Krampus Night

A member of the Haiminger Krampusgruppe dressed as the Krampus creature accompanies little girls dressed as angels distributing sweets to children prior to the annual Krampus night in Tyrol on Dec. 1 in Haiming, Austria.

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Krampus, in Tyrol also called Tuifl, is a demon-like creature represented by a fearsome, hand-carved wooden mask with animal horns, a suit made from sheep or goat skin and large cow bells attached to the waist that the wearer rings by running or shaking his hips up and down.

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Krampus has been a part of Central European, alpine folklore going back at least a millennium, and since the 17th-century Krampus traditionally accompanies St. Nicholas and angels on the evening of December 5 to visit households to reward children that have been good while reprimanding those who have not.

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In the last few decades Tyrol in particular has seen the founding of numerous village Krampus associations with up to 100 members each and who parade without St. Nicholas at Krampus events throughout November and early December.

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Krampus creatures parade in search of bad children.

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"In keeping with pre-Germanic Pagan traditions, men dressed as these demons have been frightening children on Krampusnacht for centuries, chasing them and hitting them with sticks, on an (often alcohol-fueled) run through the dark streets," The Atlantic reports.

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Despite its ghoulish appearance, some say Krampus is becoming too commercial, like its Christian counterpart Christmas.

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Krampus is a kind of a anti-Santa. He looks like a demon, but is actually St. Nicholas' helper.

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According to lore, the two fan out across Europe Dec. 6, or Krampusnacht, spreading both mischief and holiday cheer.

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To celebrate, thousands dress up as the devilish creature and parade through towns in Austria, southern Bavaria, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, the Slovak Republic, Croatia and parts of Italy during the first week of December.

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"First and foremost, it encourages people to stop and think about what the holidays are and what they're supposed to be about," Eric Rezsnyak, from Rochester, New York, tells The Christian Science Monitor.