian form of St. Nicholas.
In many parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia, Krampus is described as a devil wearing a cloth sack around his waist and chains around his neck, ankles, and wrists. As a part of a tradition, when a child receives a gift from St. Nicholas he is given a golden branch to represent his good deeds throughout the year; however, if the child has misbehaved, Krampus will take the gifts for himself and leave only a silver branch to represent the child's bad acts.
The character of Krampus has been imported and modified for various North American media,including print (e.g.,Krampus: The Devil of Christmas, a collection of vintage postcards byMonte Beauchampin 2004;Krampus: The Yule Lord, a 2012 novel byGerald Brom),Krampus, a comic book series fromImage Comicsin 2013 created by Dean Kotz and Brian Joines, television – both live action ("A Krampus Carol", a 2012 episode ofThe League) and animation ("A Very Venture Christmas", a 2004 episode ofThe Venture Bros.;"Minstrel Krampus", a 2013 episode ofAmerican Dad!), video games (CarnEvil, a 1998arcade game;The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth, a 2014 video game), and films (Krampus, a 2015 Christmascomedy horrorfilm fromUniversal Pictures.,andRed One, a 2024 Christmasaction adventure comedyfilm fromSeven Bucks ProductionsandAmazon Studios).
Anisocentropus krampus, a species ofcaddisfly.
Austrosphecodes krampus, a species ofsweat bee.
Microbacterium phage Krampus(Krampusvirus krampus).
Protomelas krampus, a freshwateractinopterygianfish, is named after Krampus.