Be Good, Or the Krampus Will Get You!

St. Nicholas, in the "olden days," never traveled alone. Since he was a good and kindly fellow who could never condemn anyone, he required a stern companion to help him handle naughty children. Unlike Black Peter, who accompanied the good Saint in Holland and helped him hand out presents, this companion—known by names like Pelznichol, Belsnickel, Hans Trapp, etc—carried birch rods which were given to parents of naughty children to beat them (the modern equivalent would be the mild "coal in your stocking"). Of all these "punishers," Krampus was the most fearsome: he looked like a cross between a man and a goat, with cloven hooves on his legs, horns on his head, and a big long red tongue that lolled out three to four feet. Originally he took bad children and stuffed them in the big sack he carried upon his back.

This custom died out in the 20th century, but is now being revived, especially in Germanic European countries, as a scary but fun festival at Christmastime.

Krampus

Krampusnacht - December 5, 2022

Krampuslauf 2022 in Salzburg, Austria

 

Happy St. Nicholas Day!

Many European countries celebrate St. Nicholas Day as the gift-giving day of December and leave Christmas Day for religious observances. Some countries celebrate on both days.

In the Netherlands St. Nicholas rides a white horse and arrives on a ship from Spain. Other St. Nicholas figures ride a donkey. They usually travel with a companion like Zwarte Pete ("Black Peter"), Krampus, Belsnickel, or Pelznichol, who is the actual figure who disciplines the children. When the children swear they will do better, St. Nicholas forgives them and gives them a gift, holding off the Christmas disciplinarian!

St. Nicholas Day - December 6, 2021 - National Today

How St. Nicholas Day Became a Cincinnati Tradition

German Culture--St. Nicholas Day

Heinz History Center: Awaiting the Arrival of Old St. Nick

Leave Your Shoes Out: It's St. Nicholas Day

St. Nick May Have Inspired Santa, But His Own Story is Very Inspiring

Celebrating Sinterklass in the Netherlands

Happy St. Nicholas Day!

In some countries Christmas gifts don't come on Christmas. The holiday is reserved for religious observation and family gatherings. Gifts are given on St. Nicholas Eve.

☙ St. Nicholas and Your Shoes

☙ The Traditions of St. Nicholas Day Around the World

☙ Celebrating St. Nicholas in Spain 

☙ Why St. Nicholas Puts Candy in Boots 

☙ The German St. Nicholas Tradition 

The original St. Nicholas was born in Turkey, and reputedly attended the Council of Nicea, growing so angry at a representative who claimed Jesus was not divine that he hit the man and was jailed. He is known for several miracles, including bringing three divinity students back from the dead after they had been pickled and brined by a greedy landlord. He became associated with gift giving due to a kind act: he secretly gave three bags of gold to a poor man with three daughters who needed dowries to be married, else they would have to become prostitutes.

In Holland, St. Nicholas arrives by ship from Spain and has a helper called Black Peter, a Moorish servant. There he is usually portrayed as riding a white horse. In other countries, as in this illustration, he travels with a donkey.

Vintage Christmas Books and Stories

We have found these various quaint vintage Christmas books online:

A Night With St. Nicholas

The Book of St. Nicholas (translated from the Dutch)

A Christmas Book: Origin of the Christmas Tree, the Mistletoe, the Yule Log and St. Nicholas

Some Christmas stories by Louisa May Alcott:

"Tessa's Surprises"

"Tilly's Christmas"

"Rosa's Tale"

"How It All Happened" ("What Love Can Do")

"A Christmas Dream and How It Came True"

"Patty's Place" ("The Quiet Little Woman") (in an issue of St. Nicholas magazine)

Not properly a Christmas story, but takes place in the winter:

"How They Camped Out" ("Gwen's Adventures in the Snow")

Happy St. Nicholas Day!

 The Story of Santa Klaus, from 1909, attempts to bring the threads of the origins of Santa Claus together.

