Episode 149: Skin-Peelers & Child-Eaters: The Origins of Holiday Fear

Trade in your candy canes for birch branches as we explore the terrifying global origins of holiday folklore that prove Santa Claus is the exception, not the rule. From the skin-peeling Namahage of Japan and the child-hunting Nalujuit of the frozen North to the suffocating Christmas witches of France and the original bad cop, Krampus, this episode uncovers the monsters that haunt the Twelve Days of Christmas. Tune in to discover why our ancestors used fear rather than rewards to enforce obedience, how a lack of butter could cost you your life in Scandinavia, and why the "most wonderful time of the year" was historically the most dangerous.

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