the Winter Ones: Folkloric Figures of Winter, Yule, and Christmas
With December finally upon us, our winter holidays are ebbing ever closer. With each passing year, more and more practitioners of witchcraft and/or followers of pagan paths have looked to taking up the customs of their ancestors or incorporating those customs into their practices in some way. Holidays have become a popular way of embracing such traditions, traditions that can make diasporic practitioners feel a little closer to home, traditions that can bring one nearer their ancestors, traditions that can aid in making one’s practice and customs truly unique to them.
Winter has many customs and traditions, and those practices differ from region to region. One of my favorite aspects of the winter season is the amount of figures associated with winter holidays and festivals – folk figures unique to the regions from which they hail. For many people, if you ask them about figures they associate with the season, you’ll hear Father Christmas, Krampus, and maybe even a nod or two to Hans Trapp, but there are so many more winter figures out there! In this post, we’ll meet a variety of these folk spirits, and we’ll learn a bit about their winter, Yule, and Christmas tales. It’s my hope that readers of this blog may find a new way of incorporating beliefs or customs of their ancestors or of their homelands (for our readers who are members of diasporic populations), and that, in doing so, their winter holidays may be even just a bit brighter for it. Now, shall we dive in? Who to meet first…
GRÝLA, JÓLASVEINAR, JÓLAKÖTTURINN
Grýla, the Yule Lads, and the Yule Cat
(Icelandic Folklore)
A prominent feature in Icelandic Christmas and Yule folklore is the tale of a mountain-dwelling family that descends upon Icelandic communities during the Yule season, or during the 13 days leading up to Christmas. This family consists of –
Grýla – a large, frightening giantess, ogress, or half-troll/half-ogre (depending on what version of the tale you hear) who feasts upon naughty children;
Jólasveinar / the Yule Lads – Grýla’s thirteen thieving, tricksy sons;
and Jólakötturinn / the Yule Cat – Grýla’s pet cat, a massive, vicious, people-eating creature.
According to lore, throughout most of the year, Grýla and her crew keep to themselves in some isolated mountainous area. If not in the mountains, it’s often said that Grýla and co. live in Dimmuborgir (lava formations in north Iceland). During the Yule or Christmas season, though, Grýla and her brood leave their domain behind to bring a bit of terror to the inhabitants of Iceland.
For thirteen nights, Grýla’s sons, the Yule Lads, will leave gifts for (and party with, play games with, and perform for) well-behaved children, and leave tricks or warnings for naughty children, but this version only came about after a shift in the tone of the tale. Most sources state that the Yule Lads were once purely horrible and simply wreaked havoc for the thirteen nights leading up to Christmas. Why the change? Well, apparently the original lore was so terrifying that the parliament of Iceland officially outlawed its use as a scare tactic against children. Thus, the brighter lore of playfully mischievous Yule Lads was born, differing greatly from the ‘creepy and revolting’ ways exhibited in the earlier tales.
As the stories go, one-by-one, the Yule Lads go into inhabited areas of Iceland and sow a little terror and chaos, each carrying out his own special form of mischief. They could only do their deeds at night, and were quite terrifying to behold – large, dirty, and ‘humanoid and bestial in equal measure’ (though now most depictions of the Yule Lads feature cheerful, bearded men with woolen clothes and pointed hats). The Yule Lads arrive (one per night) starting thirteen days before Christmas, and each continues their mischief spree for thirteen nights, only then departing (again, one per night). The Yule Lads are:
Stekkjastaur ‘Sheep-Cote Clod’ – from the 12th – the 25th of December, Stekkjastaur sneaks into pens and stables to harass sheep, attempting to suckle them all, though this is made difficult by his long, stiff, wooden legs, which don’t allow him to bend his knees and kneel on the ground.
Giljagaur ‘Gully-Gawk’ – from the 13th – the 26th of December, Giljagaur hides in the gullies near homes until all the household has fallen asleep. Then, he makes his way to the cowsheds to steal milk.
Stúfur ‘Stubby’ –Stúfur will, from the 14th – 27th of December, steal into homes and nab anything leftover in the pans. Some versions say he steals the pan itself, for he likes to eat the ‘crust’ left behind on them from cooking.
Þvörusleikir ‘Spoon-Licker’ – from the 15th – 28th of December, Þvörusleikir sets about his diabolical task of breaking into homes and licking all the spoons (in particular, the wooden spoons).
