Krampus

Krampus is a mythological character in Christmas folklore, a companion of Santa Claus. On the eve of the Christmas holiday, Krampus accompanies Santa Claus, punishing naughty children and scaring them, and also tempts women and engages in all sorts of indecency with them. When Krampus finds the naughty child, he stuffs it into his sack and takes the frightened child into a cave to eat for Christmas dinner. In older versions of the legends, Krampus kidnaps children and takes them to his creepy castle, and then dumps them into the sea.

Krampus is depicted as a furry demon with long horns and claws. Legends of Krampus go back to pagan times and were associated with the arrival of winter and the decrease in daylight hours. They were distributed in the territory of modern Austria, Germany, Hungary and northern Italy. However, over time, the attitude towards the Krampus has changed a lot. Currently, Krampus, although he appears in a terrible and evil form, is still a character of the Christmas holidays.

According to other versions, the name Krampus comes from the old German dialects common in Austria. There, the word krampus was found in the names of figurines made from dried plums, and meant - withered, dried, lifeless. The action itself takes place at the beginning of winter and precedes the onset of the darkest time of the year. Krampus personified the evil spirits of winter and, with their terrible appearance, reminded people of their inevitable arrival, of the onset of a long, cold and dark season.

During the spread of Christianity, the Krampus became the personification of devils and other evil spirits. The appearance of the Krampus changed in accordance with the changing ideas about the terrible and repulsive appearance of humanoid creatures. During the time of Christianity, he acquired the "devil-like" appearance of a shaggy creature with burning eyes, terrible teeth and horns. This is how it has survived to this day. According to old beliefs, Krampus is the ancient horned god of fertility, and therefore he can attack a woman with quite unambiguous intentions.

The holiday, “Krampusiana”, has been preserved, it takes place on December 4-6. Unlike previous times, this action has become cheerful, setting people in a good mood. With the onset of darkness, many people dressed in animal skins and terrible masks with horns and fangs appear. Very often they are hung with chains, cow bells and other "noisy" pieces of iron, mummers stick to passers-by, scare children and create maximum noise and confusion on the streets.

## **History**

There are mentions of Krampus even in pre-Christian German folklore and it was connected with the arrival of winter and the shortening of the daylight hours. Thus he personified the evil spirit of winter. The word «Krampus» itself comes from the old German word «krampen», which means «somebody», or according to other versions, from the Bavarian «Krampn» - something dead, withered.[1] According to some characteristics, it shows similarity with satires from ancient Greek mythology[1][2]. In the earlier period, especially during the Inquisition, the Catholic Church forbade celebrations with the participation of carved, horned creatures. However, the tradition of depicting Krampus was preserved, and by the 17th century it was established in Christmas celebrations as a companion of St. Nicholas[3]. In the 20th century, the Austrian government did not encourage the depiction of Krampus. After the civil war in 1934, the Dolphus regime, on the initiative of the Christian Socialists and the Patriotic Front, imposed a ban on this tradition[4]. In the 1950s, the government distributed pamphlets on the topic "Krampus - spawn of evil"[5]. However, by the end of the century there was a revival of celebrations with the participation of Krampus, and now this tradition remains popular[6]. At the same time, there was a public discussion in Austria about the permissibility of using the image of Krampus for small children[7].