# In Cultures With The Krampus Tradition... **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 7, 2017, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cultures-with-the-krampus-tradition/803801 "2017-12-07T17:03:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2017, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cultures-with-the-krampus-tradition/803801/1 "2017-12-07T17:03:37Z")
Is Krampus taught to kids as a real being, in the same way that they are taught that Santa Claus/Father Christmas/Whatever is a real thing (which they then figure out later is a myth)? Or is he taught simply as a fairy tale, like the Boogey Man (or the cultural equivalent)? ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2017, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cultures-with-the-krampus-tradition/803801/2 "2017-12-07T17:27:57Z")
Norway doesn’t have the Krampus tradition, but I’m just sneaking in a: Not every country with a Santa tradition goes to the effort of the US in maintaining children’s belief in a ‘real’ Santa. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2017, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cultures-with-the-krampus-tradition/803801/3 "2017-12-07T17:36:29Z")
> [@naita](#): > > Norway doesn’t have the Krampus tradition, but I’m just sneaking in a: Not every country with a Santa tradition goes to the effort of the US in maintaining children’s belief in a ‘real’ Santa. Of course not, but some do. [Here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orgHrkg7orc) is a German woman describing her family going to great lengths to get her to enjoy the legend of the Weihnachtsmann, obviously taught to her as a real being as a child. I’m going to postulate that her experience wasn’t particularly unique among culturally Christian German kids of the middle 1990’s. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2017, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cultures-with-the-krampus-tradition/803801/4 "2017-12-07T18:11:10Z")
Wait a minute. Are you saying Santa Claus isn’t real? 😕 ☹ ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2017, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cultures-with-the-krampus-tradition/803801/5 "2017-12-07T18:25:46Z")
> [@naita](#): > > Norway doesn’t have the Krampus tradition, but I’m just sneaking in a: Not every country with a Santa tradition goes to the effort of the US in maintaining children’s belief in a ‘real’ Santa. There’s not much effort outside of Hallmark channel Christmas specials. It’s a lazy “fun” tradition for most people. > [@HeyHomie](#): > > Of course not, but some do. [Here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orgHrkg7orc) is a German woman describing her family going to great lengths to get her to enjoy the legend of the Weihnachtsmann, obviously taught to her as a real being as a child. I’m going to postulate that her experience wasn’t particularly unique among culturally Christian German kids of the middle 1990’s. Krampus! Ahh ahh ahh aaahhhh! Fighter of the Weihnachstmann! Ahh ahh ahhhhh ahhhhhhh! ---
**Author:** ![Mops](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mops/32/16494_2.png) [@Mops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mops)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2017, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cultures-with-the-krampus-tradition/803801/6 "2017-12-08T22:32:03Z")
As someone who grew up not in a _Krampus_ culture but with the more benign northern German _Knecht Ruprecht_ sidekick to the _Weihnachtsmann_, my recollection was that the _Weihnachtsmann_ and _Knecht Ruprecht_ operated under suspension of disbelief - true if not factual. That‘s how folklore and myths operate. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2017, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cultures-with-the-krampus-tradition/803801/7 "2017-12-08T22:40:51Z")
> [@Mops](#): > > As someone who grew up not in a _Krampus_ culture but with the more benign northern German _Knecht Ruprecht_ sidekick to the _Weihnachtsmann_, my recollection was that the _Weihnachtsmann_ and _Knecht Ruprecht_ operated under suspension of disbelief - true if not factual. That‘s how folklore and myths operate. ‘True if not factual.’ (licks pencil and writes that down) ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2017, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-cultures-with-the-krampus-tradition/803801/8 "2017-12-09T16:31:33Z")
> [@Sattua](#): > > ‘True if not factual.’ (licks pencil and writes that down) Is your real name Kellyanne Conway? 😛