Pottaskefill ‘Pot-Scraper’ – from 16th – 29th of December, Pottaskefill breaks into homes to steal unwashed pots so he can lick up all that’s left, be that the remnants of sauces, broths, and gravies, or leftover bits of food. He’s also said to eat any unfinished foods from plates.
Askasleikir ‘Bowl-Licker’ – from 17th – 30th of December, Askasleikir hides beneath beds, lying in wait for anyone to set their askur down. An askur is an Icelandic wooden bowl with a lid, which, according to these Yule tales, would sometimes be carried off to bed whilst one was enjoying a late-night snack. The bowl would then be placed on the floor beside the bed or just under the bed, where Askasleikir would be waiting to scarf down whatever is left in the askur.
Hurðaskellir ‘Door-Slammer’ – from 18th – 31st of December, Hurðaskellir starts his rounds, going around slamming doors. He finds it even more fun to do whilst everyone is sleeping.
Skyrgámur ‘Skyr-Gobbler’ – from 19th of December – 01st of January, Skygámur commits the heinous act of robbing any and every pantry or refrigerator he can find of skyr, a traditional Icelandic dairy food similar to yoghurt.
Bjúgnakrækir ‘Sausage-Swiper’ – as if Skyrgámur’s antics weren’t enough, Bjúgnakrækir is a rotten old sausage thief. He sits in the rafters of homes, waiting for everyone to go to bed or to look away. Then, he steals as many sausages as he can manage. Bjúgnakrækir makes his arrival on the 20th of December and leaves on the 02nd of January.
Gluggagægir ‘Window-Peeper’ – perhaps the creepiest of the lot thus far (though someone licking all the spoons is the stuff of nightmares), Gluggagægir makes his rounds from the 21st of December – the 03rd of January, peeping through windows into homes, hoping to spy something to steal.
Gáttaþefur ‘Doorway-Sniffer’ – from the 22nd of December – 04th of January, Gáttaþefur, lured to your home by the scent of freshly baked laufabrauð (‘leaf bread,’ a traditional Icelandic Christmas bread), arrives to one’s doorway and will attempt to steal the laufabrauð.
Ketkrókur ‘Meat-Hook’ – from the 23rd of December to the 05th of January, Ketkrókur would find a way to steal the meat from your kitchen. He’d hide in the pantry, behind doorways, in the rafters, up the chimney, and he’d use his long, hooked staff, or meat hook, to quickly snatch away the meat either while it was being prepared or from the holiday table itself.
Kertasníkir ‘Candle-Stealer’ or ‘Candle-Beggar’ – from the 24th of December to the 06th of January, Kertasníker, the last of the Yule of Lads, steals candles, especially from children. Candles were once typically made from tallow and were edible, and some lore states that Kertasníker would steal the candles to snack on.
Nowadays, the Yule Lads are said to leave candies and small gifts for good children, placing the goods in the shoes that kids leave on their windowsills in hopes of finding them later filled with presents. Bad children, however, are said to be left nothing but rotten potatoes.
As for Grýla, well… Grýla comes and kidnaps naughty children, loading them into her sack and carrying them back to her husband, Leppalúði (who most sources say is quite lazy and prefers to stay in his cave than to go with Grýla and the Yule Lads to terrorize Icelandic children). Grýla and Leppalúði then eat the naughty children, cooking them up in Grýla’s giant pot or cauldron. Though Grýla and Leppalúði are known to have a particular fondness for eating children, some sources also warn that they’ll eat adults caught outdoors on their own during those long, dark winter nights.
If Grýla and her husband weren’t bad enough, you still have the Yule Cat to worry about, especially if you didn’t receive any gifts of new clothes for the holidays. It’s said that the Yule Cat, on Christmas night, eats anyone it catches that isn’t wearing at least one new item of clothing.
LA BEFANA
(Italian Folklore)
With particular association with Epiphany Eve (the night of the 05th of January), La Befana is witch in Italian folklore (sometimes called, fondly, the Christmas Witch). She’s said to fly around Italy on her broom on the night of Epiphany Eve, when she visits each household with children and fills each child’s stocking with gifts or punishments, depending on whether they were well or poorly behaved. Well-behaved children receive gifts and sweets, while those who were naughtier receive a coal lump, black rock candy, or a stick. Some tales also say that La Befana (who is obsessively tidy in some variations of her origin story) may sweep or tidy your house before she leaves.
