Wikipedia

Perchta

PerchtaorBerchta('Bertha';German:[ˈpɛʁçta,ˈbɛʁçta]), also commonly known asPercht(German:[ˈpɛʁçt]) and other variations, was once known as agoddessinAlpine paganismin the Upper German and also Austrian and Slovenian regions of theAlps.Her name may mean 'the bright one' (Old High German:beraht, bereht,fromProto-Germanic*berhtaz) and is probably related to the nameBerchtentag,meaning'the feast of the Epiphany'.Eugen Mogkprovides an alternative etymology, attributing the origin of the namePerchtato theOld High Germanverbpergan,meaning 'hidden' or 'covered'.[1]The exact origin or time of origin is unknown.

Peruchty inHrdly[cs],Kingdom of Bohemia,1910

Perchta is often identified as stemming from the sameGermanicgoddess asHoldaand other female figures of Germanic folklore (seeFrija-Frigg). According toJacob GrimmandLotte Motz,Perchta is Holda's southern cousin or equivalent, as they both share the role of "guardian of the beasts" and appear during theTwelve Days of Christmas,when they overseespinning.[2][3]

Grimm says Perchta or Berchta was known "precisely in those Upper German regions where Holda leaves off, in Swabia, in Alsace, in Switzerland, in Bavaria and Austria."[4]

According toErika Timm,Perchta emerged from an amalgamation of Germanic and pre-Germanic, probablyCeltic,traditions of the Alpine regions after theMigration Periodin theEarly Middle Ages.[5]

Names of Perchta

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Perchta had many different names depending on the era and region: Grimm listed the namesPerahtaandBerchteas the main names (in his heading), followed byBerchtain Old High German, as well asBehrtaandFrau Perchta.InBaden,Swabia,Switzerlandand Slovenian regions, she was often calledFrau Faste(the lady of theEmber days) orPehtaor 'Kvaternica', inSlovene.Elsewhere she was known asPosterli,QuatembercaandFronfastenweiber.[6]

The mother of theFranksemperorCharlemagnemay have had a related albeit unwitted influence, as it did the Visigoth queenBrunhildaon her own, into its medieval folklore,Bertha or Berthradawas said to be of long and wide feet, in effect taller than her husband called precisely, Pippinthe Shortand may have been the reason why Charlemagne inherited from her his unusual height.

In southernAustria,inCarinthiaamong the Slovenes, a male form of Perchta was known asQuantembermann,in German, orKvaternik,in Slovene (the man of the fourEmber days). Grimm thought that her male counterpart or equivalent isBerchtold.[7]

Regional variations of the name includeBerigl,Berchtlmuada,Perhta-Baba,Zlobna Pehta,Bechtrababa,Sampa,Stampa,Lutzl,Zamperin,Pudelfrau,ZampermuattaandRauweib.

Description

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In some descriptions, Perchta has twoforms;she may appear either as beautiful and white as snow like her name, or as elderly and haggard.

In many old descriptions, Perchta had one large foot, sometimes called a goose foot or swan foot. Grimm thought the strange foot symbolized her being a higher being who couldshapeshiftto animal form. He noticed that Bertha with a strange foot exists in many languages (Middle German "Berhte mit dem fuoze", French "Berthe au grand pied", Latin "Berhta cum magno pede", Italian "Berta dai gran piè", title of a medieval epic poem of Italian area): "It is apparently aswan maiden's foot, which as a mark of her higher nature she cannot lay aside...and at the same time the spinning-woman's splayfoot that worked thetreadle".[8]

In the Tyrol, she appears as a little old woman with a very wrinkled face, bright lively eyes, and a long hooked nose; her hair is dishevelled, her garments tattered and torn.[9]

Traditional narratives

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Initially, Perchta was the upholder of cultural taboos, such as the prohibition againstspinningon holidays.[10]In the folklore ofBavariaandAustria,Perchta was said to roam the countryside at midwinter, and to enter homes during the twelve days between Christmas and Epiphany (especially on theTwelfth Night). She would know whether the children and young servants of the household had behaved well and worked hard all year. If they had, they might find a small silver coin the next day, in a shoe or pail. If they had not, she would slit their bellies open, remove their stomach and guts, and stuff the hole with straw and pebbles. She was particularly concerned to see that girls had spun the whole of their allotted portion offlaxor wool during the year.[9]She would also slit people's bellies open and stuff them with straw if they ate something on the night of her feast day, other than the traditional meal of fish and gruel.[4][9]

The cult of Perchta, under which followers left food and drink forFraw Perchtand her followers in the hope of receiving wealth and abundance, was condemned in Bavaria in theThesaurus pauperum(1468)[citation needed]and byThomas Ebendorfervon Haselbach inDe decem praeceptis(1439).

Later canonical and church documents characterized Perchta as synonymous with other leading female spirits:Holda,Diana,Herodias,RichellaandAbundia.[11]

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APerchtenmask

Grimm thoughtHoldais her equivalent while theWeiße Frauenmay derive directly from Berchta in her white form.

