Traditions are sculptures that little by little have been carved by the passage of time and the history inherent to the regions of the world. None of them is usually preserved as it was at its birth and, on the contrary, new traditions are added that result in syncretism. That has precisely happened with the story of the evil Krampus, which could be said to be the yang that accompanies the sweetness and goodness of Santa Claus.
Krampus in modernity
Nowadays in German regions such as Germany, Austria and Slovenia, the arrival of Christmas brings with it a very marked duality. Although the night of Santa Claus’s arrival represents prosperity wrapped in celebration, which in turn comes accompanied with the reward for the good deeds of children; There is also the counterpart in the tradition called Krampusnacht.
According to tradition, Krampus night is celebrated on December 5. It is on this date when the streets of the German countries are filled with creatures with disfigured faces and eyes full of anger. It is not about the arrival of a supernatural being, but rather young people have the habit of dressing up as the mythical creature during the tradition of Krampusnacht or Krampuslauf.
The Krampus is a large bipedal creature covered in jet black fur. His face is somewhat disfigured and stands out for his enormous fangs. Two large horns curl around his head, showing his half-goat, half-demon lineage, which can also be seen in his goat legs.
With cowbells in their hands, the Krampus go out to parade during the night of December 5 and carry with them their sacks where they put all those children who misbehaved. The very antithesis of the idea of Santa Claus. However, although the modern Krampus coexists with the Christian tradition of Christmas, it actually has a much older origin, which was later used to try to erase all traces of paganism and ended up being incorporated into Christian traditions.
The origin of Krampus
The roots of Krampus are far from traditions like Christmas, which comes directly from the Christian religion. On the other hand, the idea of the devil dates back to pre-Germanic paganism that was established in the region many centuries ago.
Its name comes from the German word ‘krampen’ whose translation is ‘claw’ and its origin is intrinsically linked to that of Norse mythology. According to this, Krampus is the direct son of the Norse god of the underworld who is named Hel. Hence the demonic form of him that is evident with the large fangs and terrifying face of him.
In the 12th century, the Catholic Church attempted to banish celebrations of Krampus Night due to its similarity to the Devil in their view. However, it seems that the pagan tradition in one way or another survived the ban and continued to infiltrate the Germanic settlers. This is how a syncretism emerged between Christian and pagan traditions, which now coexist in those regions of the planet where the idea of Santa Claus is accompanied by his antithesis, Krampus.