La Befana is said to be a very old woman with a cheerful, kindly disposition. She dresses simply, usually wearing a shawl either around her shoulders or tied over her hair (sometimes both), and her clothes are soot-covered, as the tales say she flies into each home via the chimney. She carries a whicker basket or cloth sack filled with all of the gifts and sweets she must deliver.
In some Italian regions, bonfires are burned on Epiphany, and those bonfires sometimes feature effigies of La Befana. Many people dress as La Befana at various Epiphany events and festivals in Italy.
ST NICHOLAS & KRAMPUS
(Central European Folklore)
On Saint Nicholas Day (observed on the 5th or 6th of December, depending on the region), many children throughout Europe (and in diasporic communities Stateside and around the world), wake up excited to check in their shoes or under their pillows for gifts from St. Nicholas. St. Nicholas, is a tall, lean, cheerful old man with a long white beard, usually depicted as being dressed in fine vestments, including a cope or chasuble, and almost always wearing an ornate miter atop his head. In Central European (and some Eastern European) folklore, though, jolly old St. Nicholas does not work alone.
The Krampus travels as Saint Nicholas’ companion. Usually depicted as a large red, black, or brown demon with cloven hooves and the legs and horns of a goat, pointed ears, a long, pointed or forked tongue, and a frightening, human face with a crazed or menacing expression, Krampus is truly the stuff of childhood nightmares. Saint Nicholas and Krampus make their rounds on Krampusnacht – the night of the 05th of December. While the well-behaved children received gifts from Saint Nicholas, naughty children meet punishment at the hands of Krampus. The punishment varies from one tale to the next – some say that Krampus switches the children with birch branches; some say that Krampus devours the children, often swallowing them whole; and still other tales say that Krampus nabs the children, loading them into the basket or pouch he wears upon his back and taking them to hell.
Despite attempts by the Catholic Church to ban Krampus, belief in the goat demon is very much still alive, with festivals and parades dedicated to Krampus, such as Krampuslauf, booming in popularity.
BELSNICKEL
(Germanic Folklore)
Belsnickel (also often spelled Belschnickel or Beltznickle) is a figure of Germanic folklore that finds its origins in Rheinpfalz, a historic region of Southwestern Germany. The belief in Belsnickel finds life still yet in some areas within this region, as well as in diasporic German peoples (and the descendents thereof) in Pennsylvania Dutch communities (birthed from settlers from the Rheinpfalz region) throughout the US.
Belsnickel is a man dressed in tattered, dirtied furs and clothes. In some versions, he also wears a mask with a long, pointed tongue. Belsnickel travels around at night (usually on the night of Christmas Eve), wielding a long switch in one hand and carrying a sack filled with cakes, candies, fruits, and nuts in the other hand or on his back. Poorly behaved children would receive a switching, while well-behaved children would be given sweets from the sack.
Brown’s Miscellaneous Writings features a first-hand account (having taken place around 1830) of one Beltznickel tradition from Maryland, USA –
‘One hand 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…’
In some Pennsylvania Dutch communities, it’s said that Belsnickel arrives one-to-two weeks before Christmas to ‘check in’ on how the children were behaving, punishing the bad children and serving as a frightening warning and reminder to the naughty children that they had better correct their ways before Christmas.
PERCHTA
(Alpine Folklore)
Known by many names, such as Pehta Baba (in Slovenian lore), Frau Perchta, and Frau Faste (in some Swiss and Slovenian lore), Perchta is a goddess associated with winter, spinning, and folk magic, particularly in Germany and Austria.
Perchta’s association with winter beats particular emphasis on midwinter and Twelfth Night. It’s said that Perchta would enter homes during the twelve days between Christmas and Epiphany, and she would dole out rewards and punishments. Children and servants of the home who had worked hard throughout the year and who had been good people would wake the next morning to find a small gift left by Perchta (usually a coin or trinket, though some modern customs say she may leave candies). Her punishments, however, were far greater than her gifts. For children and servants who had been poorly behaved, unkind, and lazy, Perchta enters their bedrooms while they slumber, cuts them open, and replaces their stomach and guts with straw. Some tales say she does not replace ones entrails, but simply fills the stomach with straw. It’s also said in some tales that Perchta delivers this same punishment to those who, on the night of Perchta’s feast day, eat something aside from the traditional foods of her feast day (those foods being fish and gruel).
