Perchta

, 1910 or ('Bertha'; ), also commonly known as ( ) and other variations, was thought to be a goddess in Alpine paganism in the Upper German and also Austrian and Slovenian regions of the Alps. The Perchta/Berchta lore holds sway "precisely [in the areas] where Holda leaves off", thus complementing each other. For Perchta is often identified as stemming from the same Germanic goddess as Holda and other female figures of Germanic folklore (see Frija-Frigg). They both oversee spinning, share the role of guardian of woodland beasts. Perchta is Holda's southern cousin or equivalent, as they both share and appear during the Twelve Days of Christmas.

, 1910 ]] or ('Bertha'; ), also commonly known as ( ) and other variations, was thought to be a goddess in Alpine paganism in the Upper German and also Austrian and Slovenian regions of the Alps. The Perchta/Berchta lore holds sway "precisely [in the areas] where Holda leaves off", thus complementing each other. For Perchta is often identified as stemming from the same Germanic goddess as Holda and other female figures of Germanic folklore (see Frija-Frigg). They both oversee spinning, share the role of guardian of woodland beasts. Perchta is Holda's southern cousin or equivalent, as they both share and appear during the Twelve Days of Christmas. There is a similar wandering spirit Lucia in eastern Central Europe and the north (Scandinavia). In Austria, Lucy's day for warding off the witch is celebrated mostly in the states of Burgenland and Niederösterreich. This being falls under the framework of the Lutzelfrau=Lucia conflation, associated with Sankt Lucia (Saint Lucy of Syracuse) and denoting a "luminous" ( ) entity. She is also locally called In Czechia, she is known as , , or In Slovene, this Perchta-like mask entity is called . The name or has also been considered a local variant, and it has been suggested that Pudelfrau may be just a corruption of Lutzelfrau. It has been proposed that the dark mythical feminine figure "Percht" was eventually "displaced or replaced" by the "Lucia". And some commentators prefer to classify the aforementioned Lutzl (and Pudelfrau ) as aliases of Perchta, while others prefer to compare the Lutzelfrau and Pudelfrau to be more akin to each other. Grimm argued there are many parallels between Holda and the mythical Berta/Bertha to consider, while the may derive directly from Berchta in her white form. Grimm also pointed to parallels between Holda, Diana, Herodias, and Abundia as parallels. Grimm regards Perchta as "bright" or "shining", hence argues parallel to moon goddess Selene aka Lucina or Luna, and therefore to Artemis (Diana). Perchta is also the Queen of the Heimchen, according to the lore of Thuringia. Perchta is closely similar to Latin and Greek Faun and other mythological figures such as Krampus. (alt url) Accessed 30 Dec. 2022. (online via scribd) (html frame markup, section "Perchta, Perechta, Peruchta, Parychta, Šperechta")

Further reading

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.

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