Krampus is celebrated on December 5, the eve of St. Nicholas's day. This holiday is known as Krampusnacht (Krampus night).
Krampus is most often used as the "evil Santa" in media and pop culture today, which it how it was used in the Supernatural episode "A Very Supernatural Christmas" (S3E8).
Although this isn't technically an urban legend, but I thought it was a good legend for Christmas.
Information and Variations on Krampus
Where Krampusnacht is celebrated
- Germany
- Austria
- Hungary
- Slovenia
- Czech Republic
- Northern Italy
- Finland
- France
How Krampusnacht is celebrated (usually called Krampus Run)
- Adults dress up as witches, devils, or wild-men; drink schnapps; carry torches; scare children and other adults
Description
- 7 feet tall, hairy with bulging eyes, whip-like tongue, pointed ears, horns, and mismatched feet (1 cloven, 1 bear-like claw)
- Classic devil (horns, cloven hooves, monstrous tongue)
- Ominous gentleman dressed in black
- Hairy man-beast
- Half-goat, half-demon
- Long-horned, shaggy, goat-like monster with an angry face and a long, forked tongue
What Krampus carries
- Pitchfork
- Birch swatches
- Horsehair
- Loud bells
Punishment given to bad children
- Spanked
- Whipped with birch swatch or horsehair
- Shackled in basket, or sack, and dumped in his lair (aka hell) for 1 year, or until they're repentant
- Rusty chains
- Dragged to hell
- Beaten
- Kidnapped
- Nightmares
Other Names
- Knecht Ruprecht
- Certa
- Perchten
- Black Peter
- Schmutzle
- Pelznickel
- Klaubauf
Examples of Krampus in modern media
Movies
- Krampus (2015)
- Krampus: The Christmas Devil (2013)
TV Shows
- Supernatural, "A Very Supernatural Christmas"
- American Dad, "Minstrel Krampus"
- The League, "A Krampus Carol"
- Grimm, "Twelve Days of Krampus"
Books
- Santa's Twin by Dean Koontz
- Krampus: The Yule Lord by Gerald Brom
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