Perchta’s association with spinning also comes into play in some variations of this tale, in which Perchta’s punishment is reserved for those who did not complete their spinning by the time of her visit. She was also said to trample or set fire to any half-spun fibers she discovered.
Perchta’s links to midwinter come from her ties to the legend of the Wild Hunt. Some tales of the Wild Hunt feature Perchta as the leader of the hunt.
As for Perchta’s appearance, there are two main versions. Perchta is sometimes described as a beautiful, young woman, with white or very pale hair and fair skin, usually dressed in white or silvery white hues. This Perchta differs greatly from that featured in some old depictions, which describe a hag woman dressed in rags, with a wrinkled face and a large beak-like nose made of iron. Some descriptions say this woman carries a cane, and many depictions feature her keeping a knife or blade beneath her skirts or his her robes.
The difference in these two depictions of Perchta is also reflected in the two variations of Perchten – a term that is used to apply to both the masks worn at festivals and processions honoring Perchta, as well as to figures associated with Perchta and seen as her subjects or helpers. Of these figures, there are two types –
Schönperchten: the beautiful, bright Perchten dressed in silvers and whites, said to deliver blessings of wealth and good luck during the Twelve Nights,
and Schiachperchten: the monstrously ugly Perchten with fangs and tusks, horns, tails, and beastly, fur-covered faces. The Schiachperchten are said to drive away evil spirits, ghosts, and demons.
SPILLAHOLLE
The Spillaholle – also known as Mickadrulle / Mickatrulle, Popelholle (‘Hooded Holle’), Zumpeldrulle – is believed to be a regional variation of Frau Holle or Perchta. She is said to be a very short old woman dressed in ragged, tattered clothing and a hood, and is, in some tales, said to carry stinging nettles with her.
The Spillaholle appears in towns and villages during winter, especially nearing Christmas or during the Twelve Nights of Christmas. The Spillaholle, who is strongly associated with spinning, is said to travel through town, peeking in the windows of each house to check to see ‘if the children and spinsters are spinning diligently.’ If their spinning hasn’t been taken care of by evening or nightfall, it’s said that the Spillaholle will dole out punishments. It’s even said that the Spillaholle will take the lazy spinsters away, beating them with the stinging nettles she carries with her. As for those who have finished their spinning, instead of a punishment, the Spillaholle leaves a blessing of protection – a single nettle is left upon the stoop or at the threshold of the home, a nettle that shall protect the house from various misfortunes for the next year.
MARI LWYD
(Welsh Folklore)
The origins of the Christmas tradition of the parading of the Mari Lwyd are up for debate. Some say it’s an early Christian practice, while many others believe that it’s a surviving pre-Christian tradition that’s been Christianized throughout the years. Believed to have come from a wassailing custom, the Mari Lwyd (said by some to mean ‘Grey Mary,’ ‘Holy Mary,’ or ‘Blessed Mary,’ and by others to mean ‘Grey Mare’) is a hobby horse, puppet, doll, or effigy that is paraded through town, carried from door-to-door by wassail-singing groups. This is done during the Christmas season, often ‘between Christmas Day and Twelfth Night.’
The head of the Mari Lwyd is usually a skull of a hoarse (and in most cases, the same skull is to be used each year), though there have been accounts of a head being carved from wood or shaped from a pillow. The skull (or makeshift horse head) is beautifully decorated with flowers and ribbons (the ribbons usually making up the Mari Lwyd’s mane), and has lights, baubles, or bottle glass for eyes. A white cloth is draped from the horse’s head down over the base of the Mari Lwyd, concealing the carrier of the doll underneath. A spring or stick is usually attached to the lower jaw of the skull, so that the jaw can be made to open and snap shut.
The parade is to begin at dusk or sundown. Singing and dancing is to be enjoyed whilst the Mari Lwyd makes her way along. At each door, the Mari Lwyd procession would perform traditional songs, and the household was to reply (usually through the closed door) with improvised, taunting poetry, usually delivering some kind of funny insult. A competition then ensues, a back-and-forth between the Mari Lwyd party and the household (this is a ritual called pwnco), until one side was bested and gave up, having no reply. Should the Mari Lwyd procession singers lose, they leave empty-handed. Mari Lwyd winning and entering the house, though, is believed to be a blessing that will bring good fortune to the household for the coming year.
