“In many parts of the world, Christmas is acknowledged has having a certain ‘strangeness’ to it, a dark aspect to balance the light,” notes Ross Lockhart, of Copperfield’s books. “It’s mostly in America that those weirdnesses are downplayed or ignored. Christmas, in this part of the world, has been polished and buffed and given a nice, shiny, 1950s glow. We want to change all that.”
“And we’re doing it,” adds Assistant Manager and Events Specialist Ray Lawrason, “by introducing Petaluma to the Krampus. Krampus, meet Petaluma. Petaluma, meet Krampus.”
Krampus, to look at him – horns, fur, teeth and a very long tongue – would seem to be more at home during Halloween celebrations than at Christmas time. But Lawrason and Lockhart plan to educate locals about what, till recently, has been a mostly under-the-radar holiday tradition. To make that happen, and to have some fun doing it, the two monster-fiction fans have been mischievously organizing the bookstore’s first-ever Krampusnacht celebration, taking place Saturday, Dec. 8, at 7 p.m. at Copperfield’s.
“Krampusnacht,” Lawrason explains, “is a predecessor, of sorts, to what we think of as the modern day Christmas, and it all revolves around the mythic figure of the Krampus. Krampus is basically the second half of the St. Nicholas story. Wherein St. Nick gives candy and treats to the good children, the Krampus comes and finds the children who are not good, and they are, um, punished for being naughty.”
“It’s the old carrot-and-the-stick,” adds Lockhart, “only in this case the stick is literal. Along with the sack. The sack is important.”
No kidding.
In the case of Krampus sack, however, it’s not what comes out of it that matters, as with Santa Claus. According to a folk tradition that dates back to the 14th and 15th century in many parts of Europe, when the Krampus comes on Christmas Eve, he puts all bad children in his sack and carries them away. Such creepy folktales have resulted in a number of odd traditions in certain countries. Some people give “Krampus cards” at the holidays, with the warning, “Greetings from Krampus,” a reminder to stay good or else. Many countries have elaborate Krampusnacht parades – sometimes called “Krampus walks” - in which crowds gather to watch people dressed like the Krampus, toting sacks and chains, and sometimes breathing fire.
“In the states, it’s only recently begun to hit the zeitgeist, but in Europe, some villages and cities have been holding Krampus parades for centuries,” says Lawrason. “The Krampus has recently become extremely popular in America, as you can see by all the books about Krampus that are now available.”
“Even children’s books,” notes Lockhart. “In some of the kids’ books, the Krampus has become an adorable little troublemaker. It’s definitely pushed its way into American culture.”
As pointed out earlier, Christmas around the world has plenty of dark and somewhat bizarre traditions. In Japan, St. Nick has eyes on the back of his head. In certain parts of Spain, Nativity scenes often include an odd additional character known as “The Caganer,” which translates, more or less, to “the crapper.”
“He’s basically a little guy in a red cap who poops in the Nativity scene,” says Lockhart. “He’s awesome. In that tradition, people try sneak the little guy into their manger scenes, so the kids can try and spot him. He’s another reminder of the dark side of Christmas, a way of saying that for everything that is good, there is something or someone out there getting ready to take a crap right in the middle of it. So there’s a spiritual side to the Crapper. He’s also just really, really funny.”
“These traditions, in many parts of the world, grew out of the fact that Christmas is a time when the days are getting shorter, the nights are getting longer, it’s going to be a hard winter till the sun returns, if it ever does,” says LAwrason. “It was a scary time for many people, truly a matter of life and death. So it’s no surprise that so many scary traditions have risen up out of Christmas and the Solstice and wintertime.”
Here in Petaluma, Copperfield’s Krampusnacht celebration will include a brief presentation by Lockhart and Lawrason on the various Krampus traditions and folklore, with perhaps a reading from some of the books on the subject. There will be light refreshments – “Appropriately chosen for Krampusnacht,” says Lawrason with a wicked grin – and general fun and games.
“We’re hoping some people come in costume,” Lawrason adds. “If anyone’s had a Krampus outfit in their wardrobe, but hasn’t had a good opportunity to put it on, well put it on and come on down.”
Asked how the idea of organizing a Krampusnacht party came to be, both Lockhart and Lawrason grin.
“Well, we’re fans of weird traditions in general,” he says. “We like weird stuff, so we mentioned a few months back that it would be fun to do an event that focused on Krampus, and the folks in management said, ‘Okay. Do it.’ We hope it will become an annual thing, and maybe someday we can include a traditional Krampus walk as well.”
“Can you imagine dozens of people in Krampus outfits parading down Kentucky street?” laughs Lawrason.
“Yes I can,” says Lockart. “It would be really sweet.”
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