![Belsnickel in Modern Day Travel Attire](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/Belsnickel_in_Modern_Day_Travel_Attire.JPG)
Belsnickel (also known as Belschnickel, Belznickle, Belznickel, Pelznikel, Pelznickel, Bell Sniggle) is a crotchety, fur-clad
Christmas gift-bringer
A number of Midwinter or Christmas traditions in European folklore involve gift-bringers. Mostly involving the figure of a bearded old man, the traditions have mutually influenced one another, and have adopted aspects from Christian hagiography, ...
figure in the folklore of the
Palatinate region of southwestern Germany along the Rhine, the
Saarland
The Saarland (, ; french: Sarre ) is a state of Germany in the south west of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and ...
, and the
Odenwald
The Odenwald () is a low mountain range in the German states of Hesse, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.
Location
The Odenwald is located between the Upper Rhine Plain with the Bergstraße and the ''Hessisches Ried'' (the northeastern section ...
area of
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...
. The figure is also preserved in
Pennsylvania Dutch
The Pennsylvania Dutch ( Pennsylvania Dutch: ), also known as Pennsylvania Germans, are a cultural group formed by German immigrants who settled in Pennsylvania during the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. They emigrated primarily from German-spe ...
communities and
Brazilian-German communities.
Cultural perspective
Belsnickel is related to other
companions of Saint Nicholas
The companions of Saint Nicholas are a group of closely related figures who accompany Saint Nicholas throughout the territories formerly in the Holy Roman Empire or the countries that it influenced culturally. These characters act as a foil to ...
in the folklore of German-speaking Europe. He may have been based on an older German myth,
Knecht Ruprecht
Knecht Ruprecht (; English: ''Farmhand Rupert'', ''Servant Rupert'' or ''Farmhand Robert'', ''Servant Robert'') is a companion of Saint Nicholas as described in the folklore of Germany. He is the most popular gift-bringing character in Germany ...
, a servant of Saint Nicholas and a character from northern Germany.
Unlike those figures, Belsnickel does not accompany Saint Nicholas but instead visits alone
and combines both the threatening and the benign aspects which in other traditions are divided between the Saint Nicholas and the companion figure.
Belsnickel is a man wearing furs and sometimes a
mask
A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment and often they have been employed for rituals and rights. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and practic ...
with a long
tongue
The tongue is a muscular organ (anatomy), organ in the mouth of a typical tetrapod. It manipulates food for mastication and swallowing as part of the digestive system, digestive process, and is the primary organ of taste. The tongue's upper surfa ...
. He is typically very ragged and disheveled. He wears torn, tattered, and dirty clothes, and he carries a
switch
In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can disconnect or connect the conducting path in an electrical circuit, interrupting the electric current or diverting it from one conductor to another. The most common type of ...
in his hand with which to beat naughty children, but also pocketsful of cakes, candies, and nuts for good children.
A first-hand 19th-century account of the "Beltznickle" tradition in
Allegany County, Maryland
Allegany County is located in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 68,106. Its county seat is Cumberland. The name ''Allegany'' may come from a local Lenape word, ''welhik hane'' or '' ...
, can be found in ''Brown's Miscellaneous Writings'', a collection of essays by Jacob Brown (born 1824). Writing of a period around 1830, Brown says, "we did not hear of" Santa Claus. Instead, the tradition called for a visit by a different character altogether:
Outside Europe
The Belsnickel character originated in the Palatinate. When people immigrated to Pennsylvania, they brought their German traditions with them.
Belsnickel was known in Pennsylvania in the early 1800s.
[ Amongst the Pennsylvania Germans, Belsnickel is the character who visits homes prior to Christmas to check up on the behavior of the children. The traditional Belsnickel showed up at houses 1–2 weeks before Christmas and "often created fright because he always knew exactly which of the children misbehaved". He would rap on the door or window with his stick and often the children would have to answer a question for him or sing some type of song. In exchange he would toss candies onto the floor. If the children jumped too quick for the treats, they may end up getting struck with Belsnickel's switch.
An 1853 article in a British magazine describing Pennsylvanian customs refers to "''Pelsnichol'', or Nicholas with the fur, alluding to the dress of skins in which he is said to be clad. Some make ''Pelsnichol'' identical with ''Krishkinkle'', but the more general opinion is that they are two personages, one the rewarder of the good, the other the punisher of the bad." According to this article, Pelsnichol merely leaves a birch rod in the stockings of naughty children.
There are two versions of Belsnickel, the rural and the urban characters. Both are described in the book, ''Christmas in Pennsylvania: a folk cultural study'', by Alfred L. Shoemaker and Don Yoder. The tradition fell into decline toward the end of the nineteenth century, but has seen a revival in recent years.][
The tradition of Belsnickel was brought to Indiana by immigrants from the Palatinate. His garb could vary from one locality to another. He might wear a long, black or brown coat or robe, held together at the waist with a rope, and a fur cap or bear skin hat, decorated with bells. In this branch of the tradition, the father or other older male relative was often "busy working outside" or had to see to some matter elsewhere in the house when Pelznickel (or Belsnickel) arrived. "Belsnickling" or "Klausentreiben," was the "running" of groups of young men or youth dressed in false faces and fantastic costumes on "Belsnickle Night", the eve of the Feast of St. Nicholas (''St. Nikolaustag''), and was the occasion of good-natured boisterousness. Young men, dressed in skins and furs, would move through the streets of town or village, rattling chains and bells.]
