A Christmas Witch, The Whipping Father, a child-eating scarecrow, and a Troll named Meat Hook....

It is fascinating how many different traditions and customs Christmas symbolizes around the world.  I found a few that I have to share.


I did not really think people still went Christmas caroling but if you find yourself in Glamorgan, Wales, be weary of those songsters at your door.  You might just find those roaming performers have brought along a Mari Lwyd (a horse skull on a stick with a person hiding under a cover) with them to try to argue their way through song to get inside your house and take your food and gifts. 

If you are in Eastern Europe, you may find the two-faced Frau Perchta (Christmas Witch).

Apparently, she has a nice face for the nice children and a scary face for the bad children. She also comes into the homes of the good children and leaves a piece of silver in their shoe.

Norway also has a Christmas Witch.  The Norwegian Witch comes out on Christmas Eve to steal brooms just to go for a ride.

Guess you probably want to hide your broom if you are in Norway on Christmas Eve.

If you find yourself in Finland on Christmas Eve, head on over to a cemetery.  Finns go to the cemeteries to light candles at the graves of their loved ones who have passed away.


In the Alsace region of France, tales of a cold-blooded, rich, old man named Hans Trapp will give you a freight.

This devil-worshiping dude was excommunicated and lived in a forest.
Story has it he became a cannibal and would venture out of the forest on Christmas dressed as a scarecrow for the purpose of kidnapping all the bad children so he could eat them.

That's pretty frightening!  I am guessing there are some pretty well-behaved kids in Alsace, France.

People in South Africa have a full proof way to make kids stop eating Santa's cookies. Parents simply remind their kids about the story of Danny.  He was caught by his grandmother eating Santa's cookies so she killed him.  Makes perfect sense to me.  So now the ghost of Danny haunts all the kids who eat Santa's cookies.

In Iceland, Santa brings along 13 badass trolls when he visits.  Their gang name is The Yule Lads, and they have names like Pot-Scraper, Bowl-Licker, and Meat Hook.
They steal food, slam doors, destroy property, and kidnap the bad kids to bring to their mother, Gryla, who is said to be a large, hoofed troll/ogre female with terrifying horns and covered in warts.

And The Yule Lad gang also have a monstrous cat that goes by the name Jolakotturinn.


Fingers crossed that you will receive clothing of some type for Christmas because if you do not, Jolakotturinn with devour you.




I think I will be staying away from Iceland around the Christmas holidays.





And finally if those stories were not odd/scary enough; Le Pere Fouettard a.k.a. The Whipping Father should do the trick.

This dude hangs out with Santa everywhere he goes.


He basically whips all the children who have not been good.


If you are going for that obligatory mall photo with Santa, you can almost count on someone dressed as Le Pere Fouettard right beside him threatening children to be good.


On that note, Joyeux Noël! Et à tous une bonne nuit!