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The Krampus is an old Christian character from old world Catholic Christmas traditions. The Krampus is one of the variations of St Nicholas’s helpers; a tradition where another character is assigned St Nicholas’s naughty list duties. The Krampus is a horned anthropomorphic goat figure with one human foot and a very long tongue who, in Central and Eastern Alpine folkloric tradition Christianity, is said to accompany Saint Nicholas on visits to children during the night of 5 December (Krampusnacht; "Krampus Night"), immediately before the Feast of St. Nicholas on 6 December. The Krampus knocks on the doors of children’s homes to warn them to be good, or otherwise he will return on Christmas Eve with St. Nicholas. In this tradition, Saint Nicholas rewards well-behaved children with small gifts, while Krampus punishes badly-behaved ones with birch rods. After World War One, Krampus traditions began to be banned, and almost disappeared entirely as Europe replaced their St Nicholas traditions with the kinder version of the American Santa Claus. In the 21st century, a modern resurgence of Krampus has spread due to the popularity of a Hollywood movie and television shows. The modern adaptations of Krampus are slightly different, and their costumes are often confused with other Central European mythical creatures, such as Straeggle, Straggle, Pervhta, or Perchten. This is most likely due to Hollywood and TV studios mistakenly confusing the Krampus with the ornate Perchten masks from the Czech Republic. Etymology Krampus is thought to come from either Bavarian: krampn, meaning "dead", "rotten", or from the German: kramp/krampen, meaning "claw". The Krampus is considered to be a half-goat, half-demon monster in some legends. Its role is to punish bad children or scare them into being good. Origins The Krampus is thought to be inspired by other mythical creatures, such as the Perchten or Straggele, though there are no written sources before the end of the 16th century. Discussing his observations in 1975 while in Irdning, a small town in Styria, anthropologist John J. Honigmann wrote that: The Saint Nicholas festival we are describing incorporates cultural elements widely distributed in Europe. St. Nicholas himself became popular in Germany around the eleventh century. The feast dedicated to this patron of children is only one winter occasion in which children are the objects of special attention, others being Martinmas, the Feast of the Holy Innocents, and New Year's Day. Masked devils acting boisterously and making nuisances of themselves are known in Germany since at least the sixteenth century while animal masked devils combining dreadful-comic (schauriglustig) antics appeared in medieval church plays. A large literature, much of it by European folklorists, bears on these subjects. ... Austrians in the community we studied are quite aware of "heathen" elements being blended with Christian elements in the Saint Nicholas customs and in other traditional winter ceremonies. They believe Krampus derives from a pagan supernatural who was assimilated to the Christian devil. The Perchten figures persisted but are unrelated to the Krampus. Krampus is a Perchten and Straggele inspired figure; but has very distinct physical traits that make Krampus unique to his cousins. Krampus is usually featured as a man with horns with one grotesque human foot and one foot of a goat, typically covered in black hair, and unique to Krampus; also a very long snake or dragon like tongue. In the 17th century Krampus had been paired with St. Nicholas as a helper. Because Nicholas is a saint, it wasn’t logical or deemed a saintly behavior for Nicholas to deliver punishments. Therefore a helper was assigned to St Nicholas; such as Farmhand Rupert, Smultzi, or Père Fouettard who would go down the chimney or punish the naughty children. Krampus served St Nicholas in the same role. Modern history In the aftermath of the 1932 election in Austria, the Krampus tradition was prohibited by the Dollfuss regime under the clerical fascist Fatherland Front (Vaterländische Front) and the Christian Social Party. In the 1950s, the government distributed 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 in Bavaria as well, along with a local artistic tradition of hand-carved wooden masks. In 2019 there were reports of drunken or disorderly conduct by masked Krampuses in some Austrian towns. Antisemitic Undertones Evolution of Krampus' into a popular anti-Christmas figure has been linked to antisemitic undertones in the portrayal of Krampus, particularly in comparison to historical depictions of Jewish people. The imagery of Krampus, with devilish and grotesque features, parallels antisemitic caricatures that emerged in European art. This parallel is evident in the portrayal of Krampus with hooked noses, beards, and horn-like features, which have historically been used to stereotype Jews in Christian art. The association of Krampus with Jewish stereotypes can be used to depict Jews in a negative light. This imagery contributed to the portrayal of Jews as "other" and was often associated with devilish or demonic qualities. Appearance Although Krampus appears in many variations, most share some common physical characteristics. He is hairy, usually brown or black, and has one foot that is a cloven hooves and horns of a goat. His long, pointed tongue drops out, and he has fangs. Krampus carries chains, thought to symbolize the binding of the Devil by the Christian Church. He thrashes the chains for dramatic effect. The chains are sometimes accompanied with bells of various sizes. Krampus will carry a bundle of birch branches with which he occasionally swats 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 to Hell. Some of the older versions make mention of naughty children being put in the bag and taken away. This quality can be found in other companions of Saint Nicholas such as Zwarte Piet. Jewish Physiognomy Stereotypes Krampus' appearance, characterized by horns, hooves, fur, hooked nose, beard, dark hair, fangs, and a long tongue, has been linked to antisemitic stereotypes in European art. The depiction of Krampus with a hooked nose and grotesque features mirrors the stereotypical images of Jews in historical central European art. This similarity raises questions about the implicit messages conveyed through Krampus' portrayal. Artistic representations of Krampus alongside Saint Nicholas further emphasize this contrast. For instance, early 20th-century Austrian postcards depict Krampus with a devilish appearance, cont.... Discover the Monte Beauchamp popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Monte Beauchamp books.