#FolkloreThursday is trending

It's almost #Krampusnacht! Here are some of my Krampus & Perchta pieces from the past few years ⛓️🌬️⛓️ #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/9DhvJ0Yw1G

Cat Sí are Celtic fairies in cat form. An old tale tells of a man walking at night hearing a voice say "Tell Tom Tildrum Tim Toldrum is dead". Returning home, he repeats this to his wife, whereupon their own cat exclaims "Then I am king of the cats!" and flees. #FolkloreThursday

Last night it was Bärbeletreiben, the night in the year when women & girls over 16 take to the streets to symbolically 'sweep away indecency'. Anyone who gets in the way gets their legs birch whipped. Folk horror lives on in the Alps! #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/AMUfs0dSAL

This is the "Mud Maid", a living sculpture which changed with the seasons. Created by artist Susan Hill, the giant goddess slept along the woodland walk in the Lost Gardens of Heligan, Cornwall. While the winter might be harsh, the summer is never far away... #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/4qECQTDxiR

It's #FolkloreThursday and it's nearly Christmas, which means it's Mari Lwyd time! The Welsh folk tradition involves parading a horse's skull door-to-door to challenge families to a battle of rhyming insults. If victorious, it would enter the home to devour cakes & ale. #Wales

A legend tells that originally holly was deciduous. When the holy family fled from King Herod they hid under a leafless holly bush begging for protection. The holly miraculously grew back its strong prickly leaves to conceal them and remained evergreen evermore. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/vMJOCj5sWE

The ‘holy’ #holly tree rules the waxing half of the year from the #WinterSolstice. It was thought to hold the power of eternity as it was evergreen, & to ward off evil with its prickles. Before cutting a holly branch an offering must be made. #FolkloreThursday Img: Cicely Barker https://t.co/SXXFTmxv5G

In Iceland folklore The Jólakötturinn, or Yule Cat, eats anyone who hasn’t received new clothes by the time Christmas comes. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/JEZs1ts6HV

You've heard of Krampus but what about his kick-ass female counterpart FRAU PERCHTA?🧙‍♀️ This Alpine winter #witch rewards good children with silver. But bad ones? Well those she disembowels and replaces their organs with rocks!😬 Behave yourselves little ones ... #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/D4xJiQ42Yz

Happy Krampusnacht! Have you been naughty or nice? Tonight's the night when St Nicholas travels Europe to reward the good, while the "Christmas devil" #Krampus punishes the wicked. If you've been naughty you can try to appease him with schnapps! #Krampusnacht #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/AvPMH5Lk4l

I’ll always defend banshees. Some feminine formed folkloric creatures are surely villainous but the banshee never struck me as 1 of them. Almost every google image search shows something horrifying/frightful. But isn’t she a feminine creature expressing grief? #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/IslbcjyQAw

KRAMPUSNACHT is 5th Dec. #KRAMPUS is the horned Yuletide figure from Austro-Bavarian folklore, the dark other of the kindly St Nicholas, he kidnaps children rather than bringing them gifts #GothicAdvent #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/oJKyEx061g

According to Iceland’s #folklore, Gryla is a carnivorous troll who is bloodthirsty for children! Her insatiable hunger brings her down from the mountains each #Christmas to hunt for naughty children. She drags the bad ones back in a sac to boil & eat them alive! #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/8o0RFM3z8n

Lost secrets & untold lore come to light, while sinister forces attempt to steal much coveted #magic in this unputdownable #YAFantasy https://t.co/5ZNqPiazaB #Kindle #AmazonKindle #FREE on #KindleUnlimited #FolkloreThursday #ThursdayThoughts #GreatReads #IndieBooksBeSeen #Fantasy https://t.co/K2IvzPg9fY

In Russian folklore, Koschei the Deathless is a villain who takes the form of a man with magical powers. He's so thin that one can see his skeleton underneath his skin. He cannot be killed because he hides his soul inside other objects. (Image: Viktor Vasnetsov) #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/btVDBG7UQE