The wordPerchtenis plural forPerchta,and this has become the name of her entourage, as well as the name of animal masks worn in parades and festivals in the mountainous regions of Austria. In the 16th century, the Perchten took two forms: Some are beautiful and bright, known as theSchönperchten( "beautiful Perchten" ). These come during the Twelve Nights and festivals to "bring luck and wealth to the people." The other form is theSchiachperchten( "ugly Perchten" ) who have fangs, tusks and horse tails which are used to drive out demons and ghosts. Men dressed as the ugly Perchten during the 16th century and went from house to house driving out bad spirits.[12][13]

Sometimes,der Teufelis viewed as the mostschiach( "ugly" )PerchtandFrau Perchtaas the mostschön( "beautiful" )Percht.

Perchtais also the Queen of theHeimchen.[14]

Interpretations

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According toJacob Grimm(1882), Perchta was spoken of inOld High Germanin the 10th century asFrau Berchtaand thought to be a white-robed goddess who oversaw spinning and weaving, like the myths ofHolda.He believed she was the feminine equivalent ofBerchtold,and was sometimes the leader of theWild Hunt.However, John B. Smith disagrees and suggests that Perchta represents the personification of the feast of the Epiphany (Perchta's Day), and is therefore not pre-Christian.[15]

Perchta was also depicted in very well known Slovene filmKekecas 'teta Pehta',the old woman living in the mountains that supposedly steals children and knows how to use medicinal plants.

Modern celebrations

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In contemporary culture, Perchta is portrayed as a "rewarder of the generous, and the punisher of the bad, particularly lying children".[15]

Today in Austria, particularlySalzburg,where she is said to wander throughHohensalzburg Castlein the dead of night,[16]the Perchten are still a traditional part of holidays and festivals (such as the CarnivalFastnacht). The wooden animal masks made for the festivals are today calledPerchten.[13]

In thePongauregion of Austria large processions ofSchönperchten( "beautiful Perchten" ) andSchiachperchten( "ugly Perchten" ) are held every winter. Beautiful masks are said to encouraging financial windfalls, and the ugly masks are worn to drive away evil spirits.[17]

Other regional variations include theTrestererin the AustrianPinzgauregion, the stilt dancers in the town ofUnken,theSchnabelperchtorSchnabelperchten( "trunked Percht" ) in theUnterinntalregion and theGlöcklerlaufen( "bell-running" ) in theSalzkammergut.A number of largeski-resortshave turned the tradition into atouristattraction drawing large crowds every winter.

See also

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References

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  1. ^Mogk according to Natko.
  2. ^Grimm 1882.
  3. ^Motz according to Hilton 1984.
  4. ^abGrimm 1882,p. 272.
  5. ^Timm according to Natko.
  6. ^Ginzburg.
  7. ^Grimm 1882,p. 279.
  8. ^Grimm 1882,pp. 280–281.
  9. ^abcFrazer 1920:240.
  10. ^Smith, John B. (2004). "Perchta the Belly-Slitter and Her Kin: A View of Some Traditional Threatening Figures, Threats and Punishments".Folklore.115(2): 167–186.doi:10.1080/0015587042000231264.JSTOR30035166.S2CID216643443.
  11. ^Grimm 1882,pp. 283–288.
  12. ^Frazer 1920:242-243
  13. ^abWagner 2007.
  14. ^Ludwig Bechstein:Deutsches Sagenbuch.Meersbusch, Leipzig 1930, p. 377.
  15. ^abHopkin, David (2000)."Folklore and the Historian".The Folklore Historian.Vol. 17. Simon Bronner.Pennsylvania State University– viaGoogle Books.
  16. ^Herbert, Vivian (1908)."The Perchten Dancers of Salzburg".The Wide World Magazine.Vol. 21 – viaGoogle Books.
  17. ^Gallon, Stephanie (18 December 2014)."Christmas Demons II - Krampus and Perchta".International Gothic Association.Archived fromthe originalon 6 May 2016.

Bibliography

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Sources

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  • Frazer, Sir James George. 1920.The Golden Bough. A Study in Magic and Religion.IX. Part 6. "The Scapegoat", pages 240–243. Macmillan & Co. (Facsimili Elibron Classics, 2005)ISBN1-4021-8348-8.(Online). File retrieved May 18, 2007.
  • Mogk, Eugen.1907.Germanische Mythologie
  • Müller, Felix and Ulrich. 1999. "Percht und Krampus, Kramperl und Schiach-Perchten." Wunderlich, Werner (Ed.): Mittelalter-Mythen 2. Dämonen-Monster-Fabelwesen. St. Gallen, S. 449–460. (Online, German) File retrieved May 18, 2007.
  • Timm, Erika. 2003.Frau Holle, Frau Percht und verwandte Gestalten: 160 Jahre nach Grimm aus germanistischer Sicht betrachtet.
  • Wagner, Alexander. 2007.Perchtenläufe: Salzburg's Pagan Heritage.(Online) File retrieved May 18, 2007.
  • Waschnitius, Viktor. 1913.Perht, Holda und verwandte Gestalten: ein Beitrag zur deutschen Religionsgeschichte.Sitzungsberichte der Akademie der Wissenschaften in Wien, Philosophisch-Historische Klasse.

Further reading

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  • Media related toPerchtaat Wikimedia Commons
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