The history of Christmas It is already a charming myth in itself. A story charged with spirituality, in which the arrival of jesus, the son of God, to the earthly plane. For all those who profess the Catholic faith, it is one of the most beautiful and symbolic moments of the year. But beyond popular stories, such as that of the Three Wise Men wave of Santa Clausthere are lesser-known Christmas legends that are just as fascinating. Today in supercurious We have started to investigate, and we want to tell you about the most curious, charming and sometimes mysterious Christmas legends. Join us!
The Christmas stories They are part of our idiosyncrasy. From the oral tradition that is transmitted from generation to generation. And this is how the legend of the Christmas witch comes to this day. It is one of the symbols of the christmas in italyand tells the story of the witch Befana.
She was an old lady who crossed the path of the wise menwhen they traveled to Bethlehem to meet the baby Jesus. Lost, they asked him for help. Befana showed them the way, and she also gave them sweets.
Very grateful, Melchor, Gaspar and Baltasar invited her to accompany them to meet the son of God, but she kindly refused. A few minutes later she repented and went out to look for the kings, to accompany them. But she didn’t find them…
What her story tells is that then the witch Befana comes out every Christmas night. He knocks on the doors of the houses and asks if the baby Jesus lives there. She leaves sweets for all the children who are well behaved, while for the naughty he leaves a piece of coal. Among Christmas legends, it is one of the most charming.
2. The Legend of the Demon Krampus
And among Christmas legends, not all are about sweet and charming characters. In fact, there are some with real christmas monsters. Such is the case of the legend of Krampus demon, which are pretty terrifying. The origin of this legend is very old. We find it in the folkloric traditions of the alpine area of Germany and Austria.
The word Krampen means claw. It is a threatening beast, which is the opposite of santa claus. He appears in Norse mythology as the son of Hel. Krampen is a horned demon and sharp fangs, with goatee hair and beard and dark, menacing eyes.
It stands out among Christmas legends, for the terror it generates. And it is said that Krampus appears only once a year, on the night of December 5. That night is called Krampusnacht or Krampus night.
On his way out to earth he goes looking for bad children. He whips them hard and takes them with him to his lair. There are versions that say that Krampus even devours them raw. As dawn breaks on December 6th, the children who remain in their homes are the good ones, the ones who have survived Krampus.
3. The legend of the star of Bethlehem
Another of our favorites among Christmas legends is that of the sweet star of Bethlehem. This symbol, with which many crown their Christmas tree, originates from an enchanting legend. The story is that there was in a town near Bethlehem, a shepherdess who wanted to walk and bring a gift to baby Jesus. But he had nothing to offer him, as he was very poor. Disconsolate, she began to cry next to a well. But to her surprise, something brightly shining appeared at the bottom of the water. He was a star!
The girl struggled to catch it with her bucket. She then started walking towards the manger, happy with her gift. Every once in a while she would turn her gaze to verify that the star was still there. She came to offer the present to the child Jesus, but when I showed him the bucket, it was empty. Then he started crying again. But the baby Jesus laughed. Stars began to sprout from the little shepherd’s tears. One of them grew and grew. It began to ascend to the sky and become a giant, radiating a special glow. That’s the lovely Belen star.
4. The Legend of the Yule Cat
We continue with our tour of Christmas legends, with that of the terrifying Yule cat. He is a christmas monster of the folklore of Iceland, which lurks on Christmas nights.
He is willing to chase and devour all the people who have not received any new clothes, to wear in the Christmas eve. It is a legend that goes hand in hand with the tradition of Nordic families, of receiving a piece of clothing as a gift, if they finish their work on time. Not receiving anything new implies that the person was a bad worker or lazy.
5. The legend of Santa Claus socks
And we close our tour of the most beautiful Christmas legends, with the one about Santa Claus’s socks. It is a milestone in the Christmas in the United States and it has also become popular in other countries.
The origin of the legend tells that three Turkish girls lived many years ago, Hazan, Sila and Nor. They were very poor and lived with their father in a humble house. Since they had no money, their shoes were very old and the snow was leaking through them. Every night before going to sleep they put their socks by the fireplace to dry.
the night of Dec. 24 the three sisters were very sad. They were in love and they were reciprocated, but they could not marry, because they did not have money for the dowry, which was a tradition. Then Bishop Nicolás (the same one who later would be called Saint Nicholas, due to his great kindness) passed through his door. Hearing of the girls’ suffering, he snuck down the chimney and filled his socks with gold coins. Seeing the happiness that he had generated, he took the habit of reproducing his good deed with the most needy people. And so the legend was born santa socks tradition.
And you, Did you know these beautiful Christmas legends? Do you know any other that you want us to add to our list? Feel free to leave us your opinions in a comment. And if you’re in the mood for some Christmas inspiration, don’t miss this charming selection of the cutest Christmas phrases. Until next time!
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5 Christmas Legends | The magic of December and its characters – El Regional Del Zulia