Belsnickel

== English == === Etymology === Borrowed from Pennsylvania German Belsnickel. === Proper noun === Belsnickel A companion of St. Nicholas in some Germanophone regions, with various cultural roles, including rewarding well-behaved children with gifts and punishing ill-behaved children by corporal punishment or by spiriting them away from their homes. Homologous with Krampus in other regions. == Hunsrik == === Alternative forms === Pelznickel (Altenhofen spelling) === Etymology === Cognate with Pennsylvania German Belsnickel. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ˈpelsˌnikəl/ Rhymes: -ikəl Syllabification: Bels‧nic‧kel === Noun === Belsnickel m Belsnickel Santa Claus Synonym: Krisskindche ==== Usage notes ==== The meaning of this term varies between households. While some families see Belsnickel as the sole figure of Christmas, responsible for both punishing and rewarding children, others make a division, with Krisskindche as the role of gifter and Belsnickel being more akin to Krampus. ==== Descendants ==== → Brazilian Portuguese: Pelznickel === References === === Further reading === Boll, Piter Kehoma (2021), “Belsnickel”, in Dicionário Hunsriqueano Riograndense–Português, 3rd edition (overall work in Portuguese), Ivoti: Riograndenser Hunsrickisch, page 22, column 1 == Pennsylvania German == === Etymology === Certainly a compound of some /bɛls/ syllable plus a diminutive/hypocorism of the name Nicholas; the first component is conventionally viewed as Bels (pelt/fur), but the homophony involved with pelts (furs/Bels/pels) and pelting (belting/beating/belse/pelzen) is evidenced in all of these Germanic languages (English, Pennsylvania German, and some German dialects) and cannot be excluded as an influence on the overlapping notions of Belsnickel as a pelt-clad figure who pelts naughty children. For example, some Rhenish dialects have pelzen or belzen, "to wallop or to drub", and Pennsylvania German has belse, "to beat/flog". === Proper noun === Belsnickel m Belsnickel St. Nicholas Santa Claus ==== Descendants ==== → English: Belsnickel === References ===