Krampus: The Christmas Devil

With the new Christmas horror Krampus coming out, it’s the perfect time to share some information on this “evil Santa”.

In Austro-Bavarian Alpine folklore, Krampus is a horned, anthropomorphic figure who punishes children that have misbehaved. He is the opposite of Saint Nicholas, who rewards the well behaved with gifts. Krampus is known by many names across the Continental Europe: Knecht, Ruprecht, Certa, Perchten, Black Peter, and a few others. According to legend, Krampus punishes the bad seeds by swatting them with switches and rusty chains before dragging them in baskets to hell.

The existence of Krampus is celebrated on Krampusnacht, which is the eve of St. Nicholas’ Day. In several places across Europe, party-goers masquerade as devils, wild-men, and witches to participate in the Krampus Run, known as Krampuslaf. These party-goers are usually intoxicated and carrying torches which leads to the fear in children and adults alike. Krampushnacht is being celebrated more and more in other countries in Europe, and even many American cities.

Though Krampus has been feared and reveled throughout history, he’s recently been making appearances in North American media. He has been in many television shows (including American Dad) and is the star of a Christmas comedy horror movie released by Universal Pictures starring Adam Scott and Toni Collette.

Regardless of whether you believe in such a mythical creature, you better hope you’re on the “nice” list and won’t get a visit from him.

Thanks to cleopatra. and losing control. for editing.