“What is Krampus?” and 7 Other Questions: Answered!

Ever since Americans started discovering other creepy Christmas traditions from around the world, we’ve been fascinated. But the one that seems to enthrall us the most is the legend of Krampus.

Why?

Is it because he’s the antithesis of Santa and confirms something we always secretly suspected: that Santa is just too jolly an old soul to deal with the dark side of disciplining naughty little boys and girls?

Maybe. Or maybe it’s because it’s something new and dark that appeals to our macabre sensibilities. As National Geographic suggests, maybe it’s because of a “‘bah, humbug’ attitude in pop culture, with people searching for ways to celebrate the yuletide season in non-traditional ways.”

Who knows? Whatever the reason, we dig Krampus.

At least from a distance. We’re very curious about him, but we don’t really want him stealing into our houses in the dead of night so we can become intimately acquainted with him.

But if he does, we want to be prepared, and there are eight questions people most often wonder about him. Let’s start with what he is first and work our way down the list from there.

1. What is Krampus?

Unlike Santa, who is a man –albeit a mythical one too– Krampus is a half-goat, half-human beast covered in thick, dark fur, with horns on his head, fangs in his mouth, and a long tongue that is sometimes described to be forked.

In Norse mythology, he’s said to be the son of the Norse god Hel. As his name implies, he rules the world of the dead. However, later Hel morphed into the goddess of death.

But Krampus also shares characteristics in common with beasts from Greek myths, like satyrs and fauns.

He traditionally shows up on Krampusnacht (Krampus Night), December 5. Children would leave their shoes or boots outside and the next morning, on December 6, St. Nicholas Day, see what they were filled with. There’d be treats and goodies if they’d been good, or a rod if they’d been bad. (Maybe to spank them with?)

2. Is Krampus Santa’s brother?

Not exactly. Not a blood brother at any rate. That we know of. Maybe modern ancestral DNA testing might show a link?

Basically, he’s Jolly Old St. Nick’s dark counterpart. You know, life’s balance. There’s a yin and yang to everything, isn’t there? Predators and prey, death and rebirth, winter and summer, and Krampus and Santa.

3. Is Krampus the devil?

His appearance certainly bears devilish qualities to popular interpretations of Satan with his horned-head, forked tongue, cloven foot, and long tail.

He is also said to carry some of his victims away to Hell. (Which we’ll delve into more in the next section.)

But he’s not the Devil. Maybe one of his cousin’s though.

So how does Krampus differ from Lucifer, the Prince of Darkness, –or whatever you want to call the many names given to the personification of evil and its different origin story, or stories, depending on which religion you subscribe to?

Satan tries to persuade humans, in general, to give in to their dark impulses and commit sin, whereas Krampus primarily targets children. Though there’s no rule bad adults might not receive a visit from Krampus too.

4. What does Krampus do to his victims?

Krampus is often portrayed carrying a bundle of birch sticks in a sack on his back. He “swats” naughty kids with the sticks, stuffs them in his sack, and spirits them away.

5. Where does he take his victims?

Some legends say he drops them off in Hell. Others say he takes them to his lair or eats them. Or maybe eats them when he gets to his lair? I imagine beating bad kids and hauling them away works up quite the appetite.

However, no one really knows exactly what happens to Krampus’s victims because no one’s ever returned to share the specifics of their Krampus abduction.

6. Does Krampus kill?

Possibly? That seems to be the general consensus.

However, just as no survivors have reappeared after one of his kidnappings, neither have any bodies ever been recovered. So it’s easy to see why people believe the worst and think he kills, but there’s no real proof that’s his end goal.

Maybe he turns victims into his servants or helpers? Or maybe he has a sweatshop of naughty kids somewhere doing hard labor?

7. What is Krampus’s weakness?

Does Krampus have a weakness? Is there any way to take him down if he shows up uninvited at your house?

Which, by the way, happens when you’re bad or your children are, so…just be good and you’ll never have to worry about a visit from Krampus in the first place!

However, if you just can’t resist being naughty and he shows up, have some apples and oranges on hand. Not to throw at him, but to offer him as a snack.

According to The Other Side‘s report on Krampus, the Christmas Demon, they say his weakness is fruit. This apparently brings out his sociable side. He’ll sit and eat it and talk with whoever’s around before leaving without harming a soul.

8. Can Krampus be killed?

If you don’t have any oranges or apples handy, can you defend yourself and defeat the beast?

Well, just like no one has ever reported finding a body of any of Krampus’s victims, no one has a Krampus trophy wall or cemetery anywhere. For good reason.

According to the Krampus Supernatural Fanon Wiki, you’re going to need an Evergreen stake and God’s blood. But not just any of God’s blood, “the blood of his dark side,” which is a separate being and not necessarily the Devil. You dip the stake in the blood and stab Krampus, all of which sounds complicated. Apparently, it kills him though.

But will he stay dead?

The Other Side says as far as killing him…no can do, Babaloo. Even if you do, he’ll just come back again. As they put it: “There is no known way to dispatch of Krampus permanently. Like many of the supernatural creatures associated with Christmas, as long as one child believes then he will return next year.”

Again, the best bet is just to be on your best behavior …or have some fruit on hand.

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