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Santa Claus is undoubtedly the most famous gift-giver of the Holiday Season,

but hes not alone. The world is full of Santa alternatives, ranging from witchesto goats to babies to female versions of Jesus himself. Many of these other gift

givers have seen their popularity diminish in recent decades, pushed out by the

ever growing specter of Santa Claus. Things are changing though, thanks to the

internet there has been renewed interest in recent years about Kris Kringlesassociates. Yuletide has plenty of room for more magickal and mythical figures, I

hope some of these characters find a little room around your Christmas Tree.

(And if you are interested in the history of Santa Clausclick here.)

La BefanaItalys native gift-gifter is La Befana,

an Italian Witch who was asked by the Three

Wise Men to join them on their journey toBethlehem. Wishing to put her house in order before the long journey, Befana

missed her opportunity to join the Maji and now wanders the world in search ofChrist. The Russian version of Befana,Baboushka, has a tale similar to LaBefanas, though a little more sinister. In some versions of her visit with the

Three Wise Men she purposefully gave the Magi wrong directions to

Bethlehem. She later repented and now wanders the world in search of Jesus.

Traditionally Befana leaves presents on Epiphany (along with bags of ashes forthe naughty) and her name is most likely a corruption ofEpiphaniathe Greek

word for Epiphany.

Varoius attempts have been made over the years to link Befana to Roman goddesseswith varying degrees of success. (In other words, the jury is still out on that one.) In

addition to her role as gift-giver some see her as symbolic of the old year passing.

Befana is pictured as both an unattractive older women and sometimes as a sexyyounger witch. Outside of Italy La Befana is honored anywhere there is a large Italian

population.

Jlasveinar (also known as The Yule Lads and Yule

Goblins)Yule Goblins doesnt sound very festive and

originally the Jlasveinar werent very festive either. The YuleLads began their association with the Holiday Season as

dastardly visitors and the tales about them were so frighteningthat the Danish Government passed a law outlawing people

from using the Yule Goblins to frighten children. Eventuallythe Jlasveinar went from being malicious to a welcome part

of Icelands Christmas tradition.

Originally the Yule Lads varied in number, but today most

Icelanders honor thirteen Lads, with each Lad being distinct.According to tradition the Jlasveinar arrive one by one to the

populated parts of Iceland from the islands interior. Children leave their shoes by the door every night over the

course of thirteen days with a different land placing small gifts inside them in the run-up to Christmas. One by

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one the Lads head back to where they came from, departing by the end of the Christmas-Season on January 6.

Like most other gift-givers the Lads are also known to leave unwanted things for the bad children, like rottenpotatoes.

Christindl/ChristkindThe Christkindl has evolved into two very separateHoliday traditions. Originally a Protestant alternative to Saint Nicholas, the

Christkindl was the Christ Child, a young Jesus as Holiday gift-giver. In

many parts of Europe this version of the Christkindl still brings gifts at

Christmas, but in other areas something else entirely evolved out of thetradition.

Google Christkind today and youll getimages of angelic young women, its this

version of the Christkindl that is most

prevalent in Germany, Austrian, and among Americas Pennsylvania Dutch

Communities. Over time the Christ Child evolved into a blonde child withangel wings. Eventually this figure came to be portrayed by young women.

This interpretation of the Christkindl who often ushers in the Holidays bypresiding over the opening of the Christkindlmarktor Christmas Market.(Chicago Illinois has a largeChristkindlmarket,complete with a female

Christkind.) Christkind was eventually anglicized into Kris Kringle and

became another name for Santa Claus.

Krampus (also Krumpus, Krampusz, Grampus)No Holiday figure has

enjoyed a more far-ranging renaissance the last few yearsthan the Krampus.

The Krampus has been the official assistant to Saint Nicholas in various parts

of Central Europe for centuries, and the history of this figure stretches backeven further. The Krampus is a descendant of pre-Christian Germanic pagan

traditions and has also been linked to figures in Norse Mythology. Grampus-like figures certainly figured in Midwinter mummerings, with individuals

dressed up as animals and mythological figures. Eventually Krampus evolved

into a December Devil.

The Krampus generally plays Good Cop to St.

Nicholass Bad Cop, post cards from theNineteenth Century show him spanking naughty

children and hes been said to threaten naughty children with being thrown into

the basket on his back, though usually Nicholas saves children from thispredicament. St. Nicholas and Krampus generally make their rounds onDecember 5, on the eve of St. Nicholass Feast Day (a traditional time for

presents in many European countries) and sometimes calledKrampusnachtafter

everyones favorite horned-Christmas figure. The Atlantic Monthly released a

photo essay with contemporary images of Krampus just a few weeks ago, itsvery worthchecking out.Some have worried that the recent revival of interest in

Krampus might take away his more sinister past, but judging from those pictures

in The Atlantic I dont think theres much reason to worry.

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Three Wise Men (Los Reyes Magos)In many parts of the Spanish-

speaking world its Epiphany (sometimes called Three Kings Day) thatsthe traditional day for gift-giving. Those gifts are brought not by a

Santa-like figure but by the Magi mentioned in the New Testament book

of Matthew. The author of Matthew doesnt share the number of Magi

with his readers, but later Christian tradition settles on Three Wise Menand creates backstories for Balthasar, Melchior, and Gaspar.