It's the eve of the Feast of St. Nicholas, when Krampus comes out to punished the naughty children & threatened to take them to his fiery abode if they did not mend their bad ways... Happy #krampusnacht everyone! #FolkloreThursday #krampus #christmas https://t.co/QaFMuJfr9h

Leshy is a male woodland spirit in Slavic mythology. Leshies are terribly mischievous beings: they have horrible cries, and can imitate voices of people familiar to wanderers and lure them back to their caves, where the leshies will tickle them to death. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/NgnECo2AD2

A sin eater was a type of shaman in the 17th and 18th centuries. They played a vital role, eating the bread that had soaked up the sins of the dead, but were also looked upon as evil infidels who consumed others’ sins for money. (Img: Oriel Washington Gallery) #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/9hgZCODAEH

🌛🐇🌜The Trickster Rabbits 'Jistu' and 'Brer Rabbit' - from Native American and African American folktales - show how the intelligence and cunning of a rebellious individual can triumph over much larger, powerful enemies. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/n5j2Ivj4uI

Belsnickel may come to you tonight, torn and tattered, furred and masked with a lolling tongue, travelling alone. The first sign he is near is his rap upon the windowpane before he bursts into the house to punish the naughty with his hazel switch @FolkloreThurs #folklorethursday https://t.co/BurV9D1997

In Greece, Callicantzari goblins crawled from caves and slid down chimneys to befoul the #christmas feast, pinch children and cause havoc. A roaring fire and a pig’s jawbone hung in the fireplace would keep these #tricksters away! #folklorethursday #yule #krampusnacht 🎨 J Howe https://t.co/gxTSxe2HYU

Sinterklaas is a legendary figure based on Saint Nicholas, patron saint of children. The feast of Sinterklaas is celebrated in the Low Countries with a lot of traditions and gift-giving on St. Nicholas' Eve or Saint Nicholas Day, depending on the region. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/AQkrwWDoeJ

For #FolkloreThursday a post about the Swedish tomte. This little sprite requires a bribe or two to keep the family and home safe from evil - and to not bribe him is to risk nasty consequences... https://t.co/wo6v3xZX56 https://t.co/3Dx4gZC3Kt

El-Ahrairah is the Trickster folk hero in the rabbits' folklore within Richard Adams' WATERSHIP DOWN. The Creator tells him, "All the world will be your enemy. Whenever they catch you, they will kill you." "But first they must catch you." #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/iOsc0IEEty

In Scandinavian #folklore the Tomten sleeps under farmhouse floorboards until #winter; when he wakes to prepare for #Christmas! Cleaning, baking sweets & trimming the #ChristmasTree. All he asks in return, is a bowl of porridge with LOTS of butter #ChristmasEve. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/rdmSUCuF1L

Lost wayfarers still talk of Robin Goodfellow who once lurked on lonely lanes on winter nights becoming a Will-o-the-wisp to lead folk astray. Upon abandoning them on a hilltop or in a marsh, his laugh echoed “Ho, Ho, Ho!” (long before Santa!) @FolkloreThurs #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/g10ddXOhz8

One of the most intriguing yokai of Japanese folklore, the Tanuki, has the appearance of a fox, the ability to shapeshift, is considered a bit of a trickster & has enormous magical testicles. Intrigued? You can read more here: https://t.co/uAElJpR3UE #FolkloreThursday #yokai

A #GhostStory That Caused a Riot: The Strange Case of #MaudeCarew by @DrFrancisYoung for #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/lYoEgZOuQ0 https://t.co/cHdENooSPW

The fox is often portrayed in folklore, folk tales and fables as a tricky customer, from out and out villain, to cunning trickster, to beguiling and magical shapeshifter. #FolkloreThursday 🦊Illustrations: Jemima Puddleduck by Beatrix Potter Reynard the Fox by Michel Rodange https://t.co/bjQ8CsTPOU

Mr Punch’s quintessentially British anti-hero-deranged-serial-killer character evolved from a mixture of the white clad commedia dell'arte Punchinello and ‘Lord of Misrule’ traditions. In 1662 Samuel Pepys enjoyed an early English version at Covent Garden #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/DQ5G6qALFE