Swiss folklore
26 entries in the Swiss Folklore compendium.
Swiss folkloreSwiss folklore blends alpine customs with centuries of cultural crossroads.BerchtoldstagAlemannic holiday near New Year's Day, observed since the 14th century.Bundle DayUnofficial Swiss holiday marking the start of summer vacation.ChalandamarzSpring festival marking the end of winter in Grisons.CowbellA bell worn by livestock for tracking, with ancient origins and modern uses.Eis-zwei-GeissebeiSwiss Carnival festival with food thrown from town hall windows.Île de PeilzOne of the few natural islands in Lake Geneva, rich in legend and literary ties.KlausjagenSwiss festival blending pagan roots with Christianized Saint Nicholas traditions.Liturgical year in SwitzerlandSwiss liturgical year blends Christian feasts with local folk customs.NarrenmarschMarch music played at Fastnacht celebrations.PerchtaAmbivalent Alpine goddess of spinning, winter, and moral enforcement.Pre-Christian Alpine traditionsAncient Alpine customs blending pagan and Christian influences.Ranz des VachesTraditional Swiss Alpine cattle call linked to nostalgia.SamichlausEarly Christian bishop whose gift-giving legend inspired Santa Claus.SegenGerman term for blessing, charm, prayer, or spell.SilvesterklausMasked Swiss figure celebrating New Year's Eve in Appenzell.SteinstossenSwiss variant of stone put, practiced since prehistoric times.Swabian-Alemannic FastnachtPre-Lenten carnival of Alemannic folklore in Central Europe.Swiss national sportsThree traditional Swiss sports: wrestling, stone throwing, and Hornussen.TatzelwurmAlpine dragon with a cat's face and serpentine body.William TellLegendary Swiss folk hero and enduring symbol of resistance.TürstDreadful huntsman of Lucerne folklore, feared in stormy weather.Valais MonsterFerocious beast that attacked herds in Valais, Switzerland, from 1946.Wild manMythical hairy human of medieval European art and folklore.Arnold von WinkelriedLegendary Swiss hero who sacrificed himself at the Battle of Sempach.Heinrich von WinkelriedMedieval knight whose legend made him a dragonslayer.
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