The Mari Lwyd is said to be mischievous as well – chasing people, gnashing her jaws to scare children, and even trying to steal things or knock things about when she enters a home.
DED MOROZ & SNEGUROCHKA
(Slavic Folklore)
Ded Moroz (also called Dedushka Moroz – and other variations of Grandfather Frost – and Morozko) is familiar to many as Russian Santa, but Ded Moroz is much, much more than that. Ded Moroz finds his origins in pre-Christian Slavic paganism and folklore as a great magician and wizard of winter. Belief in Ded Moroz and customs surrounding him were banned during the early Soviet era. Nevertheless, Ded Moroz not only lives on, but has become something of a winter icon in East Slavic culture and is now the main figure associated with Novy God, the secular Christmas-like Russian celebration of New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.
Ded Moroz – a tall, old man with rosy cheeks and long white beard, who dresses in a floor-length fur coat and fur hat, and usually wields a magic staff – travels about (usually depicted travelling by a horse-drawn sleigh) delivering gifts to children. Some tales say that he delivers gifts all through December as well as on New Year’s Eve night, when he places the gifts under the New Year Tree whilst the household is sleeping.
One aspect of Ded Moroz’s tale that is rather unique is that of Snegurochka – Ded Moroz’s granddaughter who helps him make his delivers. Snegurochka (also called Snegurka and the Snow Maiden), unlike Ded Moroz, doesn’t find her roots in pre-Christian Slavic lore, but rather in 19th century Russian fairytales. Snegurochka wasn’t depicted as Ded Moroz’s granddaughter until after 1935, when the holiday of Novy God was permitted by the Russia Federation. From then on, Snegurochka became Ded Moroz’s granddaughter and assistant, and has since been more commonly depicted as wearing wintery silver and blue cloaks and a fur hat (sometimes a crown made of glistening snowflakes).
For some, Yule will start (in the Northern Hemisphere) on December 21st, a fixed date on which many observers have chosen to kick off their Yule celebrations and customs, and run until either December 24th or January 01st (depending on whether one keeps the three-day observance or the twelve-day observance). Others don’t use a set date to mark Yule, instead going by a lunar calendar, in which case there are differing opinions as to when Yule will being in 2023 – some mark is as starting on December 19th and others on January 25th.
SOURCES & FURTHER READING:
Þjóðsögur Jóns Árnasonar - the Collection of Folklore of Jón Árnason
The Icelandic Yule Lads and their evil mother Gryla
A Journey Around the Figure of the Befana – Manciocco, Claudia; Manciocco, Luigi
Krampus | Definition, History, & Facts
The Origin of Krampus, Europe's Evil Twist on Santa
‘the Krampus and the Old Dark Christmas: Roots and Rebirth of the Folkloric Devil’ – Ridenour, Al
The Winter Goddess: Percht, Holda, and Related Figures: Folklore: Vol 95, No 2
‘Deutsche Mythologie’ – Grimm, Jakob
Holda: Between Folklore and Linguistics
Who is Belsnickel in Pennsylvania German Christmas lore?
‘Brown’s Miscellaneous Writings’ – Brown, Jacob
Yes Helen, there is a Belsnickel
‘A Dictionary of British Folk Customs’ – Hole, Christina
The Mari Lwyd
‘Ritual Animal Disguise: A Historical and Geographical Study of Animal Disguise in the British Isles’ – Cawte, E.C.
Mari Lwyd, a Welsh Christmas Tradition
‘A Tour Through Part of North Wales, in the Year 1798, and at Other Times’ – Evans, J.
‘Perchta the Belly-Slitter and Her Kin: A View of Some Traditional Threatening Figures, Threats and Punishments’ – Smith, John B.
Felix und Ulrich Mueller - Percht und Krampus
‘the Old Magic of Christmas: Yuletide Traditions for the Darkest Days of the Year’ – Raedisch, Linda
"Дед Мороз и Снегурочка" (Grandfather Frost and the Snow Maiden) –Dushechkina, E. B.
‘Encyclopedia of Russian & Slavic Myth and Legend’ – Dixon-Kennedy, Mike