Halloween is fast approaching, but spooky tales have now carried over into Christmas. Apparently in parts of Europe, threats of receiving a lump of coal for Christmas just aren’t enough. This bizarre custom is way worse, and it’s far scarier than just not receiving presents on Christmas morning.
What is the Scariest Christmas Tradition?
While Saint Nicholas has become somewhat of a household name through Christmas carols, his evil counterpart is starting to appear in stories as well. Nicknamed Bertik, this entity is said to carry a stick to beat poorly behaved children, and then put them in a sack and drag them to hell. Where on Earth did this tradition come from?! Apparently, the legend comes from Austrian folklore, and has been terrifying children of all ages, every Christmas since. He’s said to have a typical “evil being” appearance, with long and dark, stringy hair, sharp teeth, and horns. Parents tell their children that Bertik will come get them and drag them to hell if they are not good, and not surprisingly, it works! While it may be effective…it may be a bit too extreme. We’ll stick to threatening lumps of coal in stockings for Christmas gifts. Maybe now is a good time to read a more upbeat, jolly story, like 5 Things You Didn’t Know About The North Pole. For more spooky stuff, keep reading!
Other Scary Christmas Customs Around the World
Bertik may be the most terrifying Christmas story, but he definitely isn’t the only scary one. In Germany, there is the legend of Krampus, the Christmas monster that gained some fame after there was a movie made about him in 2015 and appropriately released in December. Krampus is said to be very similar to Bertik– both being evil creatures that beat naughty children and drag them to hell. Slightly less scary in appearance, another Christmas legend is that of Jólakötturinn, the Icelandic Yule Cat. It’s said that children that don’t complete their chores are fed to this cat as a human sacrifice on Christmas. Jólakötturinn apparently is not just an evil cat, but a giant evil cat. If children are lazy, they are fed to the evil Yule Cat. If the children of Iceland are good, they are given new clothes. Not only is this legend said to encourage children to do their chores, but it also is said to motivate them to donate old clothes to charities and families that are less fortunate, making new clothes more accessible and creating somewhat of a protection for themselves in a sense of creating karma through doing a good deed. Even if it is a kitty cat, this is still one monster we want to avoid. Whew! Now that you’ve gotten through all of that scary stuff, read something to get rid of those heebie jeebies, like Fun Christmas Facts from Around the Globe. Happy October!
What do you think of these scary Christmas traditions? Share this post and let us know in the comment section below!
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