Children leave their shoes at the door (and sometimes some treats for theMagis camels and Balthasars donkey) for the Three Wise Men to fill

with presents. Parades, known as the Cavalcade of the Magi, are often

elaborate and festive affairs. Many of those parades feature Balthasarplayed by a native Spaniard in black-face, a practice thats coming under

increasing criticism. Countries where the Three Wise Men are the

primary gift givers include Spain, Mexico, Argentina, Uruguay, and

Paraguay.

The Cavalcade of the Magi f rom Al coy Spain (2013), the oldest Cabalgata de los Reyes Magos in the worl d.

Belsnickel Belsnickel (sometimes Pelznickel, German for

Nichols in Furs) is another rather dour assistant to SaintNicholas. He operates much like the Krampus, questioning

children as to their misdeeds, though he sometimes visits the

little ones on his own. He usually carries a switch as a form of

intimidation. The Belsnickel is occasionally depicted like agarden gnome, but the truer version features a man dressed up

in animal skins, very much like the European Wild Man. In

Baltimore Belsnickel used to figure prominently in GermanCatholic Christmas Parades. In Pennsylvania Dutch

communities and parts of Nova Scotia the custom of

Belsnicklingremains popular.Belsnickingis a more modernday version of mumming with individuals dressing up and

going door to door for treats and often responding with musical performances. More recently the Belsnickel was

featured in an episode of The Office(American version).

Yule Goat/JoulupukkiPerhaps my favorite other and the

strangest character on this list is the Joulupukki or Yule Goat

(also known as the Yule Buck) of Finland. Originally the Yule

Goat was a man dressed up in goat skins looking quite goatish.Sadly at the beginning of the Twentieth Century he

increasingly became a more Santa-like figure, keeping thename Joulupukki but losing the goat skins. In 1927 a Finnish

broadcaster began sharing stories of Joulupukki living on

Finlands Mount Ear, a tradition as familiar to Fins as Santaliving at the North Pole is to Americans.

Attempts to trace the Yule Goat to a pagan ancestor have risento speculation that he might be an echo of Odin, but Thor is a

much more likely choice. Thors chariot was driven by two goats, Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjstr, the YuleGoat

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might very well be their cousins. Some depictions of the Yule Goat have turned him into a pack-animal rather

than gift-giver. While the Yule Goat doesnt pass out a lot of presents these days, hes still a popular ornamentfor the tree.

Black PeteBlack Pete (also known asZwarte Piet) is SaintNicholass assistant in the Netherlands. He generally wears

Moorish medieval dress and is often depicted by a man in

blackface. The tradition of Black Pete began when the

Netherlands were ruled by Spain, coincidently the home ofZwarte Piet. Like most helper figures he can be both benign

and threatening. Hes been known to share candy with children,

and to threaten bad ones with sticking them in his bag andforcing them to live in Spain for a year. Pete is a common

Dutch figure in late November and early December in the lead

up to Saint Nicholas Day on December 6. Not surprisingly Pete

has come under a lot of criticism for being racially insensitive (and deservedly so).

Father ChristmasThe English Father Christmas has been largely consumedby the American Santa Claus but he has a long and unique history all his own.

The origins of the figure also known as Sir (or Lord) Christmas can be tracedback to English writer Ben Johnson who wrote of Christmas His Masquein

1616. Johnsons figure had a long beard of course, and twenty years laterpicked up a furred gown and cap. Father Christmas was not originally a gift

giver, but functioned as a literary and artistic personification of the holiday. He

was more a figure related to games and feasting than the desires of children, butthe popularity of Santa changed his role in English society. Even though hes

picked up many of Santas attributes, some versions of the figure still remain

unique.

TomteThe Tomte (orNissein Norway) are gnome-like figures associated

with Christmas and the Winter Solstice. In folklore the Tomte aredepicted as mischievous figures who often play pranks on unsuspecting

humans. They also have a more vengeful side and were said to kill

livestock when they were offended. Unlike most gift-givers the Tomte

live in the home and often act as household guardians (when not playingpranks or killing livestock). They eventually evolved into Christmas gift-

givers, sharing gifts on Christmas Eve with good children. Instead of

cookies and milk the Tomte prefer a good bowl of porridge with butter.Porridge is also a good way to make amends with an offended Tomte.More recently the Tomte have begun to recognize the better known Santa

Claus.

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Baby New YearThe Mankey family has a long tradition of gifts on

New Years Day, magically delivered by the Baby New Year. WhenI was a boy (and even beyond that) my family all left their least

smelly shoes by the front door for Baby New Year to fill. He mostly

left small gifts-a Chewbacca action figure, comic books, perhaps a

cassette tape, and usually some candy. When I asked my Father whythe gifts were so small and why Baby New Year didnt visit my

friends houses he replied Because hes a baby, and cant carry very

much, he also doesnt have time to visit everybody in the world.Due to the character Happy from the cartoonRudolphs Shiny New

YearI thought gifts from Baby New Year were a pretty normal

thing. Years later and Ive never met another family with this tradition, though New Years gift givers arentunusual, thats when Father Noel delivers presents in Turkey.

Happy Holidays no matter who your gift giver might be!

This piece would have been impossible to write without Gerry Bowlers World Encyclopedia of Christmas

published in the year 2000 by McClelland & Stewart. For the bit on Father Christmas I consulted RonaldHuttons Stations of the Sun, published by Oxford University Press in 1996.

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