Krampus

What it is

Krampus belongs to the winter customs of the Alpine region. People describe him as a companion of Saint Nicholas, the saint whose feast falls on 6 December. The pair visit children on the evening before. Nicholas looks after the good ones and gives them small presents. Krampus looks after the rest, rattling chains, carrying a bundle of birch twigs and sometimes a sack or basket. Older tellings say a misbehaving child could be put in the sack and carried off. The figure appears in many variations, but the horns, the fur and the long tongue stay much the same.

Origins and history

Nobody knows where the figure began. Some folklorists and anthropologists have suggested that he may come from pre-Christian beliefs, but historians generally doubt this, because he is not recorded before the 16th century. In the 17th century he was paired with Saint Nicholas as a helper, since punishing children did not suit a saint. After the 1932 election in Austria, the Dollfuss government banned the tradition. In the 1950s the Austrian government handed out pamphlets warning that meeting Krampus could harm children. Interest returned later in the century and has kept growing since.

How it is kept

On 5 December, called Krampusnacht, masked figures take to the streets. Some walk beside a man dressed as Saint Nicholas in bishop's vestments, carrying a golden staff. Others go out in groups on their own. The young men in costume chase and frighten onlookers, and crowds come to watch. These processions are known as Krampuslauf, or Krampus runs. In them, the saint attends to the good children and Krampus to the bad, handing out coal and birch rods rather than gifts. Similar runs are held in villages and towns through the Alpine winter.

Appearance and objects

Most depictions share the same features. Krampus is covered in hair, brown or black, with horns on his head. One foot is grotesque and human, the other is a goat's hoof. His tongue is long and pointed, like a snake's, and he has fangs. He carries chains, understood as a sign of the devil held bound by the church, and shakes them for dramatic effect. Bells of different sizes often hang from the chains. In his hand is a bundle of birch branches, or a whip in some versions, and on his back a sack or basket.

Today and change

Krampus runs have spread far beyond the Alps. Austrian towns put on gentler versions for Christmas markets, where the figure is played more for humour than fear. In Bavaria the tradition is being revived, along with a local craft of carving wooden masks by hand. North American celebrations are growing too. The character has moved into films, television, games and comic books, and onto greeting cards, which Europeans have exchanged since the 19th century. Each year the runs also bring trouble: spectators sometimes hit back at the whippings, and in 2013 several people in East Tyrol were hurt.

How Krampus is kept

Krampusnacht falls on 5 December. That evening, people in costume walk the streets, sometimes alongside a figure of Saint Nicholas and sometimes without him. The masked ones rattle chains, swing birch bundles and chase the crowd. Runs may also include Perchten, wild figures from an older Alpine custom. In some places a bundle of gilded birch twigs is brought to a household and kept on display all year. Strong fruit brandy, offered as Krampus schnapps, is shared with those taking part.

When and where

The night of 5 December, known as Krampusnacht, is the eve of the Feast of Saint Nicholas on 6 December. The date is fixed in the church calendar, so it falls on the same day each year. Krampus runs and Perchten processions continue through the winter, and the Perchten season runs to 6 January.

Krampus belongs to the Central and Eastern Alps. He is part of winter folklore in Austria and Bavaria, and also in Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and northern Italy. Austria keeps some of the largest runs. The figure has also been taken up in North America, where celebrations are growing.

What Krampus means

For the families who keep the custom, the visit carries a lesson as much as a scare: Saint Nicholas sees the good in a child, and Krampus sees the rest. In Styria, gilded birch twigs are kept in the house as a quiet reminder to children. In Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, a golden branch stands for a year of good deeds and a silver one for bad acts. The chains are read as the devil held bound by the church.

Days Krampus is marked

Krampus dates: 2026, 2027, 2028

Questions people ask about Krampus

See also

Friday the 13thA Western folk superstition regarding the unluckiness of a Friday falling on the 13th.MolybdomancyPouring molten lead or tin into water, then reading the shape as an omenPerchtaA midwinter Alpine figure who checks spinning and tests good behaviourEvil eyeA belief in harm cast by envious glares, met with protective charms and spoken blessings

Good reading and sources

• Encyclopaedia BritannicaArticle
• National GeographicNational Geographic, Article
• Krampus, the Christmas Devil Who Punishes Naughty ChildrenHistory.com, Article
• National GeographicNational Geographic, Article
• Krampus, the Christmas Devil Who Punishes Naughty ChildrenHistory.com, Article

• Krampus on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-05.