The Kallikantzaroi
In Greek folklore, goblins climb up from under the earth during the twelve days of Christmas, causing mischief until they're chased away.
What was reported
In Greek and wider Balkan folklore, the kallikantzaroi are goblins who spend the year underground, sawing at the tree that holds up the world. During the twelve days of Christmas, they come up to the surface to cause mischief: putting out fires, spoiling food and frightening people.
Families kept fires burning, hung charms and burned things that smell bad to keep them away. At Epiphany, on 6 January, the water was blessed and the kallikantzaroi fled back underground, to find the world tree had healed.
Explanations offered
The kallikantzaroi are figures of folklore, tied to the long, dark nights around midwinter, when people in many cultures feared that spirits were abroad.
- When
- Told for centuries
- Where
- Thessaly and across Greece
- Witnesses
- Greek tradition
- 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.