Belsnickel

Etymology
Certainly a compound of some /bɛls/ syllable plus a diminutive/hypocorism of the name ; the first component is conventionally viewed as (pelt/fur), but the homophony involved with pelts (furs/Bels/pels) and pelting (belting/beating/belse/pelzen) is evidenced in all of these Germanic languages (English, Pennsylvania German, and some German dialects) and cannot be excluded as an influence on the overlapping notions of Belsnickel as a pelt-clad figure who pelts naughty children. For example, some Rhenish dialects have pelzen or belzen, "to wallop or to drub", and Pennsylvania German has belse, "to beat/flog".

Proper noun

 * 1) A  in some Germanophone regions, with various cultural roles, including rewarding well-behaved children with gifts and punishing ill-behaved children by corporal punishment or by spiriting them away from their homes. Homologous with Krampus in other regions.
 * 2) St. Nicholas.
 * 3) Santa Claus.
 * 1) Santa Claus.