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Thecompanions of Saint Nicholas are a group of closely related figures who accompanySaint Nicholas throughout the territories formerly in theHoly Roman Empire or the countries that it influenced culturally. These characters act as afoil to the benevolentChristmas gift-bringer, threatening to thrash or abduct disobedient children.Jacob Grimm (Deutsche Mythologie) associated this character with the pre-Christianhouse spirit (kobold,elf) which could be benevolent or malicious, but whose mischievous side was emphasized afterChristianization. The association of theChristmas gift-bringer with elves has parallels in English and Scandinavian folklore, and is ultimately and remotely connected to theChristmas elf in modernAmerican folklore.
Names for the "dark" or threatening companion figure include:Knecht Ruprecht in Germany,Krampus in Austria,Bavaria, Parkelj in Slovenia,Friuli, Croatia, Hungary (spelledKrampusz);Klaubauf in Bavaria, Austria;Bartel inStyria;Pelzebock;Befana;Pelznickel;Belzeniggl;Belsnickel in thePalatinate (and alsoPennsylvania, due toPennsylvania Dutch influence);Schmutzli in the German-speaking part of Switzerland;Rumpelklas;Bellzebub;Hans Muff;Drapp; andBuzebergt inAugsburg.
The corresponding figure in the Netherlands andFlanders is calledZwarte Piet orBlack Pete, and inSwiss-German folkloreSchmutzli, (schmutz meaning dirt).[1] In the Czech Republic, Saint Nicholas orsvatý Mikuláš is accompanied by thečert (Devil) andanděl (Angel). In France, Saint Nicholas' companion is calledRubbels in German-speakingLorraine andHanstrapp inAlsace, East of France[2] and thePère Fouettard (Wallonia, Northern and Eastern France).
Often the subject of winter poems and tales, the Companions travel with Saint Nicholas carrying with them a rod (sometimes a stick and in modern times often a broom) and a sack. They are sometimes dressed in black rags, bearing a black face and unruly black hair. In many contemporary portrayals the companions look like dark, sinister, or rustic versions of Nicholas himself, with a similar costume but with a darker color scheme.
In thefolklore of Germany, Knecht Ruprecht, which translates asFarmhand Rupert orServant Rupert, is a companion of Saint Nicholas, and possibly the most familiar. Tradition holds that he was a man with a long beard, wearing fur or covered in pea-straw.[3] Knecht Ruprecht sometimes carried a long staff and a bag of ashes, and wore little bells on his clothes.[3]
According to tradition, Knecht Ruprecht asks children whether they know their prayers. If they do, they receive apples, nuts, andgingerbread. If they do not, he beats the children with his bag of ashes.[3] In other (presumably more modern) versions of the story, Knecht Ruprecht gives naughty children gifts such as lumps of coal, sticks, and stones, while well-behaving children receive sweets from Saint Nicholas. He also can be known to give naughty children a switch (stick) in their shoes instead of candy, fruit and nuts, in the German tradition.
Ruprecht was a common name for the devil in Germany[4] andGrimm states that "Robin fellow is the same home-sprite whom we in Germany call Knecht Ruprecht and exhibit to children at Christmas ..."[4] Knecht Ruprecht first appears in written sources in the 17th century, as a figure in aNuremberg Christmas procession.[5]
According to Alexander Tille, Knecht Ruprecht represented an archetypal manservant, "and has exactly as much individuality of social rank and as little personal individuality as theJunker Hanns and theBauer Michel, the characters representative of country nobility and peasantry respectively."[6] Tille also states that Knecht Ruprecht originally had no connection with Christmastime.[6]
Ruprecht sometimes walks with a limp, because of a childhood injury. Often, his black clothes and dirty face are attributed to the soot he collects as he goes down chimneys. In some of the Ruprecht traditions, the children would be summoned to the door to perform tricks, such as a dance or singing a song to impress upon Santa and Ruprecht that they were indeed good children. Those who performed badly would be beaten soundly by Servant Ruprecht, and those who performed well were given a gift or some treats. Those who performed badly enough or had committed other misdeeds throughout the year were put into Ruprecht's sack and taken away, variously to Ruprecht's home in theBlack Forest to be consumed later, or to be tossed into a river. In other versions the children must be asleep, and would awake to find their shoes filled with either sweets, coal, or in some cases a stick.