Nine Things to Know About St. Nicholas

What Has St. Nicholas To Do With Ireland?

St. Nicholas Day is celebrated most famously in the Netherlands, where he arrives on a ship from Spain accompanied by his servant, "Zwart Piet," Black Peter. Not long ago Peter was an ominous figure to Dutch children: parents would tell their children that if they didn't behave, they would be stuffed in Peter's sack and taken away. (Other Germanic cultures have a similar character, like Pelznichol—"Nicholas in Furs"—or the dreaded Krampus, who looks like a devil with a long red tongue.) Today Black Peter is controversial because he is often still played by people of non-African descent in blackface makeup, and portrayed on wrapping paper in stereotypical fashion with large lips and big rolling eyes. Most illustrators today are like the one above who makes Peter look like a real person rather than a hurtful clown and books like Santa and Pete have reworked the Black Peter character to present him in a positive manner as St. Nicholas' full partner. The modern Peter carries candy, not a sack, and gives out sweets to the children.

Happy St Nicholas' Day!

§ St Nicholas' Day: Dark secrets behind the myth of Santa Claus

§ St. Nicholas in Canterbury

§ St. Nicholas: The German Way

§ St. Nicholas and Your Shoes

§ The Art of Simple: St. Nicholas

§ Why are Boots Placed Outside the Front Door on St. Nicholas Day?

§ St. Nicholas to Santa: The Surprising Origins

Today is the feast day of St. Nicholas. Besides forming the basis for the American "Santa Claus," a corruption of the Dutch "Sinter Klaas," he is the patron saint of children, sailors, pawnbrokers, and Russia. In the Netherlands he arrives on a boat said to come from Spain, accompanied by his Moorish assistant Peter, and he still wears his bishops' robes and carries his crozier (staff), and rides a white horse. In other countries the good Saint rides a donkey, and he has various assistants—most of whom are in charge of taking naughty children away in a big sack!

St. Nicholas at Catholic Online

I was reading an article about a billboard asking "What if St. Nicholas was black? Would you allow him in your home?" pointing out prejudices. It is ironic because St. Nicholas was born in Turkey and was most certainly not pale-skinned.

Happy St. Nicholas Day 2013

"A Modern Heir to St. Nicholas"

Germany Today: St. Nicholas

St. Nicholas Day in the News

St. Nicholas Day: Who is St. Nicholas and why is he celebrated before Christmas?

St. Nicholas, Santa's Predecessor, Celebrated Worldwide Dec. 6

Advent Fact - December 6 is the Feast of St. Nicholas

The Real Father Christmas

Community Celebrates the Feast of St. Nicholas



Kringle, Tony Abbott
This was an appropriate book to finish in time for St. Nicholas Day!

Kringle has never known his parents. For the past twelve years he has been brought up in a hidden glen by an older woman named Morwen. His favorite tale is of the night he was born, when a fleeting sparrow dashing through Morwen's cabin caught the end of a special bell carried by Kringle's mother and the resulting sound gave Kringle his name. And it is in the midst of this story told once more that the fearsome goblins that stalk the Earth attack their home and send Kringle straight into a nightmare of adventures.

Abbott has woven an epic fantasy simple enough for children to read but grand enough for adults to enjoy in a story set in post-Roman Britain (or at a point where the Romans have almost abandoned the country), mixing pagan elements with the new religion of Christianity, and the lore of the northland (elves and goblins) with real-life historical events (the presence of rune stones, the Saxon invaders). Kringle's first thought is to help rescue Morwen, but it is clear he has been chosen for a larger journey: is it to live with the elves that save his life? rescue the runestones? Or is it to rescue the children enslaved by the goblins, who are plotting a terrifying future? Abbott also introduces items and characters that will later play a part in Christmas traditions.

My own minor quibble: Kringle talks to himself too much. (Granted, I do it myself. And I definitely wouldn't want to read about it!) Otherwise, a splendid fantasy tale with some full-page illustrations and sketched chapter headings, and, in the hardcover edition, a fabulous brightly-colored cover with Celtic overtones.

