Krampus is coming soon, but who is he?

Here is another blog post I posted before a few years ago, but as Krampus is still gaining popularity and thanks to the internet, all sorts of weird claims about him surface every year, I want to repost this too. Who the heck is Krampus?

I hope you enjoy this (again) and if you do, don;t forget to scroll to the bottom to leave a comment or subscribe to the blog and never miss a post.

As you know, if you read my ‘About me’, I was born and grew up in Germany, so you should think that the inherent German figure of Krampus is something I am very familiar with. Well, I am and I am not. When I was a child St Nikolaus, the patron saint of children, would come to bring small presents, mainly sweets, for the good kids on December 5th evening or on St Nikolaus day the 6th of December. Side Note: This isn’t Santa Claus, who is basically an American invention.The Christmas and Yule traditions of western Europe deserve an entire write up for themselves. The legend, where I grew up, was that St Nikolaus was accompanied by ‘Knecht Ruprecht’ (Pronounced ˈknɛçt ˈruːprɛçt, it’ll hurt your throat that one!). A figure described very variedly throughout Germany, but one thing is always the same, he was there to punish the naughty children. Either by giving them a piece of coal as a present, by carrying them off in a sack or by beating them with a bundle of birch sticks we called ‘Rute’. My mum described him to me as a demonic man, all black with burning eyes and in chains being dragged along by St Nikolaus.

The depiction of ‘Knecht Ruprecht’ I grew up with.

That was the lore I grew up with and while I was visited by St Nikolaus lots of times, my parents always made sure I got an in person visit, I never encountered Knecht Ruprecht. Maybe I really was that nice (ha!) or maybe my parents decided against traumatising me at the age of 5. Whatever the reason, I was never visited by St Nikolaus’ demonic side kick. I know my mum definitely encountered him when she was a child and it frightened the living daylights out of her.

Over the last 100 years Knecht Ruprecht slowly disappeared as an active figure from the St Nikolaus lore in the part of Germany I lived in. I think my own son probably heard of him, but I am pretty certain that anyone his age, in their twenties now, would not have encountered this spooky figure. The punishment of the naughty kids fell to St Nikolaus himself and the ‘Rute’ was also now wielded by the main man. The punishment itself was also defused, nobody actually got beat or put in a sack anymore.

Until I was an adult I had never heard the name Krampus. But a bit of research shows that Knecht Ruprecht and Krampus are likely close to the same entity. A demonic side-kick to ‘Santa’ coming to punish the naughty children on the 5th of December. Other names used are ‘Black Peter’, ‘Pelznickel’, ‘Perchten’, ‘Certa’ and ‘Klaubauf’. Why the name ‘Krampus’ is the one that is now mainly used, is anyone’s guess.

Black Peter, Krampus, Knecht Ruprecht…different names for the same character.

All over the internet you can read that the name Krampus is derived from the German word ‘Krampen’ meaning claw. The only modern German word I know to mean claw is ‘Kralle’ However, that doesn’t necessarily mean this translation is wrong, it’s more likely a very old word. It’s also worth pointing out that Germany has a ton of dialects, some are almost separate languages, and it is entirely possible that it comes from one of the Alpine dialects, which is where Krampus makes most of his appearances.

Does Krampus have Pagan origins? I would say that’s highly likely! Just look at his appearance for starters, described as ‘horned, antropomorphic’ figure. You could say it’s an alpine goat crossed with a human. These kind of descriptions in Christian lore for spirits or demons pretty much all come from pagan origins. Just think of Pan or the horned God who was basically being turned into Satan.

The version of Krampus we all start being more familiar with again.

There is a train of thought that says he is the son of Hel, the nordic Queen of the underworld, but there is actually no evidence for that, even if it might not be a stretch to associate the son of the Queen of the underworld with the Winer Solstice or with Yuletide, the darkest time of the year, this claim ignores the wonderful lore of the southern Alpine regions who have their very own spirits, myths and legends, that had nothing to do with Norse mythology at all. Plus, Krampus isn’t actually known in Nordic lore.

It is also entirley possible that his origins weren’t evil at all and that his incorporation into a Christian world turned Krampus into something he never was. As was the case for Perchta, originally an Alpine Goddess now often referred to as a ‘terrifying Christmas witch’. Her entourage were the ‘Perchten’ and some of them were described as having ‘horns, hoofs, and tails’. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? There are areas in Tyrol you can witness what’s called a ‘Perchtenlauf’, people pretending to be dark spirits or entities running through the streets. Yes, just like a Krampus Run!

I guess it’s one of those things, like many Pagan traditions, that were never written down anywhere, they were simply done, passed on from generation to generation and when a different belief system took over it got swept up in it. What his real origins are remains a mystery, but with his incorporation into Christmas celebrations, along with a lot of other Pagan traditions like the winter solstice, holly wreaths and Yule logs, he became the frightening figure he is now. One thing we do know, is that the Krampus has seen an increase in popularity in the recent years. We even got a horror movie named after him, which might be the entire reaosn for his new foudn fame. Not the first time the movie industry has influenced traditions and believes (remember the Ouija borad thing?)

It might also be because alternative religious festivals are getting more popular or  maybe it is a counter reaction to the overly kitsch commercialisation of Christmas, but whatever the reason, Krampus has definitely made a come back on a larger scale.

Movie poster of the horror movie ‘Krampus’. ‘Von drauß von Walde…’ is the beginning of a well known German Christmas poem.

Krampus now has his very own European festival, where he before was very much part of St Nikolaus Eve. ‘Krampusnacht’ celebrated on the 5th of December has gone from a local thing in certain Alpine areas to seeing a real renaissance, especially with the Pagan community.

Like a lot of resurrected traditions, it is likely that we now celebrate it totally different to the way it was originally intended. Does that matter? I don’t think it does. Rituals and festivals have been adapted to the times they are performed in, for as long as they have been celebrated. I believe it’s a fabulous idea to research the origins of something if you actively want to engage in it, but if you are just being dragged along by a friend to a Krampus run, nobody expects you to know about all its Pagan origins and connection to Alpine lore first. Just celebrate and have a good time!

Krampus run in Whitby

There are more and more Krampus runs being organised over Europe, an event where people dressed as Krampus walk through the streets threatening or chasing spectators. A fairly large amount of alcohol might sometimes be involved too. There’s even one in Whitby, UK and if you manage to go to one, you will likely have a fantastic time out. Whitby Krampus Run Event

I still have not managed to go, but it is firmly on my to-do list!

During the dark days of winter having a great time with family and friends is irreplaceable. So go celebrate whatever tradition, ritual and festivity you can find and enjoy it! Blessings to you and yours

Images taken from the internet, if you know any of the artists or photographers, please let me know!