Krampus is a terrifying figure found in parts of Austria, Bavaria, South Tyrol, Slovenia, and Croatia, most probably originating in thePre-Christian Alpine traditions. In Tyrol, he is also called "Tuifl".[7]
The Feast of Saint Nicholas is celebrated in parts of Europe on December 6. On the preceding evening,Krampusnacht, the wicked hairy devil appears on the streets. He sometimes accompanies St. Nicholas. However, Krampus will at times be on his own, visiting homes and businesses.[8] Saint Nicholas dispenses gifts, while Krampus supplies coal and bundles of birch branches.[9]
Europeans have been exchangingKrampuskarten, greeting cards featuring Krampus, since the 1800s. AKrampuslauf is a run of celebrants dressed as the beast, and is still quite popular, many of the participants fortified withschnapps. Over 1200 "Krampus" gather inSchladming,Styria from all over Austria wearing goat-hair costumes and carved masks, carrying bundles of sticks used as switches and swinging cowbells to warn of their approach. In the past few decades village Krampus associations parade without St. Nicholas at Krampus events throughout late November and early December.[7]
In 2011, National Public Radio helped advertise the formation of aKrampuslauf by Krampus enthusiasts in Philadelphia.[10]
Belsnickel is a companion of Saint Nicholas in the Palatinate (Pfalz), Germany. Belsnickel is a man wearing fur which covers his entire body, and he sometimes wears a mask with a long tongue. He is a rather scary creature who visits children atChristmas time and delivers socks or shoes full of candy, but if the children were not good, they will find coal in their stockings instead.
In parts of the United States in the 19th century, "Pelznickel" traditions were maintained for a time among immigrants at least as far west as the US state ofIndiana. Today, remnants of this tradition remain, known as theBelsnickel, especially inPennsylvania.
A first-hand 19th-century account of the "Beltznickle" tradition inAllegany County, Maryland, can be found inBrown's Miscellaneous Writings, a collection of essays by Jacob Brown (born 1824). Writing of a period around 1830, Brown says, "we did not hear of"Santa Claus. Instead, the tradition called for a visit by a different character altogether:
He was known as Kriskinkle, Beltznickle and sometimes as the Xmas woman. Children then not only saw the mysterious person, but felt him or rather his stripes upon their backs with his switch. The annual visitor would make his appearance some hours after dark, thoroughly disguised, especially the face, which would sometimes be covered with a hideously ugly phiz – generally wore a female garb – hence the name Christmas woman – sometimes it would be a veritable woman but with masculine force and action. He or she would be equipped with an ample sack about the shoulders filled with cakes, nuts, and fruits, and a long hazel switch which was supposed to have some kind of a charm in it as well as a sting. One would scatter the goodies upon the floor, and then the scramble would begin by the delighted children, and the other hand would ply the switch upon the backs of the excited youngsters – who would not show a wince, but had it been parental discipline there would have been screams to reach a long distance.[11]
On the South Shore of Nova Scotia, Canada, a Christmas tradition known as Belsnickling occurs, where, similar to mummering, people go from house to house within the communities dressed in multiple layers of clothing and with scarves around their faces to conceal their identity. These people are then given food and drinks (usually rum or eggnog) until their identities are guessed, and then they're off to the next house.
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Zwarte Piet (English:Black Peter or Black Pete,French:Père-Fouettard, meaning father whipper) is the companion of Saint Nicholas (Dutch:Sinterklaas) in thefolklore of the Low Countries. The character first appeared in his current form inan 1850 book byJan Schenkman and is commonly depicted as ablackamoor. Traditionally Zwarte Piet is said to beblack because he is aMoor from Spain.[12] Participants portraying Zwarte Piet typically wearblackface make-up, by painting their faces black, wearing exaggerated red lipstick, and a "nappy" or "kinky" wig, as well as colorfulRenaissance attire and gold earrings. The character has become a reoccurring subject of controversy, especially in the Netherlands, for its perceived cultural and ethnic insensitivity. Historically, Zwarte Piet is referred to as a servant, not a companion.[13]
Like Knecht Ruprecht, he was traditionally the one punishing ill-behaved children by beating them with a birch rod or even taking them back to Spain in a sack he carried (which on arrival contained the gifts for the good children). However, in the 20th century these punishments were abolished and Zwarte Piet became a friendly character, although the punishments can still be heard in Sinterklaas songs.[14]
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