Happy St. Nicholas Day

Depending on where you live, St. Nicholas comes on a horse or with a donkey, and with a companion. In Holland, this is Black Peter, his Moorish assistant; in other countries it might be Krampus or Pelznichol.

Here are some news stories about St. Nicholas Day:

Europeans celebrate St. Nicholas Day Activities

Around the World With Kris Kringle

Memories of St. Nicholas Day

Kicking Off the Christmas Season

The Real Santa Claus is a "Frame of Mind"

Here's a colorful page about how to Celebrate St. Nicholas Day

Not to mention Lou Monte's song "Santa Nicola," which isn't much about wooden shoes and candy. :-)

And finally a great St. Nicholas magazine cover:

Happy St. Nicholas Day!

A vintage (19th century) account of St. Nicholas Day in Germany.

Short article from Long Island Press.

Blog entry about St. Nicholas Day in Holland.

Observing St. Nicholas Day in a New York town.

A memory of St. Nicholas Day on USCatholic.com.

And it has nothing to do with St. Nicholas Day besides the fact it was named after the children's saint, but I can't resist putting in a plug for St. Nicholas Magazine.

A Man Called "Santa Klaus"

I had this out of the library last Christmas—note the spelling of "Santa's" name; it's from 1909! In any case, the whole book is reproduced here, except for one page that was badly scanned.

The Story of Santa Klaus by William Shepard Walsh.

Whose Night Before Christmas?

And just in time for St. Nicholas Eve:

Mary S. VanDeusen's massive, absorbing website includes these pages about one of her ancestors: A Mouse in Henry Livingston's House, her investigation into the mystery of who wrote "A Visit from St. Nicholas."

Enough her to keep you busy for days!

Happy St. Nicholas Day

Did St. Nicholas arrive today upon his white horse? or via sailing ship? Or even on a donkey?

The venerable saint comes visiting in many ways. Here are some links about him:

Saint Nicholas ::: Discovering the Truth About Santa Claus

Women for Faith and Family St. Nicholas Day Page

The Legend of St. Nikolas

"Presents in Your Shoes"

Christmas Lore's Santa Claus Page with St. Nicholas Links

Friday Five

Don't Fall For It

1. What do you like or dislike about autumn?

I love autumn. It's my favorite season. It's when the weather gets cool, but not cold, and I love the colors of the turning leaves. I love the scent of burning leaves as long as they're not too close. I love the beautiful blue skies and the wispy white cirrus clouds. I love the fall foods: gingerbread and hot chocolate and pumpkin pie and pumpkin bread. I love the fall holidays, even Hallowe'en, which has never been my favorite, but it's a fun dress-up day. I love honoring the brave men and women who have given of their lives to serve their country on Veterans Day. I love the reunion and cameraderie (and the turkey and butternut squash!) of Thanksgiving, I love reading about the customs of St. Nicholas Day and St. Lucy's Day even if we here don't observe them.

2. Have you raked leaves into a pile just to jump in them?

No. We never had enough leaves at our house to do that and I wouldn't jump in a pile of leaves from our yard; it probably has cat poop and mosquitoes in it.

3. Have you ever carved a pumpkin and how did it turn out?

No. My mom didn't make pumpkin pie and wouldn't have wanted to waste the innards of the pie. Besides, if you put a pumpkin out in our neighborhood, the stupid jerk kids would have it spattered all over the sidewalk in a couple of days.

4. Have you ever eaten anything made from pumpkins other than pie?

Yes, pumpkin bread and pumpkin muffins. The pumpkin bread at Bob Evans restaurant (they sell it in loaves, too) is superb!

5. Where is a good spot to see the leaves change color where you live?

Not around here, maybe, except in the park nearby. It's lovely up in Chattanooga and up at Helen in the North Georgia mountains, too; I hear it's nice at Brasstown Bald and in Blairsville, too.