Hans Trapp, the Christmas Bogeyman of Alsace
In Alsace, children who behaved badly before Christmas were warned about Hans Trapp, a terrifying figure dressed in straw and bearskin who came for naughty children.
What was reported
Hans Trapp is a figure of Christmas folklore in Alsace and Lorraine, in eastern France. He's said to be a cruel, greedy man who worshipped the devil and was cast out by the Church. He lives in the forest, dressed in bearskin or straw, and comes at Christmas to frighten children who have misbehaved.
In some villages, he arrives with the Christkindel, the Christ child figure who brings presents to good children, while Hans Trapp threatens the naughty ones.
Explanations offered
The legend may be loosely based on a real 15th-century knight, Hans von Trotha, who quarrelled with the Church, and became a bogeyman figure in later folklore. He's one of many dark companions of the Christmas gift-bringers across Europe, like Krampus.
- When
- Told for centuries
- Where
- Alsace, France
- Witnesses
- Alsatian and Lorraine folklore
- Status
- Legend
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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