Read on Twitter
I got all intrigued today about Christmas in Iceland. Specifically, the fact that they have 13 Santas. One of whom steals sausages. @Scanditwitchen told me so it must be true
https://twitter.com/Scanditwitchen/status/1332237767280046080
https://twitter.com/Scanditwitchen/status/1332237767280046080
In the UK we have just one Santa who comes down our chimney and gives presents to the good kids. Yawn. I want more excitement in my life, so join me on a Twitter thread journey to find out about the 13 Santas of Iceland.
First things first. I was just curious and so Googled this stuff and read the first few things. If you are from Iceland or actually know about this stuff, I apologise and do feel free to chip in with genuine experience and corrections ok thanks
Second thing (and this is important) The 13 Santas are known as...
THE YULE LADS.
For real. And here's the deal…
(I don't know who needs to know this but I went down a bit of a rabbit hole)
THE YULE LADS.
For real. And here's the deal…
(I don't know who needs to know this but I went down a bit of a rabbit hole)
Kids in Iceland put a shoe on their bedroom windowsill every evening on the 13 days before Christmas. Then, each night, one the the YULE LADS pays a visit and will leave sweets or a little present (in the shoe, I guess) - if the kid has been good.
If the kid has been naughty, get this. They get left a ROTTING POTATO. (This is an excellent new warning to my kids, thanks @thisisiceland )
Anyway. Each Yule Lad has different things he does, and will behave in different ways. If you think things were cool up to this point, strap yourselves in for the real greatness… Let's meet them in what I think is the order they visit your house and drop stuff into kids's shoes
(We'll do the Icelandic name and the English translation according to Wikipedia. Pics pinched from here: https://www.iceland.is/the-big-picture/news/celebrating-christmas-with-13-trolls/7916/)
12 December: Stekkjarstaur. The Sheep-Cote Clode. He will harass your sheep, but isn't very good at it sometimes because he has peg legs. I have not looked into what happened to his legs. Pictured here with regular legs?
13 December: Giljagaur. The Gully Hawk. He will hide in a gully and wait for the perfect opportunity to swoop into your cowshed and steal your milk. Cow not a-moooooo-sed.
14 December: Stúfur. Stubby. He's really short, and will steal your pans to eat the crusts left on them. Let this be a warning to do your washing up before going to bed, people. Looks happy enough with his lot.
15 December: Þvörusleikir. Spoon-licker. Obvioulsy he steals and licks your wooden spoons (after you've been baking, I assume). Apparently he's extremely thin due to only living off spoon leftovers. That tongue...
16 December: Pottaskefill. Pot-scraper. He'll knick your leftover pots. Very shifty looking.
17 December: Askasleikir. Bowl-licker. This one will HIDE UNDER YOUR BED and wait for you leave your bowls unattended, before stealing them. Almost look ashamed here.
18 December: Hurðaskellir. Door Slammer. In a behaviour that would scare us all, he likes to slam doors during the middle of the night to wake people up. Which is particulary mean. Devious.
19 December: Skyrgámur. Skyr-Gobbler. Skyr is like yogurt, and this guy loves it so much he'll eat your entire stock of it. It will get all over his beard and be a nightmare to get out. Serves him right.
20 December: Bjúgnakrækir. Sausge-swiper. Unbelievably, this fellow will HIDE IN YOUR RAFTERS AND STEAL ANY SAUSAGES THAT ARE BEING SMOKED. This would make me cry. Also those sausages are huge, so who can blame him for wanting them.
21 December: Gluggagægir. Window-peeper. Looks through your windows keeping an eye out for something to steal. Creep.
22 December: Gáttaþefur. Doorway sniffer. Has a massive nose and will use it to sniff out your bread. If you've been baking sourdough bread during lockdown, be warned ( #topical)
23 December: Ketkrókur. Meat Hook. Will steal your meat using his meat hook. Unsure if he comes to leave presents/potatoes if your kids are vegetarian/vegan
24 December: Kertasníkir. Candle-Stealer. Will follow children around and steal their candles. These candles used to be edible, made of beef or mutton fat, apparently. Fat candles not pictured?
And so there you have it. 13 trolls, essentially, who will steal all your good stuff - but also check in on your kids to see if they've been naughty or nice. A lot of it sounds like the stuff of nightmares, but I love this mythology, it's so much more fun than the story we tell
BONUS CHARACTER! The Christmas Cat. Fuck yeah.
Traditionally, everyone in Iceland must receive a new bit of clothing or else they will find themselves...
IN MORTAL DANGER.
Traditionally, everyone in Iceland must receive a new bit of clothing or else they will find themselves...
IN MORTAL DANGER.
The giant black cat will prowl around Iceland on Christmas eve and EAT ANYONE WHO DOESN'T GET NEW CLOTHES.
Frightening. https://grapevine.is/icelandic-culture/art/2008/12/10/the-christmas-cat/
Frightening. https://grapevine.is/icelandic-culture/art/2008/12/10/the-christmas-cat/
And so there you have it. Christmas in Iceland. At least I found all that interesting and mildly amusing.
I did find this much better write up of all this on Medium if you want even more history and info about this
https://medium.com/@rinelson1805/the-thirteen-yule-lads-of-iceland-457087c1a533
I did find this much better write up of all this on Medium if you want even more history and info about this
https://medium.com/@rinelson1805/the-thirteen-yule-lads-of-iceland-457087c1a533
