Haman

Chief antagonist of the Book of Esther, an Agagite noble elevated by King Ahasuerus to highest rank in the Persian court. Enraged when Mordecai the Jew refused to bow to him, Haman plotted genocide against all Jews in the empire, casting lots (purim) to determine the date and deceiving the king into authorizing the massacre. Queen Esther exposed his treachery, and he was hanged on the very gallows he had built for Mordecai. As an Agagite (Amalekite descendant), Haman represents the perpetual enemy of Israel—his attempt to destroy them instead brought his own destruction. His downfall is celebrated annually at Purim, where his name is drowned out with noisemakers and eaten symbolically in Hamantaschen pastries.