The tradition also exists in parts of Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...
(see mummering
Mummering is a Christmas-time house-visiting tradition practised in Newfoundland and Labrador, Ireland, City of Philadelphia, and parts of the United Kingdom.
Also known as mumming or janneying, it typically involves a group of friends or famil ...
), Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
, and some communities in the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina.
In popular culture
A writer to the letters column of ''The Times'' refers to an illustration of "Pelz-Nickel" in a book by English author Harriet Myrtle, ''The Little Sister'' (1851). German illustrator H.J. Schneider depicts him "in a long cloak, pointed hood, a fur round his neck, with a long white beard, and a big bag."
Stoudt's Brewing Company
Stoudt's Brewery was a microbrewery and restaurant located in the Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, Lancaster County borough of Adamstown, Pennsylvania, Adamstown. It was one of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), commonwealth's first microbreweries, hav ...
of Adamstown, Pennsylvania
Adamstown (Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Adamschteddel'') is a borough in Lancaster County which has grown into Berks County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The population was 1,789 at the 2010 census. Of this, 1,772 were in Lancaster County and onl ...
, brews a seasonal dark lager called "Belsnickle". Otto's Pub and Brewery of State College, Pennsylvania, brews a "Belsnickle" ale.
The antagonist of the John R. Neill
John Rea Neill (November 12, 1877 – September 19, 1943) was a magazine and children's book illustrator primarily known for illustrating more than forty stories set in the Land of Oz, including L. Frank Baum's, Ruth Plumly Thompson's, and three o ...
book ''The Scalawagons of Oz
''The Scalawagons of Oz'' (1941) is the thirty-fifth in the series of Oz books created by L. Frank Baum and continued by his successors; it is the second volume in the series both written and illustrated by John R. Neill.
A weak plot and the lac ...
'', the thirty-fifth entry in the Oz series
The Oz books form a book series that begins with ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' (1900) and relates the fictional history of the Land of Oz. Oz was created by author L. Frank Baum, who went on to write fourteen full-length Oz books. All of Baum's bo ...
created by L. Frank Baum
Lyman Frank Baum (; May 15, 1856 – May 6, 1919) was an American author best known for his children's books, particularly ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' and its sequels. He wrote 14 novels in the ''Oz'' series, plus 41 other novels (not includ ...
, is a mysterious monstrosity called Bell-snickle. It first appears as "a large bluish-green object, flat as a buckwheat cake, and rolling along on its edge like a cartwheel." The creature does have arms and legs, as well as facial features; it wears bells on its ears, explaining at least one portion of its name. The creature has the egotism and petulance of a spoiled child.
In 2000, author Chet Williamson
Chet Williamson (born 19 June 1948) is the author of nearly 20 books and over 100 short stories published in ''Esquire'', ''The New Yorker'', ''Playboy'', and many other magazines and anthologies.
Biography
Chet Williamson was born and raised in ...
published ''Pennsylvania Dutch Night Before Christmas'', a children's picture book that includes Belsnickel in a Pennsylvania Dutch version of "The Night Before Christmas
''A Visit from St. Nicholas'', more commonly known as ''The Night Before Christmas'' and ''Twas the Night Before Christmas'' from its first line, is a poem first published anonymously under the title ''Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas'' i ...
".
In "Dwight Christmas
"Dwight Christmas" is the ninth episode of the ninth season of the American comedy television series ''The Office'' and the 185th episode overall. The episode was written by Robert Padnick and directed by Charles McDougall. It originally aired on ...
", a season nine episode of ''The Office
''The Office'' is a mockumentary sitcom created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, first made in the United Kingdom, then Germany, and subsequently the United States. It has since been remade in ten other countries.
The original series of ...
'', Dwight Schrute
Dwight Kurt Schrute III () is a fictional character on ''The Office (U.S.)'' and is portrayed by American actor Rainn Wilson. Dwight's character was a salesman and the assistant to the regional manager, at the fictional paper distribution compan ...
dresses as Belsnickel and spends a significant portion of the episode deciding if his co-workers were "impish or admirable" at the company Christmas party.
The 2020 Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
film '' The Christmas Chronicles 2'' features Belsnickel, played by actor Julian Dennison
Julian Bailey Dennison (born 26 October 2002) is a New Zealand actor. He debuted in the 2013 film ''Shopping'', for which he won the English Film and Television Award for Best Supporting Actor. He is known for his roles as Ricky Baker in '' Hunt ...
, as the movie's main antagonist. His goal in the movie is to destroy Christmas.[ ]
Etymology
: ''See Belsnickel § Etymology''
See also
* Krampus
* Le Père Fouettard
* Zwarte Piet
Zwarte Piet (; lb, Schwaarze Péiter, fy, Swarte Pyt), also known in English by the translated name Black Pete, is the companion of Saint Nicholas ( nl, Sinterklaas, fy, Sinteklaas, lb, Kleeschen) in the folklore of the Low Countries. The ...
References
External links
Sociedade do Pelznickel
{{Christmas, state=collapsed
Christmas characters
German legendary creatures
Pennsylvania German culture
Christmas in Germany
Franconian culture
Companions of Saint Nicholas